Back to School!

Yes, it's that time again...kids dread it, teachers dread it, parents love it, it's BACK TO SCHOOL time! I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I have been preparing for a while, popping in and out of my classroom over the last 2 weeks, but I still feel like I have so much to do! I don't think it will ever end! As of right now, I have 30 students on my class list! SCARY! I am not excited about so many students... I was a little shocked today though, because I called the mom of one of my future students, because she had left me a message and she told me that her son was so excited to be in my class...apparently the word among all of the 3rd graders last year was that I was the nicest teacher in 4th grade, so a lot of kids wanted to be in my class! So, I guess I am pretty popular after just one year of teaching and I didn't know it! :) I don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing though because I think that I am probably too nice and I would like to be known as the teacher who teaches the best! Judging from the scores from the end-of-year tests last year, I definitely would like to teach better! They weren't horrible, about average, but I want them to be ABOVE average...oh well...I can only do what I can do! I am just glad they let me come back and try it again!

Anyway, I am still working getting my classroom the way I want it, but I will take pictures and post them as soon as I can! In the mean time, I will share some pictures of I took of Bear Lake when I went there last weekend with the YSA's from my stake. It definitely was a blast! We didn't really get to do a lot of boating because it was only 40 degrees, but we did have fun socializing and playing on the beach! We did get in the water later in the afternoon, but that only lasted about 30 minutes before we were all numb from the cold water! I just couldn't get over how blue that lake was either! It was gorgeous! These views are from the cabin we stayed in overnight...

DISNEYLAND!

This last week I went to Disneyland with Scott, Kim, McKenzie and Brayden! They were already there for Kim's family's reunion, but stayed a couple of days afterward, so I flew out and met them. This was my second time at Disneyland in my lifetime, and I have to say, it was the funnest because kids are so cute! It was so fun to see their reaction to all of the rides and seeing all of the characters! Here are a few highlights of the trip:

This was when we were standing in line for 40 minutes to see the Princesses. They were such troopers! And how can you not deny that "cheese" smile from Brayden! :)

This was on "It's a Small World". Ya I had that song stuck in my head for a LOOOONG time after that!

Kenzie and me right before the "Bug's Life" 3D show....ya, she got so scared in that movie!

California Adventure!

Oh ya, the Teacups! Scott spun us so hard, we (Scott and I) were sick after that! Kim was smart for not riding! :)

My favorite princess, Cinderella!

Summer Fun!

This has been the laziest summer I have had in a LOOONG time! In the 2 weeks I have been off (seems like a long time...doesn't sound like it though!), I really have been doing hardly anything! I didn't go back to coaching swimming or doing swim lessons...which is weird because that is how I made a living through college...(I miss those kids!) but it feels really good not to have to worry about planning for anything! To say the least...I am enjoying my short summer before the madness returns again in August! Wahoo!

I haven't been entirely unproductive though! On Monday, I finished my quilt I started last summer, so it is all done, except for the quilting! Yay! I got the kit for it two Christmases ago from Santa. I saw it at a quilt shop in Cottonwood Heights and immediately fell in love with it! Needless to say, the Princess gets what she wants! :) Here are a few pictures of it:

The pattern is called "Bento Box".

Cutting away! Gotta love my machine!

Today, my mom and I went and got some VERY fresh raspberries and blackberries. I bet you can guess what we did with those...Yep, we made JAM! It was my first time actually making it, and I must say, it turned out great! It really was a lot easier than I thought...so to all of you out there who have never made jam before, TRY IT! Here are some tempting pictures for you so that you will want to do it too!

Ya, one minor detail...if you are going to make jam, have LOTS of sugar on hand! :)

The finished product! This is the raspberry jam. Isn't it just gorgeous?