{ an apple for the teacher }

When I taught school, I loved using clip art from an artist named Amy Dott Harner. Her graphics are simple, bright, and oh-so cute.

One of my favorites was a depiction of a teacher surrounded by adorable little kiddos. I used this particular image on the front of my "Welcome Back" packet for parents and students.

Since I no longer have my own classroom, I seldom have much use for Amy Dott Harner's brilliance; however, now that my own little guy is starting kindergarten this year (sniff, sniff), I figured it would be fun to bake some sugary morsels for his new teacher using (you guessed it!), Amy's themes as inspiration.

From years of experience, I know how stressful the beginning of the year can be, and I can't imagine adding an entire room full of bright-eyed kindergartners into the mix. So here's hoping Mrs. Woodhouse, Aidan's new teacher, enjoys her apples this year -- both the edible ones and the little ones whose minds she'll be broadening!

the greatest gift

Most people complain and gripe about their jobs. And I've definitely done my share of bitching. But the truth is, my life is so full -- even at work. I work with great people (some who I've come to love very dearly), and I teach some even greater kids.

Every day I have the honor of caring for and teaching a classroom full of fifth graders. It's such a great age -- they're on the cusp of young adulthood, yet still possess so much of the wide-eyed wonder of childhood. They're old enough to have a sense of humor, yet not yet bitter, mouthy teens! I love it.

This morning, I was so touched to be given my own special Advent calendar by my class -- each student wrote me a letter for each day of the month of December, and attached it to a tree with a little colored eraser (ornament!). At the end of the month, there's a "big gift" for me to open. But nothing could be better than the words of love and appreciation that they've written me on their cards.

I'm posting some pictures of the first three cards I've opened (which I'm hanging on my board), and a few of the Advent tree.

Again, I'm so blessed.

an apple a day

As a teacher, I've received countless trinkets and tidbits over the years related to my profession -- wooden school houses that hold post-it notes, Christmas ornaments that never get used, tacky "You're A+" stuff ... you get the drift. I don't mean to sound ungrateful or petty, its just rare when I come across something teacher-related that I'd ever really use.

It's odd, and I have no idea why its the case, but education seems to be one of the few professions where people feel the need to give a gift based on the job. I mean, I don't give my friends necklaces with calculators on them if they're CPAs ... but I digress.

So my rule of thumb regarding "teacher clothes" is that if it's not something I'd wear out to happy hour after work, it's not something I'd wear at all. Period. That's why I love what Jones New York has done for the past five years.

Founded in 2005, Jones New York in the classroom is a not-for-profit
organization dedicated to helping improve the quality of education for America's
children and inspiring others to do the same. Jones New York in the Classroom
benefits: TeachersCount, Fund for Teachers and Adopt-a-Classroom. The purchase of this tee, designed by Sujean Rim helps to support our cause.

Several teachers and friends at the school where I work have these shirts, and they're super cute ... yet fun and sassy! Way to go, Jones New York! Thanks for making the "perfect" teacher shirt! And best of all, it supports a good cause! Bravo!