Five For Friday!

I knew that it had been a long time since my last post, but looking back at the date of my last post really threw me for a loop!  I can't believe that it has almost been a month!  I was going to start out and do my "Currently" post for the month of October, but let's face it:  That ship has sailed!

So here I am on a Friday night, dinner in the oven, the sounds of the washer and dryer coming up from the basement.  Dare I say I feel that I might just now be settling into the school year?  Then, in our family comes the birthday season, followed by the Holiday season, so I know that this feeling of serenity is going to be short-lived.

I haven't been just sitting around eating Bon-Bons (although I hear they are yummy)!  I changed the look of the header to my blog along with a few changes (maybe more to come) to my sidebar.  I seriously have to say I am so proud that I have done all of this on my own through much trial and error.  So, I am going to ease back into my posts and my long-forgotten professional book study.  I will start with a laid-back Five For Friday with Doodle Bugs Teaching teaching!  Get ready for some randomness and saving the best for last!

I have now been seeing my students for about a month.  I feel like we are getting in a groove, getting to know each other and getting lots of good instruction in.  The data collection at the beginning of the year is so necessary, but I honestly can't wait to get going with the kids.  Hands down, that is the best part of my day!

So excited that the hubby and I are going to the Notre Dame game tomorrow evening to see them beat some USC booty. I'm prepared for cold, rainy weather, but hoping for the best! Big Notre Dame fans in our family.  My 4th grader doesn't know it yet, but that is where she will go to college (wink, wink).  I'm sure it will be with a full academic and basketball scholarship!  Right now she says she won't go away to college and that she and her husband will live with us!

Speaking of the kids, my youngest and I spent last weekend T-peeing house for her first grade Homecoming football and cheer leading squad.  Thankfully, they were all houses that gave permission to be t-peed.  6 and 7 year old girls just don't quite get the hang of it, so I am not embarrassed to say that I had to step in (with a few other parents) and show them how to throw over branches of trees.  I love imparting these very important lessons to the youth of today.  Here is a picture of my little one in warmer weather earlier this season.

We had our first night of parent-teacher conferences on Thursday.  We have two more nights next week. The conferences are different for the teachers this year.  In the past, the discussion has primarily focused around the report card.  We have switched to trimesters this year, so report cards are still quite a ways off for us.  That has left teachers baffled a little bit as to what to discuss with parents.  It's yet another new change in a year full of new changes.

I am beyond thrilled to have been asked to participate in my very first blog hop!  It truly is going to be pretty amazing.  We have 28 reading/literacy specialists involved and the wealth of knowledge and experience in the field of literacy that this group has is astounding.  I am lucky to be a part of it!  Look for more to come, from me and probably other blogs that you already follow, but for now, here is your teaser!

Happy Friday y'all and feeling so glad to be back from my blogging absence!