It's Currently May!!!

It's May!  I'm so excited!  I would be even more excited if it was June instead!  I'm not wishing my life away but PEOPLE I have 38 (I think) more days left of school!!!!  Ahhhh!  Okay, enough about that...I'm linking up with Farley for her awesome Currently linky.

Listening:  I love Criminal Minds or any kind of criminal like show!  Did any of  you watch this season's "The Following?"  Monday was the season finale and it was amazing!

Loving:  My family...always!

Thinking:  I have SO many new referrals and therefore their will be MANY new IEP's to write!  Ugh!  I do loathe paperwork!  Why can't we just spend our time teaching?

Wanting:  So my Spring break was last week and I spent 6 of the 9 days painting one of our bathrooms and our hallway.  Yes I really thought it would only take 2 days, perhaps 3 tops.  Clearly it did not work out that way!  Long story short we changed the bathroom paint after the first coat (the first paint choice came out way to dark) and I had to work around the fiance's work schedule.  So glad it was productive and it's done but if I ever have the idea to spend a break doing that again, someone PLEASE stop me!

Needing:  Sleep.  Who doesn't?  My problem is I don't know when to go to bed!  

Summer Bucket List:  I would like to finally open up a TpT store with all of the things I've been creating and using with my students to see if anyone else can benefit from them.  The fiance is taking two weeks off this summer and I'm hoping we'll go on an actual honest to goodness vacation (the last real vacation together was ummmmm......never).  I can't wait to sleep in and just relax (although I truly am not good at relaxing but at least I can spend this summer learning how to right)?

Teacher Talk Tuesday

So my blog feed has been FILLED for the past two days with posts about "Teacher Talk Tuesday."  After about the 100th post I had to read more about this cool idea so I headed over to Rachelle and Natalie's blog at What the Teacher Wants to read more (click on the picture below to see more for yourself). 

This appears to be a super cool Instagram linky!  I have a personal Instagram account which I love (but don't actually use very much).  Well, I decided to jump on the blogging bandwagon and created an Instagram account for Aisforapplebisforblog because it looks like so much fun and I figured it would help me to remember to take more pictures of what goes down in my room!  I don't have any pictures yet but I will tomorrow!

If you're interested in joining in on the fun, you can follow me on Instagram {HERE}.  You can also just search for the username Aisforapplebisforblog from your Instagram account.  Be sure to look for the hashtag #teachertalktuesday to see all the pictures from your favorite bloggers!  If you have an Instagram account pllease leave a comment below so I can follow you!

Currently April or April Fools?

Well it is still technically March but I  am so excited to be linking up with Farley for April's Currently!  Love these!

Listening:  Do you watch Red Widow?  It has only been on for a month or two but I'm enjoying it so far.  I like that the female lead is a butt whooping chick!

Loving:  I have wanted a Silhouette Cameo or Portrait for quite a while (and I think I've written that on several Currently's) but I just couldn't bare to splurge on myself!  Well I don't have to now because I won a Portrait from The Idea Room (thanks Amy)!

Thinking:  I LOVE holidays and spending time with family however, my fiance and I always host these gatherings at our house (because we have the most room) which means shopping, cooking and cleaning!  It's exhausting!

Wanting:  This winter has seemed exceptionally cold and I am so anxious for warmer weather!  I'm very jealous of all of you who live where it's warm (including my snowbird parents)!

Needing:  In New Hampshire we have three week long breaks over the course of the school year.  The first is for Christmas, then we have a week off at the end of February and finally a week off at the end of April.  I have so many plans for this upcoming break (painting my front hall and one of our bathrooms is at the top of the list).  The best part of break is that when we return the rest of the year seems to fly by!  This year we're not getting out until  June 24 because we had six snow days!  Yikes!

Advice:  Yes I really think I'm the one who needs the advice!  I don't blog nearly as often as most bloggers (how some of you manage to blog everyday astounds me...you are amazing).  I still haven't taken the plunge to share some of my creations on Tpt or Teachers Notebook yet.  I'm just not sure if anyone would find them useful because I'm a special education teacher and not a classroom teacher. Maybe one of these days!  I do believe that you should share what is in your heart and continue to try, whether that is blogging, creating for your store or teaching in general!
Read what other bloggers are doing Currently or link up yourself!

Giveaways, Giveaways, Giveaways Galore!

Wow!  I can't believe all of the AMAZING and GENEROUS giveaways going on right now!  Just click on the buttons to head straight to the giveaways and enter to win some truly amazing products, gift cards  clip art and more!

Let's Get Acquainted Linky

I love linky parties so when I saw Latoya's new linky party on her blog I just had to join in!  This week's linky is to share 3 things about yourself beginning with your initials.  My initials are KJW so this should be frustrating err I mean interesting!
1.  K - This letter is tough!  I'm going to say that I am kind.  One of my favorite quotes of all time is:

I tell my students this all the time!  I truly think it's the most important character trait to have!
2.  J - is for junkie! NO not THAT kind of junkie!  I'm a blogging, Pinterest, clip art, book, shoe, and shopping-for-anything kind of junkie!  I can't get enough of any of those things!  Ha!  Now don't you feel kind of bad that you thought I had some other kind of problem?  {Teehee}
3.  W- is for wedding!  My fiance and I are having quite the time deciding on what we want for our wedding!  We can't decide if we want a huge shindig or just a small intimate wedding and so we keep procrastinating!  It's driving our family and friends crazy!  Oh and I think I'm pretty witty at times too (or is that sarcastic).
Okay that was fun but way harder than I thought it would be....I need better initials!

Head over to Latoya's blog and join in the fun!

I'm sure you've heard of Groupon and Living Social along with countless other daily deal sites (yes I'm an addict to Sassy Steals, Groupdealz, PinkEpromise, Decor Steals and countless others) but there is a new daily deal site just for teachers that begins April 2!  It's called Educents and you can save from 30-90% off educational items!  The best part is if you sign up now you will receive a $15.00 gift certificate to use towards a future purchase!  Just click on the picture below to sign up!

{Disclaimer:  I will receive $1.00 for everyone who signs up using the link above.}

March Currently

It's March!  This year is seriously flying by!  I'm linking up with Farley for another fun Currently!

Listening:  Do you watch "The Following?"  It's action packed and a little on the gruesome side but I really like it!  Is it just me or has Kevin Bacon seriously not aged one bit?
Loving:  I love, love, love my new refrigerator!  Our previous fridge was ridiculously small for a four person family...you couldn't even fit a frozen pizza in the freezer!

Thinking:  So I've been thinking about opening up a TpT store and/or TN to share some of my creations that I use with my students.  Should I do it?  Is it better to use your blog name or your real name as your store name?  Any advice?  Here's a peek at what we've been working on lately:

Wanting:  I have wanted a Silhouette and an DSLR for a while and just can't decide if I should spend the money.  
Needing:  Last week was our winter break and it flew by!  I truly need another week off....guess I have to wait another 8 weeks for our Spring break!
Like:  Yes I really like ketchup!  I REALLY loved it as a kid and would eat it with just bread.  Gross I know!
Love:  Yes I love kittens....really just about every animal but especially dogs and cats!
Hate:  I couldn't think of anything that starts with a "K" except kneeling because it hurts after a bit!
If you haven't heard yet The Collaboration Cuties are having an AMAZING and HUGE giveaway to celebrate having 300 followers!  Click on the button below to follow them and enter!

The Pencil Sharpener That Takes a Lickin' and Keeps on Tickin'

I'm sure most, if not all of you have seen this fantastic pencil sharpener ALL OVER the internet and on lots of blogs!  Well there's a very good reason it is getting so much attention...it's FANTASTIC!

I was sent this handsome pencil sharpener in return for an HONEST review which is what I am going to give you!  

First, I love the way it looks (excuse the poor pics please)!  It's part retro, part modern design matches any decor!  It comes in blue (the one I received), red, black and green!  I will admit that I would NOT  turn down a pink version (hint, hint Troy).

Second it is super easy to use!   Really it's as easy as 1-2-3!  You can either attach it to a counter or desktop or just stand it on a flat surface.  To sharpen your pencil you simply:

1.  Pinch the black knobs together while extending the silver portion of the sharpener outward.

2.  Pinch the black knobs together again and insert your pencil fully into the sharpener.

3.  Turn the handle a few times until the silver mechanism moves closer to the sharpener base and you know you pencil is perfectly sharpened!  

Have you ever seen a pencil as sharp?  I know you're thinking that it probably breaks easily but it doesn't! And let me assure you the KIDS love how sharp these pencils are!  I love that it makes their writing so much neater!

Want MORE reason's to love it?  Well it's quiet!  Now it's not completely silent but it is BY FAR the quietest pencil sharpener I know of.  In addition, the shavings go into the see-through cup on the bottom so you can easily determine when it needs to be emptied.  The cup easily slides out so you can dispose of the shavings quickly and then it slides right back in.

Perhaps the #1 reason I love this sharpener is that even if it gets dropped on the floor by an overzealous first grader and gets banged up a bit it keeps working!  Granted the shaving cup has a tiny ding in it but the rest of the sharpener looks as good as it did the first day I received it and folks it fell on a CONCRETE floor! 

Now I said I'd be completely honest so therefore I will tell you I did have one small difficulty with the sharpener.  I had several pencil points break inside the sharpening device which caused it to temporarily stop working. HOWEVER, this was SO easy to remedy!  I just quickly pulled off the handle (just a half twist) and then tapped it on the side of the wastebasket and the pencil point went right into the trashcan.  I twisted the handle back on and the sharpener was ready to go!  You can't do that with those big electrical sharpeners!   I don't believe most people who own this sharpener have had this problem, I think perhaps mine may have a tiny imperfection that causes this to happen and it has ONLY happened with colored pencils.

Now seriously folks...this pencil sharpener rocks!

Don't just take my word for it...go check out this sharpener for yourself!  I KNOW you will LOVE it!

Just click the picture below!