Organization, Candy Hearts, and a Freebie Game

Today started quite early for me.  4:15 to be exact.  I woke up and since I was awake, I decided to roll with it.  By 8:00, I felt like I had already worked a full day.  I created two new freebies, blogged, and oh, got ready in 18 minutes (with a shower, ironing, and actually wearing cute clothes).  Yes, I know that sounds a little crazy, but the 18 minutes is because I was determined that I was going to blog :)  

Anyway, I get in my car and start driving to school and it is pouring down rain.  Usually, that wouldn't be a big deal.  However, I had poster board and four new seats in my car to deliver to my classroom.  I don't know about you guys, but the idea of unloading a trunk load of bulky stuff is just not my idea of fun on a rainy morning.  I decided on my twenty minute drive that I would just have to pull up to the front to make unloading a little easier.  Fortunately for me, God blessed me with two angels named Wanda and Sheila.  By the time I parked my car and walked to the building, Wanda had moved ALL of my stuff inside and Sheila had found a cart for me.  In my world, this is what teamwork and heroes look like!  They were AMAZING!!!!

So, now I'm sure your question is, "Exactly why do I have all of this randomness?"  Well, remember me mentioning my little project?  It started a few weeks ago.  I have a table in the middle of my room that is a great spot for working with my kiddos.  Well, I also have a TA who is the greatest person in the world.  She does ALL (Yes, I mean ALL) the things I hate to do.  A lot of times that means she needs the table which means I no longer have a spot to work and I don't stay as focused on small groups as I probably should.

I started trying to come up with a solution and an idea popped into my head - "What if I could get rid of my desk and get a table instead?"  I loved the idea, but that presented a new set of problems.  The two things I was most concerned about was if it was going to end up too close to my Activboard and what was I going to do with everything in my drawers.  Well, I thought it through and figured out how to do it.  I'm pretty certain that the people I told thought I may regret my bold move.  

Once I had the logistics figured out, I sent an email to our bookkeeper a.k.a. Johnny on the spot.  I had the table by 3:00 on Tuesday.  I immediately began emptying my desk, called a few custodians, and started my entry into the desk-free world.  It was honestly bittersweet because I get very attached to things :)  So, now I am ready to share pictures with you guys.  I have to say, I think that my room is even more organized and today was such a great experience.  I was constantly calling kids up to sit with me.  The best part is I got 4 more black ottomans from Target.  The top of the seats come off, so I can store stuff inside.  They are super comfortable and the adults kids LOVE sitting on them.  

Now that I've told you all about my room, I have a new product and a new freebie to share with you.  The new product is my Candy Heart Fun.  I bought all of my kids boxes of candy hearts to use with these task cards.  This way, we can celebrate Valentine's Day, but still make sure we are covering our standards.  If you click on the picture, it will take you to my store to check it out.  

I also made a little freebie Valentine game.  Last month, I did it for Groundhog Day, so I thought I'd do it for Valentine's Day since it's a favorite in my classroom.  This time, I made a version that's color and black and white.  The colored one, you could laminate and reuse.  The black and white ones are for the kids to color and create their own look.  My kids this year love little games they can take home, so I thought this would be a fun one for everyone.  If you like it, click on the pictures to go download the game.

Hope everyone has a great night!  I will do my best to post pics of the Valentine Dance decorations tomorrow night.  I am so excited!