It Doesn't Get Much Better Than This!

So today was a good one. A lazy, agenda free, good Saturday. It was a no alarm clock, do a little cleaning, play in the backyard kind of day. It was a long nap for Clark which = driving range for daddy and an extra long bath and book reading for mommy kind of day. We even spent the evening at the orchard with playground playing and apple pie eating followed by dinner out. I just enjoyed the whole day spent with my boys. I know that our lazy days are numbered so we soaked this one up. These are the days I hope I never forget- the nothing special but time with each other kind of days.

LOVE these boys so much!!

Teacher Talk Thursday- Testing Edition

I don't know about you, but we are getting ready for state testing here in the Bluegrass State. My third graders have 10 days coming up of showing off all of the things we have learned this year. YES- 10 DAYS!This time of year is nerve racking time for me as I have no control over what my kids write down on the test, my hope is that they remember some of the stuff we have gone over and put fourth their best effort. 10 days of testing is a whole lot when you are 29, let alone when you are 9!

So to help them stay motivated the duration our tested grades (3-5) are teamed up with a non-tested grade (k-2) as testing buddies. The buddies provide motivators for our kids such as cards, posters, notes and cheers. We have a testing pep rally this Friday where we will have a motivating guest speaker and a pep talk for all our kids. Once the pep rally is over we return to our classrooms and they have usually been decorated by our testing buddies and they are there waiting for us to cheer us on! The kids really love this. But to keep the motivation going throughout the 10 day period we have little motivators for them each day. Our testing pal class this year is a 2nd grade class. The teacher and I worked to come up with some cute little treats for the kids. Here are some examples of what we have come up with so far.
(These are pictures with my phone again- not best quality)

Kisses
Don't be nervous! Give your all on the test.
Have a KISS because you are truly the best!!

Smarties
Be a SMARTIE on the test.
Do your best today!!



Chocolate Covered Eggs
We know you will do an EGGellent job today if you give 100%.



Extra Gum
Give a little EXTRA on the test today.

Lifesavers
Don't forget to use your Open Response attack skills.
They can be LIFESAVERS.

Airheads
Use your head. Don't leave any blanks!

Berry Fruit Snacks
You are doing BERRY well. Keep up the good work!!



Starburst
Be a testing STAR today! We know you can do it.

We printed the little notes on card stock and put them in cute little baskets. One of her kids will deliver the treats each morning before we begin the test. I know it is candy and not super healthy, but the kids really love feeling like someone cares about how they do on the test. We have 3 more days to come up with and we are thinking bananas one morning with something like "Don't let testing drive you bananas- give your best today!". Our PTO also provides FREE breakfast each morning to all kids in testing grades. So hopefully with pep talks, full bellies and special treats- (OH YEA- and all the WONDERFUL things I have taught them this year) they will be ready to do their best on the test!

What kinds of things go on in your building during testing?

HAPPY THURSDAY!

My Inner Bakerella.

I am the most un-Bakerella person I know. I am THE WORST cook and baker in the county I am sure of it. I have a few things I can make and Clark thinks I make the best macaroni and cheese so I guess that is all that matters. I wish I was more talented in this area, but it is a skill I am lacking. My own mother is one of the best cooks I know and although I did inherit many of her talents, the sewing and cooking gene was not passed on to me. BUMMER. I LOVE to read cooking and baking blogs and see all the lovely creations you all  create all the while drooling and wishing I had the talent. So when a cookie decorating class was offered at my school, I was the first to sign up in hopes that my lost baking skills would magically appear. Well- the class was fun, I did impress myself, but I don't think I will be quitting my day job.

Saturday a group of my teacher friends from school got together with a local Bakerella type and made some yummy creations. We met at school and she provided all the materials and gave us some quick lessons. Our end result was a beautiful cookie bouquet and I have still not let my boys eat ours because it is like art to me. I still can't believe that I made it! It was so much fun and I hope that we do it again soon. Here are some pictures to prove that I had some part in the yummy goodness.

Some of the lovely ladies I work with each day.

What we started with.

As you can see, I had to concentrate very hard.

Our lovely instructor- this girl is GOOD.

My first cake pop experience.

I was probably WAY to into it.

My cute little cake pop eggs.

My box of finished goodies ready to go home.

My finished creation.
So stinkin' cute if I do say so myself.

Breaking THE NEWS to My Class.

This morning I broke the news to my class! I thought about it all Spring Break about what I wanted to do. I have not been to creative in how I have told anyone else about the duo so I thought I would try to be creative with my third graders. So this morning we did a scavenger hunt. I thought about some possible clues this past week, but did not put it all together until this morning while they were working on their morning work. (Last minute- I know)
After morning work, I had my student teacher take them to the restroom while I hid all the clues. When they came back the hunt began!! I was so nervous that my hands were shaking!
Here was how it went:

I had them all look under their chairs for the 1st clue!

CLUE #1

Clue #2 being located.

CLUE #2

Looking for #3.

He needed some help finding it!
Finally it was found.

CLUE #3
(Notice the clue of Double Mint Gum)

The hiding spot.

He found it!

CLUE #4

Clue #5 has been found!

CLUE #5.
(Should read Be careful AND look- whoops!)

The book we were looking for!

LAST CLUE!
This one was sooo much fun.
Once they found out they were so cute!! I wish I had a picture of the expressions- mine included!
After I broke the news I had TWINKIES for everyone!

Then we read the book.
(Me looking LARGE)

So happy to have shared the news!

It was so much fun! I loved sharing this news with them. I have already gotten some really good name suggestions so far- Romeo &; Juliet, Luke &; Leia, Ramona &; Beazus! ha! We shall see.

Breakfast with the Ponies.

Saturday we woke up much earlier than I would have liked but it was for good reason. We made our way to one of our favorite places- KEENELAND. This was a little different trip than we were used to. Keeneland is a horse race track in Lexington where during live meets Mr. Snyder and I spent lots of time in college. I worked there as a mutual clerk and we loved spending weekends tailgating and hanging out with friends. Saturday we decided to take our little man to the track to check out the ponies. During live meets it is soooo crowded and not an easy place to take a wild two year old, but they do have a fun event on Saturdays called Breakfast with the Works. This is child geared and we decided to give it a try. However, it begins at 7:00 am! So our alarm went off super early and we headed to the race track for breakfast and horses. It was a fun set up with lots of fun things for kids and there were kids everywhere. We had a great morning and Clark loved it- he ran around like a wild pony and talked about the horses the whole way home. It is defiantly something we will be doing again and was a great addition to our Spring Break adventures. Here are some pictures to show how much fun we had on an early Saturday morning.