Friday Favorites and 5 on Friday

Today I am linking up with Momfessionals for Friday Favorites and A. Liz Adventures for 5 on Friday. 

{FAVORITE ONE}
Since the weather has been so amazing and sunny, I have been outside quite a bit. Even though I love being out in the sun, I need to protect my skin (I burn easily). I have a great face sunscreen that is oil-free and feels so light and airy. However, I was having a hard time finding a light spray-on sunscreen for the rest of my body. I found this Clearly Sheer spray from Coppertone, and I absolutely love it! It is oil-free, light, and has a great smell-- a perfect on the run sunscreen. I purchased mine at Walmart, but I know you can also purchase it at Walgreens. 

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{FAVORITE TWO}

I love my Bobble. It is from Target (although I think you can purchase them at certain pharmacies as well), and I love the fact that no matter where I am, I can filter water. It has been very humid around here lately, and I am trying to increase my intake of water. This waterbottle is the perfect sidekick.  

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{FAVORITE THREE}

I am so proud of my husband for all of his work on our yard. It looks ten times better than it did in the Fall, and trust me, it wasn't without a lot of sweat and frustration :) There is nothing like looking outside your window and seeing green grass and beautiful flowers. 

Fall 2014 

Spring 2015

{FAVORITE FOUR}

This week, I have enjoyed taking walks around my neighborhood. While I do enjoy working out, I would much rather walk 5 miles than run 2 miles (anyone else feel like this?!). At night, when the sun goes down, it is the perfect weather for walking. I get to enjoy the scenery and listen to some great music. 

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{FAVORITE FIVE}

I am IN LOVE with these wedges from Kohls, and they are currently on sale. I have bought Sonoma sandals before, and they are ridiculously comfortable. I may have to treat myself to an "end of the year/you made it" gift haha. 

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 Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all have a great weekend :)

Thoughts for Thursday

Today I am linking up with Home of Malones and East Coast Chic for Thoughts for Thursday! 

My thoughts for this week include: 

• Thinking about at what point we should put our window air conditioners in. It has been unseasonably warm in New England the past few days, and I think we may have hit our breaking point :) 
• Figuring out what house project we want to pursue. Ideally, I would love to re-do the kitchen first. We need to paint our cabinets (anyone know how to do this with minimal effort?!), switch out the floors, and re-do the counter tops. Thankfully, we don't need to replace any of our appliances yet (although the microwave may need to be replaced sooner than we hope). We also are thinking about painting our house a new color, but we are having a hard time deciding! It is such a big decision, and while we have found some colors we love, we don't know how they will look with our house. 
• Deciding when to sign up for an online make-up class-- I am considering a side job/hobby in the near future. 
• Reminiscing about my Senior year of high school as my sister Jocelyn will be graduating in a week, and my students will be graduating in two weeks. 
• Counting down the days to summer vacation--- 16 days btw haha

What are your thoughts for this Thursday? 

What's Up Wednesday

Today, I am linking up with The Larson Lingo, Mix and Match Family, and Pinterest Told Me To for What's Up Wednesday! 

1. What We're Eating This Week....

It has been extremely warm this week, so Jim and I have resorted to grilling food (chicken sausages for example) and including fresh fruits to our menu. 

2. What I Am Reminiscing About 

After visiting UNH on Saturday, I have really started to think back to my Freshman year of college (which was about 10 years ago!). I loved college- and not for the typical reasons! I loved school; I loved learning. I miss taking notes, I miss my chemistry labs, and I miss the dining hall :) I spent just under 6 years at UNH (for undergrad and grad), and I wouldn't trade those years at all. 

3. What I Am Loving 

I am LOVING the beautiful sunsets the past couple of nights. 

4. What We've Been Up To 

Jim has been working so hard on our yard this spring, and I have planted quite a few annuals and perennials in our flower bed. We have been trying to make the outside look presentable :) 

5. What I'm Dreading 

Organizing the end of the year...lesson plans...study guides and reviews...finals...it's all coming! 

6. What I'm Working On:

This blog....it is still a work in progress....

7. What I'm Excited About 

My "wedding" photo shoot Saturday! I will keep you posted :) 

8. What I'm Watching/Reading

Married at First Sight....if you haven't started watching it, you need to! You can catch up pretty easily since there are always old episodes on during the day. 

9. What I'm Listening To

Michael Buble/Frank Sinatra Pandora and Disney Movie Pandora (yes I have very interesting/eclectic taste) 

10. What I'm Wearing 

Dresses! When the weather is hot (for New England mind you haha), I love to wear dresses at school. The dresses I have are light, airy, and extremely comfortable. Most of my dresses either come from Old Navy or Kohls, and I typically look for them during the Fall/Winter-- they have great Spring/Summer sales during those times! 

11. What I'm Doing This Weekend 

Relaxing, photo shoot, more relaxing, oh and probably grading....

12. What I Am Looking Forward to Next Month 

The end of school! 

13. What Else is New:

I will have some news to share-- potentially next week if all goes as planned :) stay tuned! 

14. What Is Your Favorite Thing To Grill in June:

Honestly, either chicken or chicken sausages. I am a huge fan of simple, but tasty meals! 

I can't wait to read everyone else's posts! Have a great Wednesday everyone :)

Weekending...Memorial Day Weekend Edition

First on the table....how do you all do it?! How do you all make sure that you have the time set aside to blog everyday?! Being a teacher is amazing (and exhausting), but between grading, lesson planning, and scheduling, I have had hardly any time to focus on my blog. The sad part-- I absolutely love blogging. I love writing, and I love sharing various aspects of my life. It is just the time-- time is so precious, and at 10:00 at night, I will most certainly choose sleep instead of working on my blog. But, how do you all stay so committed? I know I could map out/even write out multiple blog posts at once, but I am having a hard enough time writing one blog post at a time! If anyone has any suggestions or tips, I would greatly appreciate it!


Moving on......

This weekend was extremely fun and crazy busy. Today, I am linking up with B Loved Boston and Champagne and Suburbs for Weekending...

FRIDAY:

- A few weeks ago, my cousin Kelly (a photographer) asked my sister Elizabeth and I if we would be a part of a wedding shoot. My cousin is updating her website, and she is just started to include weddings as part of her photography services (she is also adding another photographer-- her sister Kristina!). Kelly not only wanted the practice, but wanted sample shots to show potential clients. Of course we said yes! This first weekend, Elizabeth was the bride, and I was the bridesmaid. We wore our respective dresses and had an amazing time shooting in a beautiful apple orchard, which happened to be right next to a scenic pond. My sister's husband was also part of the shoot (got to have a groom!) and my mom wore her dress for some mother-daughter photos as well. This photo shoot was extra special for Elizabeth. The day Elizabeth got married (last summer) it poured. When I say it poured-- it poured. Her photographer at the time did a great job catching some unique shots, but I know Elizabeth was disappointed not to get some beautiful scenery and sunny shots. Well-- let me tell you-- she got those on Friday. The pictures Kelly has edited so far as amazing! If you or someone you know is in the New Hampshire/New England area and are looking for a photographer (s), please check out my cousins! They are awesome! Here is a link to their website: Kelly and Kristina Photography. 

Here are a few samples:

My "wedding" shoot is Saturday and I cannot wait! Not only do I get to wear my dress again (I absolutely love my dress), but I get to try a different hairstyle and poses. I will keep you all posted on how that goes :) 

SATURDAY:

Saturday was SUPER busy for me! Saturday morning and early afternoon, my sister Elizabeth and I took Jocelyn (sister number four) to visit the University of New Hampshire. It was a gorgeous, slightly brisk day-- which is perfect for walking around campus. We showed her the various academic buildings, potential dorm rooms, and of course, the best coffee shops and restaurants. We had such a great day together! I am so glad she is excited and happy with her school choice-- although I am biased :) as I am an alumnus.  

After our visit to UNH, I came home just in time to see my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and their adorable 2 year old Griffin. Soon after I got home, though, I had to quickly get ready for our school prom. I absolutely love chaperoning the prom! The kids are great, food is typically good, and the music is on point (for the most part haha-- I can't stand rap!). Overall, a fun-filled Saturday. 

SUNDAY:

On Sunday, my husband and I visited with his family up in Shipleigh, Maine. His aunt has a beautiful house on a lake, and it was just perfect. There was a nice breeze, great conversation, and great food. I can't complain! 

Sunday night, my husband, my sisters, and my brother-in-law went to see Pitch Perfect 2-- and while it wasn't as good as the first one, it still made me laugh :) 

MONDAY:

Monday was spent catching up on sleep, grading (a lot of grading), and spending time with my husband. A perfect ending to the perfect weekend :) 

I hope you all were able to enjoy the weekend....Until tomorrow! 

A Little Midweek Motivation

Hello all and happy Wednesday! I don't know about you, but I could use a solid dose of motivation. Anyone else feel as though this week has been long?! Maybe I am the only one here :) But, hey, everyone could use a little motivation- am I right? Here it goes..

This is definitely something I need to remind myself everyday, especially on the days where I am struggling. 

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I love this one!!! 

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And just because I need to end on a funny note.....

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Even if you are not a teacher, I hope you enjoyed this midweek motivation :) Thanks for reading! 

How is it May?! Weekending Edition

Hello friends! Long time no see, huh?! I apologize for stepping away from my blog for a little bit, but things were crazy around here. Between school (stress, work, meetings, event planning), exciting news on the home-front (which I will share when I can!), and vacation, I couldn't keep up with blogging. I need to work on my time management-- especially when it comes to blogging since it was something I started for me! However, as my mom said to me, blogging will always be here, and I shouldn't feel guilty about missing a few weeks, especially if it was going to cause me more stress instead of being a stress reliever. She is a wise woman that one :) However, this week, I finally feel like I am swimming freely instead of treading water, so I wanted to take the opportunity to get back into it!  I will try to spend this week detailing all the things that have happened the past few weeks (like our AMAZING Disney vacation), and I can't wait to catch up with everyone! I can't promise that this won't happen again-- we are nearing the end of school and anyone who works in a school knows it can get mad CRAZY the last few weeks. But, I will try to keep up the best I can!

First up this week, Weekending with B Loved Boston & Champagne and Suburbs!

{FRIDAY NIGHT}

~ Friday night was my sisters' Prom and they both looked so beautiful! I had the pleasure of doing their make-up and being part of their "getting ready process." 

~ Thankfully they both had a great time with their dates and friends :) 

{SATURDAY}

~ After spending the morning waiting for my car to be fixed (yuck), I spent most of Saturday grading

~ I also have to give credit where it's due-- my husband not only cleaned the kitchen and the bathroom while I was gone with my car, but washed all of the floors and cleaned up the house. I am certainly a lucky girl :)

~ My husband and his brother also worked for the greater part of the day fixing up our yard and making sure that our sprinkler system worked-- and it did!!! They also trimmed our bushes and our trees-- I will be posting pictures of this transformation soon!

~ After grading and dinner, I was really in the mood for ice cream, so we went to one of our favorite local places. I am so glad we did-- it was so worth it :) 

{SUNDAY}

~ Sunday morning and early afternoon, my husband and I went to Lowes and then gardened, raked and cleaned up our yard. Man, yard work is hard! But-- it is so rewarding :) 

~ Sunday afternoon was spent at my grandparents house, and the weather was gorgeous! We were outside for quite a few hours just soaking in the sun and dreaming of summer

~ Sunday night, we continued watching "Bloodline" a show on Netflix that we seem to binge watch every once in a while. It's not bad-- it's not amazing-- but we are having such a hard time finding shows to watch lately. Does anyone have any suggestions?! 

I hope you all had a great weekend! Here's to another week :)