Parasol topiaries

We are planning a luncheon for our teachers at the end of the year on the 25th. The theme is Hawaiian Luau, and I have tons of decorations ready to go. Once I saw this on Pinterest, I knew we had to do this for part of the decor.

So here they are...

Easiest thing ever. It is basically little buckets, styrofoam blocks as a base inside the buckets, dowels, styrofoam balls, and tons of those little drink umbrellas. I did wrap each dowel with some ribbon just to cover up the wood and covered the block in the buckets with some paper filler.


Can't wait to set it all up!!

Teacher Appreciation dessert bar

Today the PTO hosted a dessert bar for our teachers.

Cute little panda cake pops for them...we are the Polk Pandas!

Fun times :)

Teacher Appreciation gifts 2012

Here are all 4 of the printouts we made for the boys' teachers today...and they were completed with Sonic cards.  Printouts found HERE

Happy 1st day of Teacher Appreciation Week!!!

Teacher appreciation bulletin board

This morning, I ran to the school to begin the preparations for Teacher Appreciation Week next week. We are giving our boys' 4 teachers little gift cards to Sonic...hopefully they can take advantage of Happy Hour and get a bunch of drinks :)

Just inside the school, the PTO has a bulletin board that usually has volunteer information or school happenings on it...but starting today...it is an appreciation board.

Simple, but cute, and sets the tone for next week!

Stressin' out...

Have I mentioned how busy May is and how stressed I am?

A lot of it is just work related stress. You know, the kind of stress when you are planning several things and just want them to go well. That is something I can handle. I can handle being busy and feeling like I always have to be in constant motion...for a limited amount of time. Here is the "planning stress":

• leading our final PTO meeting of the year
• hosting and setting up a dessert bar for Teacher Appreciation
• selling carnations for Teacher Appreciation
• a catered meal for Teacher Appreciation
• a school party
• buying prizes for End of Year prize delivery....and setting it up
• Field Day
• final AR delivery
• End of Year class parties
• End of Year teacher luncheon
• Jansen's birthday party
• my birthday, Mother's Day, our anniversary all this month

I am up to my eyebrows in the details of it all. Thank God we have some really fantastic volunteers at our school that are really working hard!!

The other thing that I am not having the best time managing stress wise is dealing with Caleb. The worry, the uncertainty, the every day management. I have been praying HARD since December about what to do about his education. While I have never wanted to homeschool, I am at the point where I have a peace and confidence in the realization that I think it is best for Caleb at this time. My husband is not supportive of this, and honestly, I cannot go forward without his blessing. 

I am praying that if this is the direction that we should go, that Josh's heart be softened, and I be made fully capable of educating him. I am researching EVERYTHING. My mind is overloaded and swirling.

So, if the 98% of myself if actually correct, and we begin homeschooling him in the Fall, our school will be called Spectrum Academy. (I love the theory behind the Spectrum of Teaching/Learning and the Autism Spectrum). My homeschool philosophy is: "Promoting engagement and individuality in education". 

This is what I want for him: to be engaged, to be a life long learner, and to embrace the fact that he learns in a different way. Not wrong, just different. And individual attention is what is going to help him the most. 

Ah, motherhood. Where is the manual??? 

Simple bowling party invitations....

The kiddo is inviting his entire class to the bowling alley for his birthday, and rather than get a birthday list that may or may not have each child on it, and paying postage to mail them all out, I made simple birthday fliers to hand out in class.

Jansen looked through a bunch of bowling images on Google, and I did a quick little poem, and this was done. Simple and free, both things I love!

Invitation has been edited for privacy :)

Bike Rodeo at school....

My boys' Coach at school hosted a bike rodeo today in order to teach the children about bike and traffic safety. The kids enjoyed it, the parents took tons of pictures, and the PTO helped out a bit making traffic signs and card board cars.

Safety first!