Dare to Dream!

If you have ever been to my blog, you probably notice something different with this post...Green...I do have a reason for the change for this post...I am participating in The TpT Seller Challenge & this week's challenge is DARE TO DREAM...here are the directions...

I do have many dreams for TpT...many are tied directly to my Mission Statement, which my last post dealt with...I want to ...develop & maintain meaningful relationships; ...inspire; ...make a positive difference....& I do have dreams of it paying for my font/clipart addictions & for it to pay for going to TpT conferences...these are dreams {& I guess you could say big dreams since I have made under $25 so far}...as well as helping our family out of financially challenging times....BUT...it says DREAM BIG!!!...so I know what is so STRONGLY on my heart...& I know it sounds like a Miss America Pageant answer...but here are some past blog posts to show some of my journey up to this place...THIS is why today's blog post is green...my older posts are in the original red...this is from 2 years ago after the 2nd Teacher Blogger Get Together in Vegas....

Have you ever had a time that you felt God was really trying to tell you something?? Not just subtly, but, Wham!..Are You Listening?...now it wasn't an audible voice, but boy, did it hit me....and believe it or not it was RIGHT IN THE BLOGGER MEET UP!!!!

Let me explain...

Several years ago I began to have a special place in my heart for the needs for orphans throughout the world...this is a portion of our family's Christmas letter that I posted here on my blog December 28, 2011...

 a month earlier I had posted this as part of a 'Thankful Linky' that included 3 blogs you are most thankful for and this was my #2 blog...

then I had a post '11 Positives Added in 11' {11++11} and this was #6...

before this and since then I've had several situations related to orphan care and/or adoption 'fall into my lap'..I even have a board on Pinterest about orphan care but...over the last few months I have been kind of discouraged...feeling no direction in this area...nothing planned for this year's Orphan Sunday {the 1st Sunday in November} at our church...not sure if I should try to get something going.. had doubts this was an area of my life that I could make a difference ...just Monday I was literally thinking that I was just going to let it go...let the embers of this passion just cool off and go out...then I go to:

if you were there you know that there were a TON of raffle prizes I think 99% were DIRECTLY teacher related; TpT certificates (they sponsored the Meet-Up) teacher books, classroom materials, discounts to conferences, etc., but there was one that was different from the rest, Leigh Ann from:

 it was necklace she had donated to help support a teacher at her school who was adopting a girl from China...who's name was called from the raffle bag...yep:

This is a link to their blog about their adoption journey {above}

So...today I pulled out my Show Hope shirt and have been praying since I got the necklace..."I hear you Lord, I WILL NOT let my passion for the orphans burn out...WHAT do you want me to do?"
After last year's conference this was part of a blog post I did regarding Deanna Jump {click here to read the rest of this post}       Last year I had the privilege of meeting her {Deanna Jump} and this year when I spoke to her I asked if she was familiar with Casting Crown's song Dream for You.  She was, but said she would have to go back & listen to it again to see herself in the song...boy did God have an amazing dream for her!! Consider letting God dream for you as well!! Here is the video which has been echoing in my head...
So...here is MY BIG DREAM {Praying God is Dreaming for me too!}

I desire to help with Orphan Care both in Guatemala at Village of Hope & in China at Maria's Big House of Hope~& maybe someday to visit & minister in either or both of these places {I have already committed to 5% of all profits to go to Orphan Care}...so there is my BIG DREAM! May He give you what your heart desires & fulfill your whole purpose. ~Psalm 20:4

Five for Frunday {Busy weeks with Gypsy; Math Games; Mentor Sentences; Looking forward to TpT Conference; Update on a Prayer Request}

The last few weeks have been very busy as my daughter has been performing in the musical Gypsy at our community college, in our brand new Performing Arts Center!  They had performances last weekend & this weekend...so some very late nights.  Grandma & Grandpa came to see her {bottom left} & the bottom right picture is with one of her dance teachers/dance studio owner...I am a very proud mommy!

I LOVE everything I have purchased from Blair Turner...she has so many great products!...this week we did some review that we really needed before our fraction test with a fun Number Line Bingo game from her 3rd Grade Math Center Bundle...I so appreciated a blog post she did titled Real Life Isn't Always Laminated~Celebrating the Struggle...I really appreciate her honesty that her classroom isn't always 'picture perfect' & there are challenges...BTW, a little tip for you...each of my table groups picks up a 'desk trash' basket to collect it all up when we are doing a cutting activity.

I am REALLY loving Ideas by Jivey's Mentor Sentences!!!!  This is my bulletin board with what we have done...I would highly recommend this & I wish I had bought the bundle instead of just the first 10 weeks!!!...my biggest challenge has been finding the books she uses...Patricia Polacco is my principal's favorite author and he owns My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother so he came & read it to my class {I was frustrated with myself for not getting a picture of him sharing it with the class!!}...I have found several books that I don't own on YouTube which I have to show on my camera over the doc cam since our district blocks it!...I see my students finding great synonyms, looking critically about the details of a sentence & its structure & SO excited to share their modified & imitation sentences!!!

I am SO looking forward to the TpT conference this summer!!!!  On the left are pictures of what I just ordered from Vistaprint...my countdown app showing how many days, hours, & minutes to the conference, a picture of the little badges/tags I had last year at the conference...I am a part of a closed Facebook group~you can request to join~that celebrates the fonts of Kimberly Geswein, Brittney Murphy, & Darcy Baldwin...Font it up...I created a badge/tag to share with others in the group for us to be able to find one another easier at the conference!

In my last post I shared a prayer request for baby Lizzy...below is the post they shared on Facebook this week, it was the day after Addisyn was able to give her an official name, Emma Leigh, in court...I HIGHLY recommend going to the blog post Risky Love, written by a neighbor of theirs! Please continue to pray for the Block family!

Happy Easter! 5 for Frunday & Currently~April

Well, I missed the last 2 Five for Fridays...so I am doing a 5 for Frunday & Currently April...here's the latest...

1st Happy Resurrection Sunday~Happy Easter!!!

{Created by Darcy Baldwin(posted with permission)...click on print to go to her site & download it too!}

This sweet little boy was born just a week and a half ago...I was able to see him the within the first hour of him being born...only his mommy could hold him for the first hour...tomorrow my hubby & I get to go  & hold him (for our first time!) & take lots of pictures! :-D ...can't wait!!!{I took the picture on the right, his mommy took the picture on the left, she had been trying to catch a picture of him smiling...success!}

Last Friday I spent the day with my almost 16 year old son Andrew looking at his first choice college, California Baptist College...we had a great day & it just make him want to go there even more!...his homework from Mom, start reading 

On April 1st we had some fun...I showed the class my email on my doc cam...

... they read the subject line and groaned!! {if you have never been to GoNoodle this may confuse you, if you have you are probably giggling right now!}...then I opened the email...

there were cheers & laughter... right after that we made our April Fool's glasses & invited the principal to drop by our room...{hearts are added in Picmonkey...glasses are made my them!}

It is SPRING BREAK!!!!

April Currently...

EGGS-plain your name~Well...it goes back quite a few years...I had a brand new teacher next door to me several years ago and she created a classroom blog... www.hopintoroom14.blogspot.com ...it was frog themed...her classroom was referred to as 'The Pond'...frogs everywhere~supper cute..I remembered thinking that I would never have a theme in my classroom...a while later I came across all of my apple things...rugs, knickknacks, clock, wall hangings, etc...in my garage {they had been bumped from our home office to make room for my husband's business}...& I thought I could do an apple themed classroom...when I learned from my friend how to make a classroom blog in May of 2010 I titled it "The Apple Basket"...once I discovered the wonderful world of teacher blogging & decided to create one of my own it made sense to me to become 'The Apple Basket Teacher'

UPDATED!

I forgot when I originally posted this to include one topic I was to share with you...I have shared more than once here about the Block family who live in Guatemala...they live at Village of Hope which has this on their website:

GIVING FAITH, FAMILY AND A FUTURE TO ORPHANS WITH SPECIAL
NEEDS IN GUATEMALA WHILE MINISTERING TO THE LOCAL COMMUNITY

They received a precious little abandoned baby girl Lizzy, just 10 days old...she was in desperate need of surgery & God provided for her surgery...the first picture on the upper right was the first one the Block's shared, the second when poor little Lizzy was hurting with her IV...they sent out a request for prayers & the next picture shows her sleeping peacefully..Praise God!..the next two are just such adorable pictures of Lizzy!

{I couldn't add my watermark...these were their 

pictures I just put them together}

"They are saying that she has about 10% of her

 brain.  That there will be no quality of life. That she

 will only have reflexes... And yet she knows Addisyn 

Block voice. She calms when she holds her. She is 

comforted by her touch. She knows SHE is loved. 

And that, that simple thing- is really all any of us 

ever need- to be loved." This quote was shared on 

their facebook page {italics mine for emphasis}  

The bond between these two is evident in the 

pictures...I am so glad God put them together! 

Please pray for the healing & growth of Lizzy's

 brain...our God is the God of miracles, just look at

 what  today is RESURRECTION SUNDAY!!

Throwback Thursday: Fun Claps & Cheers; Vegas Meet Up, & I Think God is Trying to Tell Me Something!!!

I must start out with a GREAT big Bloggy/Internet {{{{HUG}}}} & thank you to Erica from Erica Bohrer's First Grade [I got to MEET her Tuesday...:-)] for letting me know how to embed an old post into this one!!!!!

This is my first Throwback Thursday with 

I have just recently re-entered the wonderful world of teacher blogging...I was looking at my Blog Archive...2011 (73), 2012 (8), 2013 (12) and the breakdown for 2013 May (1), June (7), July (4)...I was just talking with a good friend and fellow teacher about the last couple of years & how my blogging reflects how those years were going...the post I am sharing is one of my favorite posts and oh..my...goodness...I just looked at stats!...wow...definitely my most viewed post with 8687 views (my next closest is 6311, then drops to 1440!!)...my daughter and two good friends {also teacher kids} helped me out with this post...
it was originally posted May 20, 2011...

These are some great cheers and claps that you can use in your classroom!  The kids really enjoy them!  I've used them for individuals and groups when they have done something great.  I frequently let them choose which one they would like.  The models are my daughter, Sieanna (2nd grade), and her two friends, Sedona (3rd grade on the left) & Marysa (2nd grade on the right). Both of her friends are also teachers' kids.  Thanks to all three of them for allowing all of you to see & hear these cheer and claps!

I hope you will enjoy these as much as my students have!

*******************************************

{end of old post}

I had a GREAT time at the Blogger/Teacher meet up!!! I can't believe that the pictures with people (I only had a few I somehow deleted out of my phone!! :-( !!!)  I enjoyed meeting and talking with such amazing women!  It was totally worth taking the trip to Vegas!!

Have you ever had a time that you felt God was really trying to tell you something?? Not just subtly, but, Wham!..Are You Listening?...now it wasn't an audible voice, but boy, did it hit me....and believe it or not it was RIGHT IN THE BLOGGER MEET UP!!!!

Let me explain...

Several years ago I began to have a special place in my heart for the needs for orphans throughout the world...this is a portion of our family's Christmas letter that I posted here on my blog December 28, 2011...

 a month earlier I had posted this as part of a 'Thankful Linky' that included 3 blogs you are most thankful for and this was my #2 blog...

then I had a post '11 Positives Added in 11' {11++11} and this was #6...

before this and since then I've had several situations related to orphan care and/or adoption 'fall into my lap'..I even have a board on Pinterest about orphan care but...over the last few months I have been kind of discouraged...feeling no direction in this area...nothing planned for this year's Orphan Sunday {the 1st Sunday in November} at our church...not sure if I should try to get something going.. had doubts this was an area of my life that I could make a difference ...just Monday I was literally thinking that I was just going to let it go...let the embers of this passion just cool off and go out...then I go to:

if you were there you know that there were a TON of raffle prizes I think 99% were DIRECTLY teacher related; TpT certificates (they sponsored the Meet-Up) teacher books, classroom materials, discounts to conferences, etc., but there was one that was different from the rest, Leigh Ann from:

 it was necklace she had donated to help support a teacher at her school who was adopting a girl from China...who's name was called from the raffle bag...yep:

This is a link to their blog about their adoption journey {above}

So...today I pulled out my Show Hope shirt and have been praying since I got the necklace..."I hear you Lord, I WILL NOT let my passion for the orphans burn out...WHAT do you want me to do?" I don't have that answer, but posting this is a start... here are some links if you would like to know more about the challenge of orphans throughout the world: www.buildingtheblocks.blogspot.com www.showhope.com http://www.icareaboutorphans.org/ http://www.orphancarealliance.org/ http://www.hopefororphans.org/Display.asp?Page=orphancareorgs http://www.christian-alliance-for-orphans.org http://www.orphansunday.org/about/ http://www.showhope.org/GetInvolved/EngageOthers/OrphanSunday.aspx http://www.everyorphan.org

Well, I am going to post this on Thursday! {I have 4 minutes until it is Friday!}