Weekly Summer Link-Up: My Teaching Quirk

So excited to be linking up with I Heart Grade 3 again this week for her Weekly Summer Link-Up party!

This week's link-up is all about my teaching quirk. It took me some time to come up with one... yes, because I have WAY too many! I tried to think about what other teachers in my building would say if they were asked and only one thing came to mind...

Fonts!

I am completely obsessed with fonts. I know that there are several of us font junkies out there but I may take it to the next level (actually Mollie too, but I don't want to throw her under the bus so I will focus on my own illness). Here is why I think this is by far my most outrageous quirk:

1. If our district sends us something to read in order to prep for a PD, I have to change the font before printing... I HAVE TO! Of course then I am embarrassed by my level of crazy and hide it shamelessly so my colleagues don't see it during the actual PD.

2. If I forget something on the printer and my name is nowhere to be found on the document, 9 times out of 10 the person who finds it is able to bring it to me without question that it is mine. We have about 30 people who are able to print to our printer so... yeah.

3. I have a mild panic attack every spring knowing that the district is going to come in to ghost our computers and that there is a possibility that I will lose all of my babies... um... I mean fonts. 

4. Typically in any given year I have to ask our tech department to up the memory space on my drive because it takes up so much space saving everything as a word document AND a PDF document. It is necessary because if I need to print something from the computer lab, it won't have my fonts and if I need to send something to someone via email, they won't have my fonts and therefore I can only print/send a PDF. 

5. Finally, when I start a new document it takes me WAY more time than I have to choose just the right font. Of course I have my favorites but I can't help but give some of the other fonts a fair chance to shine! 

So there it is... my teaching quirk that makes my colleagues just shake their head and laugh. 

(Is it sad that I am desperately hoping that some of you will leave some of your favorite fonts in the comments JUST IN CASE I am missing out on some great fonts?!? Yes! It is an illness!!!)

Weekly Summer Link-Up: An Accomplishment I Am Proud Of

Hi there! Amy here! I am so excited to link up with I Heart Grade 3 for her summer blogging series. This week's topic is "An Accomplishment I am Proud of".

One accomplishment I am proud of is my work with our East Kentwood Volleyball Program. I played volleyball from 8th grade through high school and then I played club ball in college. It was some of the best years and I knew that I wanted to coach as soon as I started working in the schools.

I have been the freshman coach for the past 14 seasons and I am so fortunate to work with some amazing kids who have taught me so much. They are goofy...

And hardworking...

And they love the sport of volleyball. My favorite is the relationships that I build with the girls that outlasts their short high school careers. They often come back while in college and even beyond to visit, help, and mentor our current players. I have had previous players come back and assistant coach for me, and although it makes me feel extremely old, it is wonderful to see the young adults they have become and that they see the value in teaching some of the same lessons I taught them to the current players.

Coaching can be difficult, especially as my own kiddos get older and have more and more commitments, however, I can not bring myself to stop coaching. I love it too much. Now my own girls want to play volleyball and we can experience this amazing program and sport together.

Hi! Mollie, here!

It's been a while since I've posted, but I promise it's with good reason! These last few months have been crazy with getting ready for Baby Walsh. Every day during the last few weeks I would wake up and think today could be my last day with my students! And at home my husband and I were prepping our house for months to prepare for our first child.

I'm now happy to announce that last Tuesday we welcomed Blakeley Rose Walsh into the world! She was born at 9:16 on May 26, 2015 :) She was born 8 lbs 6 oz and 21 inches long. We are so very lucky  to love her and cannot wait to embark on this new adventure together as parents.

Sunday Scoop: May 31st

Happy Sunday! Amy here! It's been a bit since we have linked up with Teaching Trio for their Sunday Scoop Linky Party. Check out how my Sunday is stacking up and click the link below to check in with some awesome bloggers on this beautiful Sunday!

My "have to" list is not a fun one but I guess it rarely is! I am excited about finishing up my teacher gifts. My daughter Kate's teacher is retiring this year and I am SUPER excited about the gift we are putting together for her! I will blog about it when it is done! :)

I hope you all have a restful Sunday! And for those of you completing report cards and end of the year stuff like I am... GOOD LUCK!!!

Splish Splash Summertime Blog Bash!

We are so excited to participate in our FIRST blog hop! And what better blog hop could there be than one celebrating SUMMER! We have teamed up with over 40 bloggers to bring you some summertime fun, awesome freebies and exciting giveaways! We want to thank Rachael Parlett at The Classroom Game Nook for organizing this blog hop. Since it is our first blog hop, we have had a huge learning curve and she has been so patient and amazing. Rachael, you are the BEST!

There are so many things I love about summer. My favorite thing has to be spending all day, every day with my sweet girls. They are so much fun and we try to soak up every minute of the day.

For the past three years we have been members of a local country club and they have the most beautiful pool. The girls and I get there most days when it opens and the only thing that tears us away is getting home to meet daddy at the end of his work day.

This summer we have two trips planned. The first is our annual trip to Ludington, Michigan. My mom and dad rent a condo for a week in July and the girls and I join them. My brother Eric (one of three!) usually comes along too. It is one of our favorite places on Earth! Long days at the beach or lounging by the pool, trips to the park, evenings spent watching the Badger cargo ship come in, House of Flavors ice cream trips, and our favorite walk to the pier every night to watch the sunset (isn't it amazing that no two are alike!?!?). This year my hubby is able to get away from work and join us for the week! I think our Ludington countdown started months earlier this year knowing that he would be able to enjoy the week with us!

The second trip we are planning is to Mackinac Island in August. My parents are renting a house on the island for all of us (including ALL three of my brothers) to spend a couple of nights. The island is amazing! There is so much to do and everything slows down there. No cars are allowed on the island and everything has an old time feel. The last time we were there my oldest was only 6 months old which means that we will be seeing the island through their eyes for the first time. There is nothing better!

In addition to all of this family time, I am looking forward to a little me-time. I can't wait to start back up on my favorite series, Outlander. I have completed the first four books (if you haven't seen them, they are HUGE) but I just can't seem to get any reading for pleasure in during the school year. My sweet brothers bought me the rest of the series for Christmas and they have been sitting on my bookshelf waiting patiently for me!

I am also looking forward to digging into Guided Math this summer and revamping my whole math block. I have found some great reading materials that I am looking forward to. Wait... summer vacation is only three months?!?! How will I ever fit it all in?!?!

I am so happy to share with you something we are offering free this week and this week only to celebrate the Splish Splash Summertime Blog Bash! If you are looking for ways to add word study to your year, this is a month long unit that provides wonderful activities to help your kiddos learn about words and word parts in order to read and write unknown words. Click the link below and download this awesome resource this week! We would love to hear what you think!

No blog hop would be complete without an awesome giveaway! If you liked our freebie, you will love this Year-Long Word Study resource that gives you everything you need to immerse your students in developing a deep understanding of words and word parts. This is a $40 value! Check out this awesome resource here! Good luck!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to keep on hoppin' because each and every one of the awesome bloggers on this hop are offering a special freebie and a giveaway! Try to grab them all!

Let the Countdown Begin!

Things are getting so exciting around here!! We are only five days from our very first Blog Hop! It is going to be amazing! A celebration of summer with freebies and giveaways to boot! Set a reminder, jot it on a sticky note, put it on your calendar! You will not want to miss this!

Guest Blog Post on One Stop Teacher Shop!

We are so excited to have an opportunity to guest post on One Stop Teacher Shop. Come check out our post on Publishing S.Q.U.A.D.s!!