What’s Up November

       Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for October’s What's Up Wednesday link-up. 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives.

So let's get started...

What am I eating?

My mom and I went to Salad Station the other night. Their salad buffet is always so fresh and delicious. I love it! 

Want to know what I’m NOT eating? Y’all… I love most southern delicacies. But chicken gizzards and chitterlings (“chitlins”) will never ever be on my plate. 

What am I reminiscing about?

I’ve been looking through some old pictures while at my mom’s house. So I’ve been reminiscing about all sorts of memories from years gone by… Oh, and look at that cute little girl in that picture. Who’d ever think she’d be turning 40 in less than a year? :)

 What am I loving?

I loved having time with my mom the last couple weeks. It was needed and has been so very nice.

What have I been up to?

Packing at my mom’s house. The plan is for me to take some stuff back with me when I go back home this weekend. Then the goal is for her to be moved down with the rest at Christmas Break. I’m so ready!

What am I dreading?

Nothing really

What am I working on?

A bit of lesson prep (which also includes prep for Christmas/winter crafts) for the next few weeks before Christmas Break.

 What am I excited about?

I get to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family this year! This is the first time since 2015 that I’m in the States for Thanksgiving. And I am loving it! 

What am I watching?

At the moment? The Price is Right :)

What am I reading?

Nothing at the moment… I have a couple books sitting in my Amazon cart at the moment, though, trying to decide if I want to buy them or not. Anyone have a book suggestion for me? I’m not too terribly picky. I’m not really a fan of love stories/“chick flick” types of books. But past that, I’d probably be interested…

What am I listening to?

Christmas music, of course :)

What am I wearing?

All the warm clothes I can. 

 What am I doing this weekend?

Thursday, my mom and I are going to my aunt’s house and having Thanksgiving dinner with her family. Then Friday, we’re getting together with my brother’s family and celebrating with them. Then Saturday, I’ll be packing some more. And on Sunday morning, I’ll head back home, stopping by my classroom first to print off my lesson/activity materials first before heading to my house.

What am I looking forward to next month?

Christmas

Favorite recent Amazon find?

I’m ordering a felt Christmas tree for my classroom, in an effort to find a tree my people can interact/play with and not break ;)

What's new this month?

This month, I realized how much I love the iced pumpkin cream chai latte. …which is sad since it’ll be going away soon. 

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month? 

Hello Monday

      Happy Monday Y’all

Can you believe we’re already in November? I feel like if I blink, it’ll be Christmas already. 

Anywho, on to today’s post…

Today I'm joining Holly and Sarah, and a few other bloggers, for today's Hello Monday link-up, where we say Hello to Monday with a look at what's going on in our lives at the moment.

 So what's on my mind?

A lot. But 'tis the norm with me, I suppose.

Things like...

Daily Morning Photos - I’m still taking them. And every now and then, I get lucky and get to see a view like this one I saw just before walking into work one day last week.

Cute Crafts - One of the perks of teaching little ones again is getting to do cute crafts like these…

Friends - I got to see these guys this weekend while they were in town visiting for a bit. It was so nice to sit and reminisce/catch up. One of the things I’ve missed the most since leaving Senegal has been the friendships and the time spent hanging out with people, going out to eat, doing life together, or even just sitting together and chatting. I don’t have that here and it’s been taking its toll on my mind/heart. So yeah… This weekend’s meet up was so very nice :)

Time Change - Time changed this past weekend. After not living in a country that did that for over a decade, I think it’s going to take some getting used to. It’s so dark when I leave and if I stay after school and work or stop by the store on the way home, it’ll probably also be dark when I get home too. The perk, though? I’m waking up naturally, before my alarm and able to get more stuff done then. And as someone who’s definitely a morning person and thus, far more productive in the mornings, I do like that part of it :)

Halloween - I could live my life without it. But I do enjoy the cuteness that is little kids in their costumes. And I may or may not have worn this fun shirt on the day of to school too. So there’s that, as well ;)

Greek Food - I got some delivered a couple weeks ago. Y’all… It was so so good! And it was already pretty affordable, but then because the portion sizes were so big, I was able to enjoy the leftovers at 2 other mealtimes. So that made the price even better! I’ll definitely be getting it again one day.

Paperwork - It’s a seemingly never ending part of my job. Every time I think I’m even somewhat caught up, there’s something else that comes along. Prepping, forms to fill out, data to keep, paperwork to print, copies to make, etc. It’s a lot for all teachers and even more so for Special Ed Teachers. But yeah… It’s the part of my job that I can’t really do during the day (because I’m actually teaching) and since I only get a 30 minute planning period (which I often lose because of meetings and other responsibilities) and since I don’t get a prep-free lunch (because I’m with my kids), it’s why I spend time either before or after school and also on the weekends working. I don’t mind putting in the extra hours. I really and truly don’t. It’s part of the job of course and I am more than happy to do it. But if a non-teacher tells me how nice it must be to only work 7:30 to 3:30, this is what I think of ;)

Family - I’ll get to see them this upcoming weekend. Yay! Thanks to us having a 3 day weekend due to Veterans Day, I’m driving up to my mom’s after work on Friday. The plans are to help her pack and to also finally sort through and pack all of my own stuff that’s been in storage for a while too. Then hopefully we’ll be able to finish packing when I come back again the week of Thanksgiving. Then she’ll be able to move down here with me. I can’t wait!

And that’s about it for my scattered brain today. 

What about you?

 What’s on your mind today?