Teacher Gifts

I know this is a little late for this school year, but maybe it will inspiration for the next teacher appreciation occasion. This little gift was super cute a cheap to put together as well.

I got plastic pencil cases from Walmart for 97 cents each.

I printed this adorable quote from the Balancing Home blog. I found the cutest tissues from Walmart, also for 97 cents. They had the picture of a screaming teacher and said "The students are coming!!" Which worked out great since the kids dropped the kids off to the teachers a week before school started, when they went to visit their new class.

I added some candy and this adorable printables from Thirsty Hand Made Days Blog. The printable had some information about the kids and a second card for the teacher to complete and return to me with some ideas to help me put together her next gifts.

I really wanted to fill up the pencil case so I got a few more things (to make it look full). I added a bookmark made by Salvation Army women in Papua New Guinea. I got these adorable miniature journals for 25 cents each at Walmart. When I went to the dollar store I got 3 note pats for a dollar and 3 pretty pens for a dollar as well. The apple sticky notes I got for 25 cents each, last year from a discount bend long after school had started.

We made 3 gift boxes, one for Truett's teacher and the other two for Charisma's teacher and assistant teacher. The kids loved picking out the goods for their teachers and the teachers seemed to really enjoy the thought they we put into it.
I'm supper exited to put together teacher gifts for all the coming holidays. How about you?

First Day of School

We're taking a break from homeschooling for the year because of my work. But the kids are in no way upset about it. The little troopers were super excited about their new adventure. 

The adorable signs are from a back to school bundle I purchased from IHeart Organizing blog. It had all kinds of cute things- it was money well spend. 

The teachers were did such a good job at making them feel welcome. And their first day was a success.
Oh, by the way the cute tags with their pictures are from Thirty Hand Made Days blog.

Flowers in the Alley

One of my favorite things about Marietta, Ohio are the alleys. Everywhere, all around town, there are little alleys. Even the parking lot of our office is only accessible through an alley.
I love walking around the alleys. I know this may sound silly, but I feel like I have an all access to the city's back stage or behind the scene.

Finding little flowers that grow through the concrete, to me, is like finding a secret treasurer. So I figured I would share some with you.

These little flowers have inspired me to look for beauty in unexpected places. I hope they can inspire you as well. 

Our New Home- Family Room

 As I mentioned before (here), we have moved to a new home. And as I promised (here), I will be posting some pictures of our new home as we get settled in. 

I did want to mention, that almost all of the furniture belongs to the house. Because the Salvation Army moves it's officers so much, and sometimes so far, the houses come already furnished. So about 98% of this room was furnished by someone else. Most likely "someones" actually. Different people, at different times, purchased different things. 

I know that the people we followed purchased the couch set and had new carped put in. And since they were only here for two years, I know it is pretty new. Everything thing else in the house, other than our personal stuff, I have no idea when it was purchased or by whom.

Not sure how clear it is on the picture, but the kids have their own side of the room. So they can play while we relax.

The chalk table had become the Lego table for a few weeks, but I moves all of Truett's Legos to his room, where his sister could not destroy his creations. Now it doubles as play/reading table. (Click here to see how to chalkarize a table) 

The train table almost went in the yard sale before we moved. We knew that the new house was smaller, so we were afraid we would find a place for it. But the kiddos were not ready to let go, so we made room for it on their side of the room. 

Also on their side of the room is Hubby's desk. It is a corner desk, so I could not put it anywhere else. 

Everything in this picture belongs to us, personally. The antique children's desk was a present from my brother. The cube shelves from Target are my favorite way to organize their toys. And the easel from IKEA is one of Charisma's favorite things. 

The desk is a work station for the kids. They use it for school work and crafts. I got the green pails from a clearance pin at Michaels and I used some scrapbook king stickers to decorate/label them. 

The TV is sitting on top of a serving table. When we got here the entertainment center, which is now against the far wall between two bookshelves, was too small for our TV. So we had to improvise. The entertainment center, which, thank goodness has doors, now holds our ridiculously large board game collection. 

You may have notice the lack of wall decorations. That's because we haven't put a single nail to the wall. When we first moved in, my mom was clever enough to reuse whatever nails were still on the wall. So she handed picture on the nails that were left in the wall by the previous people. I intend to rearrange that soon. 

I'm still not happy with this room (the whole house to be honest) I plan on painting the room and decorating it somehow. I need something for the coffee table and a way to make the improvised TV rack look more acceptable. But Since I can't change the furniture I'm really stuck for ideas. 

So please, roll in the suggestions, ideas and inspirations in your comments. I really need them.

Little Bits- Our New Town

My husband and I are officers in the Salvation Army, and every few year we are relocated to a new place. Six weeks ago, we moved to our new home in Marietta, Ohio. A town that I had honestly never heard about until I was told that we were moving there. But a town that we have, very quickly, fallen in love with.  

1. These pretty flower are everywhere in town 

2. Pretty boats go by everyday, just down the street from the office 

3&4. Bubble street artist made Charisma's day

5. One of the many adorable streets we get to see everyday

6. Beautiful sunsets by the Ohio River

7. One of my favorite things in town- the bicycle tree

8. My Peanut and I out for walk

9. The Hubby enjoying all the "pioneer" decoration downtown

10. The kids enjoying their first ever carriage ride