♥Theeeeee Antler Lamp ♥

Antler lamp I made for someone specail♥ with the help of my big bro and Daddy. I love how it turned out & guess what....it works!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

~ * ~Gingerbread Christmas Trees with the Kiddies @ School~ * ~

This year, instead of making the infamous Gingerbread houses we decided to avoid the whining and grumbling that usually occurs when constructing them and we took an easier route...Gingerbread Christmas trees made out of star shaped cookies...whining problem solved!  It was, from my prespective, a lot more fun, because it wasn't as time consuming and difficult to constuct for the children.  I took some photos to share with you...Enjoy. I hope you were all blessed with a joyous Christmas, surrounded by loved ones.

The first step was baking the cookies, which I did with my Early Years students. They did a great job, but unfortunately I didn't think of taking pics.:(

My sister made the paste for us that we used to glue them together and sooooooo the constructing began...

 This was most likely the students favorite part...getting a container of candy to decorate .....& eat :P

 & this is what the finished product looked like.

kola schutff....for lack of better things to update

From this...

to this...hand embriodered roses n swirls (click to enlarge & then click on photo again)

some of this years Christmas cards I made

When you feel overwhelmed...

Demands knock on my door.
Burdens beckon me to answer.
The to-do list stretches for miles.
I whisper, "I feel overwhelmed."
And in the stillness it seems I hear...
"Child, open your heart to Me instead of the demands of the day.
Lay those burdens at My feet, not on your shoulders.
Let go of your list and dare to embrace My grace.
I do not require you to be overwhelmed.
I enable you to overcome.
And with Me, you always will."

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

new shoes♥

I think relationships are like new shoes....at first you don't want to walk through the muddy waters but sooner or later you are faced with circumstances in which you have to dive in or walk away...Diving in n deafeating the muddy waters proves that the shoes were made for you and at the end of the day no matter what you've been through you still loooove those new shoes... :P♥


i know...i'm such an idiot :o)

~Adventures in Miss Melissa's Classroom ;)~

Welcome to My Classroom

To some it may not seem like much, but when I’m in my classroom I feel like I have a purpose. I feel like I’m doing something not only for myself, but for my students and my community. Yes, some days I want to scurry out at the end of the day without glimpsing back dreaming about days off which are nonexistent, as I’m well aware of. Some days I enjoy it so much I don’t want to leave. There are weeks that go by without a hitch and I feel like I’m doing something right. In those weeks/days teaching is almost easy, effortless so to speak, which leaves me blindsided and totally unprepared for the upcoming weeks that do not turn out to well. In these weeks I painstakingly get out of bed, treading on egg shells at that time already, in fear of damaging everything I encounter. These weeks can turn out to be a total dilemma and will be if I enter my class room having expectations of the individuals who learn there which they are incapable of fulfilling.

I wonder if I’m in denial… I must be to think that every day should go perfectly according to my plans. I’m not even in control and to think I am and to live like I am is just a set up for disappointment, yet still I do it . It’s on days like this when I foolishly put trust in myself and forget about trusting God to get me through.

Subsequently, at the end of the day I sit at my desk for maybe the second time that day, I go over my day plan and reflect on the events of the day. To my utter dismay we didn’t get as much done as I had anticipated. What do I do when we fail to accomplish as much as I had planned –I completely and utterly panic, thinking that I’m doing something so dreadfully wrong that it will take years of education under a different educator to correct my heinous errors . However, I’m hoping that’s not the case….

My point is this: When I trudge to school at 8:30 in the morning I shouldn’t be thinking that today will be a perfect day to teach my students all 20 Matter definitions, to make a flip book out of them, to finish the diorama we’ve been working on for weeks, to get the Math and Social Studies unit done, to teach 3 different grades 3 different ELA Lessons and all the while thinking I’ll have time to plan a new Science unit in-between. I should be walking to school thinking that today I get another amazing opportunity to teach my students, to watch then learn and to learn along with them. I should expect nothing and my students would be fulfilling and exceeding all the expectations I had for that day. Nobody, not even I, performs at the same level daily and I expect my students to be able to do just that some weeks. The less we seem to get done, the more I try to get done and it’s not working. Last week just didn’t work for any of us.

Therefore, this week I’m trying something different. I get up in the morning and I ask God to please show me what to do because I don’t know what that is anymore. I ask to be accepting of my students and their capabilities and most importantly I ask God to help me realize that I can’t make unreasonable expectations and wait for them to be accomplished no matter how reasonable they seem to me. I try to face the day with a more relaxed perspective. As I plan my day I reasonably ponder on whether we can get some things done that I have in mind to and then I remind myself that even if we don’t accomplish what we should today….it’s OK. If my students don’t learn about the entire world of Matter like I wanted them to, it’s OK because at least I taught them the concept of patience and acceptance. Those too, are valuable lessons, which they can apply to their lives, and even now as they journey through the years of their youth.

The moral of this story: No expectations are the best expectations.

Ohhhh and I think my classroom is worth bragging about so here are some photos I’ve been wanting to share for quite some time.

Calendar/Reading Area:

Library:

Play/Math Center & a just few of the Games I've made:

(Foam Story Boards for Math)

There you have it...an update that should keep up updated for months to come ;).

♥

Every once in awhile...

So......wadddya say to an update :) There isn't much to write....well there is, but where do I start? I spent most of the day making my class room ready and I'll let you guess what the theme is for this years decorations...Let the guessing begin :-)

Most of my time is currently being consumed by baking for our annual bakesale...To tell you the truth I'm kind of sick of baking and everything that goes along with it. :s We got a few of our 'tomato work' done this week too. I'm actually looking forward to school starting, I think I need a change of scenery. As you can see I'm out of practice with the whole blogging/writing thing so goooodbye. :) Oh, I'll post a pic of my two latest projects:

Baby slipper with a hand embroidered bullion rose:

And a border I hand embroidered on one of my dresses:

Sorry so short but I have to get back into the game slowly. :)

♥Abi♥

...been workin on Abigails album and these would be my latest additions. Figured I'd share since I need an update and I'm not in the mood to ramble :)

Angel of Wisdom

There's something about these figurines that draws me in... another attempt at making a Willow Tree Angel.

♥

I ♥ to Create

Lately, I've got the sewing fever and I hope It never goes away. I'm loving it lately!!! Here's what I've been working on:

This is called a Buddy Pack. It's a bag and toy all in one :-D

Another pattern I bought and I made one for Kaylee and gave it to her on her 1st Birthday on May the 11th. I think she loved it cause she grabbed it and hugged it. :) ♥ I can't believe she's a year old already. ♥


Baby Sandals:

These I made for Abigail and they look adorable on her. Used jean material so it would fray - love that look.

Always On The Go

I don't really feel like rambling or in other words writing a post and I think one is long over due. The past few weeks have been filled with bustling about trying to use as much time as the day offers us. New projects have been started, we've said good-bye to loved ones, and celebrated birthdays to name only a few things that have occupied the duration of the past couple weeks. To end this post I will post a few pictures of the projects I've been working on after school:

I bought a pattern for these Mary Jane Baby Shoes online and have been trying it out. Love it.

Willow Tree Angel I made for a friend a couple weeks ago:

Latest Digital LO for Kaylees Album:

Latest Digital LO for Abigails Album:

Mothers Day Gifts we made with the kids at school-Flower pots:

Here's one I made:

There you have it...The boring life of a tired blogger...lol...

Rest in Peace Grandpa♥

God Only Cries for the Living-Diamond Rio

God only cries for the living

'Cause it's the living that are left to carry on
An' all the angels up in Heaven
They're not grieving because you’re gone
There's a smile on their faces
'Cause you're in a better place than they've ever known
God only cries for the living
'Cause it's the living that are so far from home.

It makes me sad
When I think of my Grand-dad
I miss him each and every day
But I know the time will come
When we’ll wonder why he went away
Maybe we're not meant to understand
Till we meet up in the Promised Land.

You can listen to the song on the player at the bottom of my blog. It's near the end of the playlist.

~♥~ Earth Angels ~♥~

Throughout my life there have been times

I’ve caught a glimpse of Heavens light,

Shining down upon this world of sin

I pause to take a look around,

I see the blessings in my life

Lord, You’ve sent us earth angels.

Chorus:

No, they don’t have wings

But they flutter in and we are,

Never the same again

For they have changed our lives.

Lord, You’ve sent us earth angels.

Family and friends are by my side

Through them you have lifted me,

And showed me just how much You care

As I walk my pace slows down, I stay behind

To glimpse upon Your earth angels.

Chorus.

I see a child cling to Mom and Dad

You’ve given them the gift of life,

When I get to hold them close, I see

The ray of hope I thought was lost

The miracle of life in disguise.

Chorus.

Some do have wings and have already taken flight

Loved but too precious to stay,

And so you called our Angel home

Before we ever held her close,

Baby you’ll live on in our hearts.

Chorus:

Yes, some have wings

They flutter in and we are,

Never the same again

For they have changed our lives

Lord, please hold our Angel close.

I really don't have a whole lot to write these days, not for lack of not trying though. It's just that either I don't have time or I'm ways to tired to write anything that makes sense. But this blog is in need of an update thus the lyrics.

Something I wrote back and January when I became the Auntie of ~Baby Angela~. I don't pretend to be good or claim to be a good writer, just so you know. I just write what comes to mind and as lifes moments bring pain and heartache we still have to take the time to remember the blessings. I guess writing is a way of coping with the 'not so pleasant' moments that life throws our way. It's supposed to be sung to the meoldy of 'Born A Star-by the Waldner Messengers'...with a few altered twists or whatever you want to call it. It was a little difficult to write it to that melody and get it to flow smoothly because the first verse has 6 lines and the others 5. And I don't know if it's a big deal that I used 'I' in the verses and 'we' for the chorus, but it made sense at the time. Now sing it for me and send me a recording..haha.

Written for my friends and in Memory of our baby Angel.

♥

A New Life

I trust that You will see me through...I will walk on.

Spring Break Is SOOO On!

Spring break is here!!!!!! I don't know what to expect though. Will I get some sleep in? I’ll probably try, but no matter how much I'd love to get some shut-eye during the day sometimes, for just an hour, sleep manages to elude me. I just can’t get my brain to slow down enough.

I think it's going to be like every other holiday- I'll enjoy at least one or maybe even two days of it and then I'll go crazy without the constant bustle of school and preparation for the next big project. The worst part of it all is breaks are when I actually get time to THINK- and that's scary, really, really scary! :)

To Do:
-Finish embroidering border on my dress
-Plan a Spring theme for school
-Plan a Social Studies Unit (if I'm really ambitious)
-Sew Human Rights Quilt for school

Now I just need encouragement to get all that done. I’m sure could add more but that’s what came to mind at the moment.

I couldn’t bring myself to make my students do work on the last day before spring break. Actually, truth is I was tired and decided we’d have a fun day. So last night I wrecked my brain for a fun activity to do and I decided we’d make Easter Bunnies out of clay and Model Magic. Of course, I gave them the ‘Easter bunnies have nothing to do with Easter’ speech first and then we were off. They did a super job and they look so cute. I got the idea from Madimaginations. She made hers out of fimo instead of clay. When we were done I sealed them with a layer of Modge Podge (awesome craft glue) and the kiddies proudly took their Bunnies home. (Mine is the 3rd one from the left)

♥