To the Best Friend I Met in College

Dear Best Friend,

We cannot say we have known each other forever or grew up together. We do not have memories of running around outside or memories from elementary school or high school. I cannot definitely say
that we have made up for the lost time both with laughs and tears.

I used to be jealous of the people who had a best friend you always saw them with. They seemed to just understand each other and be attached at the hip. I never had a friend like this until I met you.

From the first time I walked across the hall and into your dorm we just clicked. We joke that I walked into your room and never left, but I honestly never remember a time when it was awkward. We just understood each other and I mean we also had 18 years of information to share. From this point on I remember studying together, eating together, and just sitting together.

We just clicked. We were both freshmen and we were both very homesick. We had similarities, but we also had things that were completely different. I do not know if I would have made it through college without you. We were pretty lucky that we had the same major, so we had a ton of classes together so we always had a built-in study buddy.   

We got to visit hometowns together. Hear all of the crazy growing up stories. We laughed together. We also cried together. We went through some of the most exciting parts of life together. We also experienced heartbreak together.

I could not imagine my college years without you. Sometimes it is so weird thinking we have known each other for four and a half years because we spent so much time together and are so close. We could probably tell people stories about each other that we were not a part of and they would never know.

I finally understand the people who had a best friend that they could do everything with because I have you. I am glad that for the rest of my life I will have someone that I can talk to about the small things, funny things, milestones, and heartbreaks. I know that you will not judge and that you will always be on my side. I am thankful for your friendship because I do not know where I would be without you.

Love,
Your Best Friend

Must Have Kitchen Items

I have been living on my own for four and a half months and that means I have been cooking for myself. In this time I have found a few things that I would consider must haves. They have made my life more easy and my food delicious.

1) Crockpot- I love, love, love my Crockpot. I have made meat in it and a soup. It is nice being able to throw things in and let it cook up for several hours.

2) Knives- Invest in a set of knives and make sure you have a set. You will be cooking and realize you need more than one knife.

3) Cutting Board- Get yourself a good, big cutting board that you can use to prep food.

4) Tupperware- Cooking for one means I have leftovers. Get some good tupperware of different sizes and ones that are microwave safe. These will make your life even easier.

5) Measuring Cups- Even if you do not plan to cook a lot. You will eventually need to measure things that you are going to eat.

I think those would be my top five kitchen must-haves.

Lifestyle Quotes

These are just some quotes that I thought could inspire others.

Dear Mom & Dad

Dear Mom & Dad, 

Thank you for loving me and protecting me from the moment you knew I existed. I wish that every child could say that, but sadly in this world, we cannot. Thank you for making sacrifices so that I could grow up having the things I needed. Thank you for making those sacrifices so mom could stay home with me when I was growing up.

Thank you for cheering at my soccer, volleyball, basketball, and softball games. And for my mom anything else that I was ever a part of. You guys have been a constant place of support. I knew I could always have a hug after an amazing win or a heartbreaking loss. 

You loved me enough to deal with me through injuries which, were not fun for any of us. You were willing to get ice, Tylenol, and food. You dealt with my tears of pain and frustration, while constantly telling me that I would be okay. 

Thank you for wholeheartedly supporting me in anything I wanted to do. You always were very supportive of my busy schedule. 

Thank you for being my chauffeur and then my free car rental service. My movers for college and my first apartment. For being the hotline I can call when I realize that there are some adult things I cannot figure out on my own. 

My final thank you will be for something anyone who knew three-year-old me would have never thought I would be saying. Thank you for giving me a brother. You always said we would be stuck together forever and I am thankful for that. You gave me someone to play with growing up and now someone who is a very good friend. 

I love you both with all my heart and could not imagine having anyone else as my parents. 

Love, 

Your Little Girl 

Planner Person

I am a complete and total planner person. Over the years I have tried many different planners. I have tried weekly layouts, timetable layouts, desk calendars, etc. I love having the ability to write things down and visually see what I need to do. It helps me feel on top of things and it is how I keep calm and try to not lose track of things.

This November I began thinking about what type of planner I was going to for 2018. In the past I was a college student and then in the begining of the 2017 I was student teaching. This means I was carrying a backpack around with me and had a lot of assignments to keep track of. This changed after I graduated college. I still have dates to keep track of, but I do not as many things to keep track of.

I have always been a writing things down person, but I decided to make the jump into using GoogleCalendar. As an adult I realized that people would ask me about dates and if I was free. Sometimes I would not have my planner with me because of this I decided to make the switch. So far it is going great. I have my phone with me pretty much all the time so I am able to check dates and things. I can also input things in right away.

Some of the features that are amazing are you can color cordinate things. Right now I color cordinate my work calendar and personal calendars. You can also have people use different colors and sync calendars with family memebers. I really think if you are a planner person who is finding it is hard to have your planner with you all the time you should try GoogleCalendar.

Everyday Makeup

I am going to start by saying that my goal with makeup is to just highlight some of my features and to erase some of the other ones. I have two different looks that I would consider my everyday makeup and only one thing separates them. My other goal is that my makeup can be done in around ten minutes. 

I start with a foundation primer on my nose and chin. I also use a firming eye cream and put on some chapstick. After that, I use a CC cream all over my face. I do not like how heavy foundation is so this or a tinted moisturizer has been a great alternative. Then I go in with some powder. I do not want to look too oily. I consider this my base for my makeup. 

Now for some of the more fun parts of my makeup. I use a pink toned blush on the apples of my cheeks. I always feel like this makes me look more alive. Then I put on mascara to have a frame around my eyes and throw on some pink lipgloss. This would be the look I wear for work every day. 

If I am going somewhere on the weekend I will add some simple eyeshadow to my look. When I say simple eyeshadow I mean it. I do not really change it up to much. I start by taking a dark brown color and putting that in my crease. Then I take a light brown/gold shade and put that on my eyelid. That is all I do nothing to fancy. 

A-Z Teaching Tips

This article may be useful and a little fun. I am just going to hop right in. Just one quick disclaimer first, I am a first-year teacher so this is my knowledge from student teaching and my first few months.

A- Apples! Now you might be thinking that you will receive all of the apples in the world, but that is not what I am talking about! I am talking about the apple decor that you will see everywhere and think is the cutest thing ever (and they kind of are). Make sure you pick out one or two that are cute and then pass on the rest, you will receive many gifts from your students that you will want to display.

B- Bags! You will need bags for all of the things. They help keep together little manipulatives. They work for teeth that fall out, jewelry that breaks, talking things home, and where I live wet snow clothes. So just get yourself some bags, I put sandwich size and gallon size on my school supply list.

C- Clorox Wipes! These are amazing, from cleaning up paint and spills. I also use them if I have noticed sniffles or had kids that were sick. It is nice to know you are wiping away some of the germs.

D- Dice! They can be used for math, word work, grouping students, telling how many of something your students need to do. They work for a random number, but you still get some control over it.

E- Erasers! I do not know about you but I cannot stand the sound of erasing when there is no eraser left on a pencil. Therefore, I have big pink erasers and cap erasers for my students to use. It helps my sanity.

F- Fan! I do not know about you, but my school does not have air conditioning. That means having a fan in the room even if it is a small one makes things a little more bearable on some of those hot days.

G- Glue! All different types of glue, but there are also times you need to just break out the hot glue. If you are trying to glue pipe cleaners, beads, google eyes, etc. Save yourself the trouble and break out the hot glue gun and glue it for the students. This saves you listening to them wine.

H- Humor! Learn to laugh at yourself when you mess up. Tell your students funny things! Laugh when they do something funny. Those couple minutes of laughter will lift everyone's mood and build relationships.

I- Independence! It is okay for you to tell your students they can do something by themselves if it is realistic. It will save you so many headaches. You will also be helping them, in the long run, learn to do things by themselves.

J- Joy! Do not forget your why. Remember why you wanted to become a teacher. You will need it on some of the hard days. It will keep the joy in your teacher life.

K- Kindness! It is important to model kindness for your students. Saying excuse me or apologizing. When they see you do it, they know that it is not just something adults say.

L- Lesson Planner! Find a lesson planner that is cute and functional. It will help you want to look at it and read it. Ultimately no one can gift this to you as a surprise. You need to do the research and see what will fit you the best.

M- Minutes! It is okay to take a minute and pull yourself together. Take a deep breath. Turn off the lights and tell your students you are all going to sit quietly for a moment.

N- Notes! Write down everything or you will forget. Sometimes you need to remember something and then 3 students come to you with emergencies. Write even the smallest things down.

O- Organization! This is kind of like the planner. You need to figure out what will keep you organized and keep everything straight. You will have papers, manipulatives, and everything else you can imagine.

P- Pencils! Buy extra pencils. I do not know about you but my pencil sharpener is only allowed to be used until we start our first lesson of the day. I cannot deal with the sound all the time. Therefore, I bought some pencils with my own money and keep them sharpened for when one breaks.

Q- Quizzes! Not real quizzes, but you might need those too. My students love Kahoots! They are so engaged and I can even sneak in some math review.

R- Read Alouds! I do not care what age you teach. Try to find some time in your day to read to your students they love it.

S- Scissors! Invest in a good pair! It will be oh so worth it.

T- Tape! There is a time when glue does not just cut it.

U- Understanding! Sometimes you need to ask questions to understand where your students are coming from. They will suddenly say something and a light bulb will come on and you will get exactly what you are going to talk about.

V- Videos! Find educational clips. They are an instant engagement strategy. Bonus if there is a song. Students learn songs and never forget them.

W- Whiteboard Markers! Never turn down a whiteboard marker. You will use them all the time and it is important when your students can read what you are writing.

X- eXcitement! This may be cheating a little. But bring excitement into what you are doing it can turn the most dare I say boring lessons around.

Y- You! You are your students teacher and they love you. Share things about yourself, they will never forget! Also whatever you find cool and nice your students will take an interest in. Being yourself will be the way to make a connection with your students and to get them to buy in.

Z- Zzzz! Do not forget to take care of yourself and get rest. You can not be on top of your game if you are exhausted. In this one I will also include eat well, exercise, and make time in your schedule for self can even if it is only ten minutes.

Holiday Traditions

Holiday Traditions, everyone has them when you really think about it. People tend to be very protective of their holiday traditions which I completely understand. My parents are both teachers, this means that they get a nice chunk of time off during the holidays for family fun. So, we have at least a week during the holidays to soak in some family time.

I might as well get our first tradition out of the way (I know some of you may leave after reading this). My family (parents and brother) open Christmas on Christmas Eve (gasp). We would always go to Christmas Eve church, then get home and open presents. It also became a holiday tradition that my mom is normally trying to hurry up and wrap some gifts right before we open it. Another holiday tradition is the fact that my Dad has no idea what my Mom got for us. So, we always ask why he brought us certain gifts since he tries to take credit and he comes up with the best stories.

My mom and I also normally watch all the Christmas movies we can. We love watching Hallmark Christmas movies. I know they are all cheesy, but I will still watch them all. I also always have to watch my favorite Christmas movies, The Year without a Santa Claus. 

On Christmas, my family normally sleeps in and we all kind of wake up whenever. We spend the day being lazy, me in pajamas. We normally play a few rounds of cards and just enjoy the time spent together.

My last tradition is I try to not change out of my pajamas over Christmas Break at all cost. I only wear not pajamas if I am leaving the house. As in for a whole week if I can wear pajamas for 20 hours of the day I am very, very happy.

Our Christmas Traditions are not extravagant, but we get to celebrate the birth of our Savior and spend time together as a family. I would not trade them for anything.

Budgeting at 22!

So I graduated college in May and got my first real job. I moved out and took responsibility for so many more things than I had before. I feel like for this post to make sense you need to know a little bit about me.

Meet Me 

Like I said I am 22, but I am also a planner. I am constantly thinking about things in the future, which I know is not always good. Starting my senior year of college I started watching videos and researching budgeting and money management. I never wanted to wonder where the money for my rent or gas would come from. I also never wanted to worry if an emergency came up. I wanted to be financially stable.

As far as planning for the more distant future, I would like to stay home with my future children if that is at all possible. I do not want them to feel worried about anything financial when they are young (this does not mean getting whatever they want). With all of this in mind, I knew for my own peace of mind I needed to make a budget.

My Budget

I am not going to give any actual numbers, but I can tell you that I do not make a crazy amount of money. The goal of my budget was to cover all my needs, plan for the future, and be debt free. The debt I have right now is my student loans and there is definitely more than I wish I had.

With all that in mind and being a "new" adult, I decided using a cash-based system would be the best for me.

I started off with a written budget on paper and pencil. I looked at how much I would make (I get paid twice a month). Then I looked at when bills were due and the things that I needed to pay. I started by making two groups, what would come out of my middle of the month paycheck and what would come out of the end of the month paycheck.

Personally, I decided it was important for me to tithe, so that is the first thing that I took out of both of my paychecks. Then I made sure my rent (water included), electric, student loans, internet, car insurance, renters insurance, and life insurance were taken out. I also started setting money aside for retirement right away.

Next, I moved onto things that were also needs. I budgeted for my groceries and gas. I also made sure that I had money going into savings.

Finally, I took the rest of my money and divided it up into categories. You could make a general spending category, but it made me feel better to split it up. I put money in entertainment, home decor, clothes, gifts, personal hygiene, classroom and a fund for spending time with friends. Now, these budget categories are more fluid. I like having money set aside for these things because then it is not a huge expense. These categories can borrow money from one another. Let's say I want to buy craft supplies I do not have a specific craft area but I take it from these categories.

Let Me See the Money 

Every time I get paid I go to the bank with my check (my job does not direct deposit) and get out the amount of cash I need for my cash items. Things like rent, utilities, and student loans are kept in my account. I stuff the cash into my wallet (I made myself little dividers). Some of the things like insurances that are not monthly, I still take the amount I need per month and move it into my savings account.

So far this method has worked very well for me. My main goal is to get my student loans paid off. My two biggest tips which make this easier are budget money for you to be able to have little things (hobbies, clothes, coffee) and if the cash is not there you do not need to purchase it.

If you have any tips, questions, or need clarification leave a comment below.

December Must Haves

This is my list of a few of my favorite things to have in the month of December:

1) Fuzzy Socks/ Slippers- I live in a place that gets cold in the winter. Like below zero cold. It is nice to have fuzzy socks or slippers. The fuzzy socks can be worn with boots to keep your feet warm while you are doing different outdoor activities. They are also nice for walking around your house to keep you cozy.

2) Warm Drink- You will see I have a theme here of things that help keep you warm. My favorite warm drink is a peppermint mocha. Find your favorite warm drink there are many and enjoy it.

3) Blanket- Again this helps keep you super warm and cozy. It is also nice to go with Christmas Movies. You can curl up and put on movies and you will have a nice night.

4) Decorations- Find some Christmas Decorations. It will help you get into the holiday spirit. I am

not going to be at my apartment for Christmas and since I just moved I do not have many decorations, but it did not feel the same with no decorations. This does not have to be anything big, I found a mini fake Christmas tree. I got some small ornaments and now I have my own little festive Christmas area.

5) Christmas Movies- I love all the Christmas movies, including every single cheesy Hallmark movies. I love the entire season. Two of my favorites are The Year Without a Santa Claus and Elf. If you have not seen either of these you need to watch them as soon as possible.

6) Family Time- The holidays are about spending time with the people you love. Take time to play board games or watch a movie with your family. Before you know it you will all be in different places. Cherish the time you have with your loved ones.

7) Winter Boots- Again I live somewhere cold and the snow can be crazy. It is always good to have boots to you can venture to get the mail or just get to your car.

8) Long Coat- I just invested in this for this winter. I have a coat that goes down to my knees. On cold, windy wintery days this is a lifesaver.

Please leave your December must-haves in the comments below. I am always trying to find new things that can make December an even more enjoyable time.

My "Diet"

Yesterday you read about my fitness journey I have been on. Today I thought I would write a post to go along with that about my "diet". I put that in quotations because as I said previously I think about this as a lifestyle change. I do not think I could keep to a strict diet for the rest of my life. This means that while I am on a "diet" it is a little different than what other people may think.

I started my healthy eating in August when I started working out. When I got this started I did not have a ton of knowledge about diets and I still do not. My main focus was to make everyday decisions that would help me be healthier. This allowed it to be a lifestyle change. I do not restrict any type of food. If I want ice cream then I will eat ice cream. This might seem like a weird thing to say but I am going to leave some of my tips for my "diet".

1) Watch your portions. I have tried to be very careful about the amount of things I am eating. I focus on eating fruits and vegetables, along with protein. I still eat carbs because that is my favorite thing to eat. I also still eat dessert on occasion. I just make sure that I am eating the right portion. This means eating a tiny bowl of dessert instead of a ton of ice cream.

2) Make a plate. This is something that I have had to retrain myself to do. I do not bring bags, tubs, or containers of anything with me to eat. I make sure to put whatever I want to eat on a plate or bowl. Then I eat it so I do not mindlessly eat an entire family bag of chips.

3) Do not keep things in the house you do not want to eat. I make sure I do not buy things I do not want to put in my body. This means I do not buy chips or a lot of sweets. I still treat myself and have eaten these things, but I do not keep big portions of them in my apartment.

4) Think about the snacks you are eating. I try to consider substitutions I can make for healthier snacks. Instead of chips, I have tried snacking on vegetables. Instead of chips, I have switched to some rice cakes. Just try to think of small choices that are better than the day before. 

5) Drink more water! I have tried to cut out sugary drinks and I try to drink zero calorie drinks. Minus the occasional cup of coffee.

Just remember to make small choices every day that are healthier than the day before. Never get down on yourself for having a treat. You can't live your whole life eating one thing.

Christmas Parade

I accidentally missed day 2! I knew this was not going to be perfect so I am going to catch up and you get two posts today.

I moved to a new town in August and it is definitely a smaller town than the one I grew up in. This means that sometimes it has been harder to get out and do things because there are not a ton of things to do. This means that I have had to try harder to find things to do.

On Saturday, we had our towns Christmas' Parade. This was fun and the first Christmas Parade I had been to. There were a bunch of area groups and business that put together floats for the parade.

The church I attend also put on a live nativity and free soup dinner. It was fun to do something festive to get into the Christmas Spirit. I also had the opportunity to hang out with some of my co-workers which is always a good time.

Fitness Routine

Starting August 2017, I decided that I needed to take an effort to be more healthy in many areas of my life. I started thinking about the things that I could do now that would help me in the future. I am
not going to lie I had tried many times before to workout and I always stopped. I am going to explain a little bit of my history.

I started playing sports in 4th grade and I played all the way through my senior year of high school. I would pretty much be doing different things year around. Once I got into high school I was a three sport athlete. In the summer, I would do speed and agility camps, team camps, open gym, and weight lifting. This meant that I was naturally working out five to seven days a week. I was never the most happy with my body, but I mean I was pretty active. My junior year of high school during basketball season I had an injury to my foot. This caused me a lot of pain and to some extent causes me problems still.

Throughout college, I would try to work out and my foot would start bothering me and I would stop. Fast forward to August I finally decided I wanted to do this. Not just to lose weight which was a lot of motivation in the past, but to be heathier overall. Of course losing weight has happened, but it has been slow and I have been okay with it being sustainable.

Now you may be asking what I do to work out. I did something different this time I started out very slow to get my body back in shape. I started out taking walks. Then, I started doing some videos in my apartment that were indoor walking workouts. If you really try you can work up a sweat and trust me they will work. Then I tried more workouts that would not cause to much strain to my foot and side line me. I play volleyball once a week. I am currently doing a workout challenge with my best friend (if I like it I will tell you more about it). The other day when the weather was nice I went for a walk outside and I tried running a little and it went very well.

I try every day to get 30 minutes of activity. I think the most imposrtant thing you can do is to find workouts you enjoy and can do. They should definitely be challenging because the challenge helps you grow. I can also say in the begining you just need to force yourself to workout. Once you workout for a while it becomes part of your routine. Now I get to the point where I want to workout or I just feel weird. It is just about making these things routine.

The most important thing I can leave you with is even if you are just walking in place in front of the TV, moving is better than sitting there. You can do it. If you need encouragement, please contact me we can all use someone help encourage us.

Time Management

I am a first year teacher and for the first part of the school year I also coached volleyball. As many of you know teachers normally spend a lot of time working on school stuff. First year teachers it can be even more becasue you do not know the curriculum or have any ideas ready, you re starting from scratch. I think this is great becasue I am passionate about helping my students be the best they can be, but I also did not want my job to take over my entire life. I set some basic ground rules and done a few things that have helped me with that time management.

1) Keep work at work. Unless it is something I can mindlessly do in front of the TV I do not bring work home. I will stay at school later and do my work there. This helps with the teacher burnout you hear about. I need time to relax and just take care of myself.

2) Get to school early. My contract time requires me to be at school at 7:30. I get there at 7:00 and spend that half an hour really working on stuff before my contract requirements start.

3) I eat lunch in my room. I do not do this to be antisocial, but I have about 40 minute while my kids are at recess and lunch. I take the time to spend about 15 minutes in peace eating, then I spend the rest of the time working.

4) Be planned for the next week. I am completely planned for the next week before I leave school Fruday. I have planning time right away Monday morning so I begin planning for the following week. I start things that I know I will not skip and can begin planning.

5) This has a little to do for school, but more about time management in general. I cook a big meal Sunday and use it all week. I will cook a pan of chiecken and then I have it with dinners all week.

I hope some of these tips help you. I know these tips are not possible for everyone, but I hope you can take parts of them and they can help you.

'Tis the Season

I am going to try to blog every day in the month of December starting today (December 2) and ending on December 31. I am hoping this goes well and I can get a schedule. I love blogging, but I feel like I run out of ideas and do not know what to write.

For this first post, I am going to tell you my December Goals. I am going to keep this achievable and choose three goals. I will update you on the last day of this challenge. 

1) Continue on my healthy lifestyle choices. Starting in August I began to work out regularly and try to make better food choice. I am currently six days into a fifteen-day challenge. It is going pretty well and it has been a fun way to change up my workouts. I want to continue these decisions throughout the holidays when it can be a bit harder to do this.

2) Attempt to try to get out and socialize. I moved to a new city to start my teaching job. I want to continue to try to go out and do things in this area. I am perfectly happy being at home because I am a homebody, but I also need to try to find things to do.

3) This one should not be too surprising, but I want to try to blog every day in December. You guys will obviously see how this third one goes and I will update you on the rest.

I hope you have a blessed December! Please let me know if there are any posts that you want to see.