The Early Bird Gets Mall Madness

Every year I am TERRIBLE at Early Bird Registration for our Girl Scout troop.  I can never get my life together.. but this year.. Troop 1810 not only did Early Bird Registration, but also took advantage of Mall Madness!

Mall Madness is a yearly event set up by the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas as a perk of participating in Early Bird registration.  Mall Madness is exactly what it sounds like! It is a night where those that register are able to have a giant mall lock in! It is full of open shops, activities, vendors, a movie.. and NO sleeping.

It was our first mall madness to attend, so I had no expectations.. other than I knew I was going to be TIRED the next day (today is the next day.. and I have slept on and off throughout the day)

Check in was at 9pm.. so we met about 8:45pm... the line was long (there had to be over 700 people that were attending this event) but we enjoyed chatting and catching up.  We totally brought way too much stuff! Our girls brought blankets, sleeping bags and I brought games and my chair. We got checked in, got our wristbands for movie time and started the Instagram Scavenger hunt.  During the hunt we also visited several of the stores. Not going to lie.. I REALLY wanted a coffee, but I think every leader/adult had that same plan because the line at Barnes and Noble was SO long... I looked at it and decided it was not for me.

Troop 1810- some of us dressed up in the 80's or 90's garb for the costume contest.  Allie was one of the winners!

I loved that the mall was a contained area so our girls had a chance to be on their own.. but with us close enough to follow along at a distant pace (and as the time got earlier in the morning.. we were moving slow anyway!)

The girls LOVED that Claire's was opened! There were also several stores that stayed open late and various discounts that were available.  Because we completed the scavenger hunt our troop one these super fun glow sticks to use during the dance party happening in the food court.  We did miss the big photo op as we couldn't move!

The moms had more fun at the dance party than the girls

Okay, it is a blurry picture but it was 1 in the morning.. in a dark theater.. and were all tired!

During the night you could also sign up for a movie slot.  We got to see Wreck it Ralph Breaks the Internet at 1:10am in the morning.  Great movie with a great message.

Top 4 of the Night (there are easily more!)
1. Seeing our girls be more independent! This was a great space, enclosed, and set up for success for the girls to be more independent
2. Hanging out with these awesome moms that are a part of Troop 1810!
3. Scavenger Hunt! Anytime I have a chance to take pictures (selfies!) make me super happy!  I even came out of my #digitaldetox on Instagram (you can check out @akbusybee on Instagram for all my stories!)
Okay.. I have one more..
4. The WHOLE GSNETX staff that was there making sure the event ran as smoothly as it could!! I mean.. it is an all night thing.. and people get cranky :)

Not so Top 2
1. It was hot! I know there really isn't much to control about that, but it was pretty warm in lots of places.
2. Some of the adults and girls forgetting that they are representing Girl Scouts.  There were some places that people forgot to be a Sister to Every Girl Scout.. and to Leave a Place Better than they found it.  But, this happens anywhere.. especially when there is little to no sleep involved. I think some adults also forget that girls are watching.. and sometimes it is important to teach girls to be patient. This goes for what people post online too. This was NOT the majority.. but it was still noticeable.

Overall.. the event was super enjoyable, and I know why it is called Mall Madness! I can't wait to register early next year (I mean.. first of all.. I have an awesome troop that wants to hang out and do activities!) but we will be attending Mall Madness again!

I love the opportunity to dress up in costume!

We survived Mall Madness let's take a picture at 4:15am in the morning picture!

Next up for our troop- Lock-In in July and NASA in October!! Some of the troop is also talking about joining the Travel Club!

A Summer full of Selfies!

My official digital detox was going to start today (you can find out about it here).. after I finished school, after I finished Camp Amiga, and after I finished our Camp Amiga Survivor party... BUT.. thank goodness I hadn't started it yet!

I am so glad that I still had social media on my phone, as it is what I used to connect to get our power back up and running.These first 16 days of June have been CRAZY!!!
June 1st- blow out of a tire while on the interstate which resulted in 4 new tires for the Bumblebee (yes, I am fine.. car is fine.. wallet is hurting a little)
If you are in the DFW area you know that the weather has been UBER crazy lately!
June 6th- Storm came through and our transformer blew.  Not only did it take out our power.. it created a small fire.  Yes, we are fine, but didn't have power until almost 3am that next morning.

June 9th- CRAZY weather came through.. took out our patio table.. BUT.. not our power.. until 3 hours after the storm. Same transformer blew again. 
June 11th- Power back on at 6pm- all food in fridge already dead
June 16th- Transformer blew again 3:30am and turned back on at 10:00.  Transformer blew again at 11:15.. back on at 2pm.  Another storm has blown through and another one is coming.  I am crossing my fingers that we are good at least for a few days!
I know that it could have been much worse, but that still doesn't mean it wasn't crazy at our house.

Summer Selfie

I am a member of this awesome Principal Group that talks about different ways to appreciate staff. I LOVE showing people that they are important.  Matthew Arend shared this AWESOME Summer Selfie Bingo card that he does with his staff. It is a great way to get to know the community and the staff.  You can check out his post here.

I talked with my principal and decided to do it as well for our school.  I created a Bingo board in Google docs, sent an email to staff and have been watching the Twitter feed. If you would like your own copy you can use this link- feel free to use my pictures (they are all emojis I found on website.. it is cited at the bottom)

Here is the email I sent to staff (I made sure to also include our new staff coming in)

Hello Fabulous Friends!

I hope that you are already having an AMAZING and much needed break! If you are not on break yet.. it is coming soon!

Welcome to the first annual #lamarsummerselfiebingo

Here is how it works:

Get on Twitter (Those new to Twitter can begin here)

Share how great your summer is using the #lamarsummerselfie bingo hashtag and the @Lamar_MS

Use the Google Doc linked her to access your own game board. (It should open up as a copy!) or use the picture that is attached.  I like to do some appsmsashing so I use picmonkey to add my pictures to my virtual bingo board.. but you can do that through Google too!

Get a Bingo (or two or three) check out our hashtag to see what everyone is up to! (there might be prizes involved.. but also the prize is getting to know our Lamar family even better!)

Don’t want to post on Twitter.. no worries (although we would love to see your adventures!) keep up with your BINGO board so we can share the love when we start school!

Have questions- send me an email!

Have a GREAT summer!! I am actually doing a digital detox this summer will have to do this while on my limited computer, but I can’t wait to like, retweet and share what is going on this summer.

I still plan to participate because I can access social media from my computer.. just taking it off my phone so I am not staring at it 23 hours a day. I have already loved retweeting and sharing what the Lamar Staff is doing.  

But, I am super excited about spending some quality time celebrating our anniversary tomorrow (June 17th), reading lots of books and creating.

See you guys officially at the end of July!

Almost Summer!

I am winding down the last official week of being a middle school librarian.  What a wonderful year it has been! This is our last week with kiddos, I have one week left of work (and a HUGE to do list), and then a week of Girl Scout Camp Amiga.

Last year I made this awesome Bucket List (many of the items were on my #40by40 list) because I just knew I would have time! But.. instead.. we moved houses and I moved schools... which in reality made it so I had very little of a summer. I of course enjoyed it.. but THIS summer.. this summer I am looking forward to taking a break. This summer I am going to work on my #40by40, but more importantly I am going to take a Digital Deotx! I loved what Lisa wrote on her Digital Detox/Declutter Why and How. and have set this blog up much like hers. (If you don't already follow Lisa Johnson you need too!)

This summer I will be taking a Digital Detox from Sunday June 16th- Sunday July 28th.
Why I want to do it:
-I need a reset of how much time I am spending on Social Media.
-This next year I want to focus on celebrations and create.
-Priority! My word this next year will be priority. My word last year was Perspective and my perspective changed in so many ways.  From the school I worked in, the new friends I found, and our home life.. I tried to always think about my perspective.  This year, my word is Priority- and I am starting my summer making myself a Priority with a Digital Detox!

What I have already done (and am currently doing)
When I decided to do the Digital Detox, I made a to do list of the various items I wanted to get done so I could feel as if I could take a break. I thought about the various digital platforms I use and decided how I want to use my online space.
-I have organized, deleted items, and just cleaned up my Pinterest, Canva, and Piktochart. I have also organized my 2 different Google Drive accounts. I have also cleaned up my Instagram accounts and Facebook accounts.
-I am ALMOST done organizing my house! We did a ton of yard work yesterday and I only have 2 more rooms to go through.
-I am working on emails.  I did do Unrollme.com and already my main Google account is getting cleaner. I plan to be at zero inbox on my 2 main Google accounts
-I have cleaned up my computer desktop along with deleting all of the download items.
-I joined Camp Gladiator!
-I reorganized my office and craft space.  I am ready to create this summer!

What I plan to do
-Delete apps on my phone.  My phone is where I spend most of my time! So, the apps that will be coming off my phone for this summer are: Yahtzee (I know.. I know.. this is one of my guilty pleasures!) Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, Twitter, Gmail, Outlook, Good Reads
-I do plan on keeping Glide, Text Message, Group Me and Marco Polo.  I feel as if those are still real life interactions I have with people. I also plan on keeping Timehop.. I mean I am on a 3 year streak!
-Limit my daily use of computer.  I would like to set time limits on this.. but I will be writing curriculum this summer so will need my computer! I have already cleaned up my bookmarks and history. I will still be checking my social media, but it will not be as often.
-Create and craft! I know what I am doing for Christmas ornaments this year.. and what I am doing for my Ugly sweater. So, I am going to have Christmas in July.  This will give me a chance to actually enjoy the season during Christmas.  I also plan to make lots of birthday, anniversary and various occasion cards. I have addresses and dates.  I am also get prepared for my Girl Scout leader meetings (and this year I want to focus on celebrations!)
-Read! There are SO many books that I want to read this summer, but I am not going to stress if I don't get them all read.
-Work on my #40by40 list.  That birthday is coming up this year.. and I have several things I can knock off my list.
-Update my Memory planner.  I was really good up through October, but then got out of habits.  I hope to build even more habits this summer that prioritize myself and things that make me happy.
-Enjoy my hubby, house, pool.. and RELAX!
-Catch up with friends.

Blogger- I will see you at the end of summer! My #digitaldetox is starting in 21 days!

Teacher Appreciation 2019- Camp Lion

I can't believe that my first year as a middle school librarian is winding down (reflections blog coming up on my Bee In the Bookends Blog soon!)
One of my FAVORITE things to do.. is help plan Teacher Appreciation (okay.. I lie.. I LOVE celebrating people.. so I love that I get a chance to help celebrate teachers during the holiday season and different times throughout the year.. and ooohhh.. do I have some plans for celebrations next year!)
This year Teacher Appreciation theme was Camping.  On Friday this flier went in boxes and was also emailed out. The flier was created in Piktochart which is a program that I use almost weekly in various ways.  It is also a program that I pay for because I use it so much. I also used Canva to create the information about each day.
In order to make sure that the week went off without too much of a hitch, I worked with one of our assistant principals, our amazing Lamar PTA, our fantastic secretary Tina, and some outstanding parent volunteers.  Of course I got some great ideas and help from the Skurtcrew!

Enjoy the pictures of the week, I usually know what I am doing the next year and start planning.. but inspiration hasn't hit me yet! Elliott Elementary did an a really cool one that was Wizard of Oz theme (Elliott teachers are Oz-some)

Monday- Don't feed the bears, but PTA fed us some awesome griddle cakes.  I also created a photo booth

Tuesday- Trail mix bar- we put the items in cast iron (I would have gotten a picture of it full.. but I didn't make it in time.

Tuesday night I also hosted a volunteer appreciation event for our Girl Scout Service Unit. We moved it to a restaurant this year, and Angelo's in Irving did an AMAZING job! During the event we celebrated graduating seniors, girls that had earned their Gold Awards, volunteers that were recognized with various awards, and just celebrated volunteers overall.

Wednesday- We celebrated Nurses day with kits to help teachers be prepared.  These included a little note that I found at Tried and True blog.  The goody bag had highlighters, a sharpie, pens and some paperclips (our parent center volunteers put these baggies together and also made sure they got in boxes!).  During the staff meeting admin also gave ALL staff members personalized water bottles (thanks to Mari and Leslie for making sure those happened!)  Admin also wrote little notes on each table for the staff meeting and left lots of goodies for us to enjoy!

Thursday- We could use S'More teachers like you!  Although we talked about having an actual s'more station.. it was much easier to make little s'more kits.  It is also testing season, so putting items in boxes made sure that everyone had a chance to make their own.  We also had a teacher bring up some yummy breakfast foods to share with the staff.

Friday-Camp food! Our Admin team made sure the teachers had some great hot dogs with all the fixings! They also had some fun cupcakes (because we all know that teachers are pooped at this time of year) For drinks staff members were invited to use their new water bottles and create their own favorite sonic style drink (we had cherry, vanilla and some Sonic ice)  I was not able to be at school that day because I had the opportunity to watch the young woman who I used to be a nanny for graduate college!

 

I think overall it was a successful Teacher Appreciation week.  I look forward to celebrating teachers and staff even more this next year!

This summer I am doing a Digital Detox... my new blog will share my plans for this and also my word of the year.

Burger Mission

It is a Sunday evening.. which means I really should be doing at list of 200000 things.

Being married to a chef means that I do have some great meals at home, but it also means that sometimes we just enjoy a good burger.  This summer we stopped at Burger House and decided we would be on a quest for good burgers (now, I like a good burger and chili cheese fries!)

Our List (and in order to how much we liked them)
1- Burger House- this place is a hole in the wall. and is AWESOME! Loved the atmosphere and it had our favorite burger and great fries so far (also the price was very reasonable)

2- Shake Shack- the flavor the burgers was spot on and the fries were pretty good.  The flavor the burger almost beat  Burger House, but we liked the feel and atmosphere of Burger House better.  Shake Shack is a chain, and was a little pricey.. but still our number 2.

3- BurgerIm- This was a toss up between Shake Shack and BurgerIm.  BurgerIm has slider size burgers with a ton of different toppings and add ins.  I went with just the regular burger and the bacon cheese fries.  I was a little worried about the fries, as they almost looked like the sliced potato chips (which I am not really a fan of) BUT- these bacon cheese fries were my FAVORITE! It would have moved above Shake Shack, but the burgers needed just a bit more flavor.  I will be going back as the price was right.. and I want to add other toppings (and I need more of those fries!)

4- Jakes Burgers- Nothing too exciting.  I actually didn't even get a picture because we were so hungry by the time we got there.  Our service wasn't that great either.

We also attempted to go to Clown Burger.  It looked like a great place that had been there forever. 1- we got there and realized they only take cash.. okay.. we could handle that. We went and found an ATM and made our way back.  2-After standing in line for 15 minutes (there were only 2 people in front of us.. it is a SMALL place) we heard through the grapevine it was going to be a 45 minute wait.  Although it smelled great and we wanted to try it.. over an hour for a burger when there were only 2 people in front of us.

Do you have a favorite burger place in the DFW area?

National Infertility Week- 2019- Perspective

I find it so interesting how my word of the year usually comes to me in April.  It is also the time where my current word shows how absolutely perfect it has been for the year.  Okay, I know that most people do their word of the year in January as a Hello New Year! I am a teacher.. so yes, I celebrate the New Year.. but I am also on school schedule so my years run different.

This week is National Infertility Week.  You can find information here. I have also blogged here, here, here, and here. The theme this year is #infertilityuncovered I went back and read my blogs, and found it so interesting how much my mindset has changed and how much I have grown. I also do not write these blogs for sympathy.. it is a way for me to share my own journey and share how I have uncovered infertility.   

My journey of infertility began in my late teens/early 20's I was diagnosed with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) I have done the meds, the shots, the doctors visits and so much more. I still shed tears (I am thankfully human) but as I reflect this week on my own infertility journey Perspective is the perfect word and this quote fit it so well.

"We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same." Carlos Castaneda.

When we first started going through the journey of wanting to start a family, there were many times where I made myself miserable. I did that by comparing myself to my friends, I did that by giving myself symptoms that I thought were of my body doing what it needed to do, I did that by thinking I was less of a woman because I was not able to get pregnant.  Realistically, I still have some of these thoughts, but I have so many more times where I remind myself of all that I do have.

I make myself strong by reminding myself:
-I am married to a wonderful husband.. and our path is exactly where it should be.
-I am surrounded by amazing friends that continually lift me up
-I am surrounded by amazing people that allow me to work with their kids (whether that is through Girl Scouts, Destination ImagiNation, school activities)

This whole year, my perspective has changed when it comes to where I am in life. I know that I will probably never be a biological mother.  This does hurt my heart at time (remember.. I am human.. and mother's day does get tough!) But, as I look at my word for this year of Perspective, it reminds me to step back and remind myself what I do have. 

When I get caught up in the journey that I thought I was supposed to have- whether that be life, jobs, infertility.. I have reminded myself to take a step back and take a moment to look at various perspectives. 

To those that are on your own journey to begin a family- I wish you luck and love. I hope that your road leads you to where you need to be! To those that have families already- I am SO happy for you! To those that have traveled the infertility journey with loss- I LOVE you. To those that have a family that are not biologically yours- Congratulations! To those that are on the path that might not ever lead to a child of your own- I am here for you.  No matter which journey you might be on, or what mile you are on that road- the infertility one is full of bumps, turns.. and let's be real a few potholes that you might not have realized was there.

Although we are talking infertility this week, it is something that happens every day to so many people. This was a great article on Debunking the Top 3 Myths of Infertility. My perspective reminds me how lucky I am to have so many wonderful people in my circle of family and friends.

From my blog in 2016:
To those that might be on their own infertility journey, I wish you luck.. I wish you peace.. and I wish you LOTS of love! It is a tough journey, but then so is life. Good luck in whatever journey you might be on.

Grateful

Spring break is a few days away and I am already making plans of how I am going to get caught up and who I am going to get caught up with.

This weekend I was able to go camping with my troop, and it gave me a chance to reflect on how extremely grateful I am.

I am grateful to my parents. They raised me to understand the value of hard work, being kind, and always looking for a way to help.  They instilled in me the importance of trying my best and making a difference in the world.  

I am grateful to my husband.  We might not always see eye, but he is the first one to encourage me to be me (which is not always easy) He has stood beside me on all my crazy adventures and supported me as I have gone through my various career stages.

I am grateful for the amazing friends I have. From Destination ImagiNation team managers, to next door neighbors, to work friends, to library friends, to friends I found because I stalked them, to breakfast buddies, to families I have worked with, and so many more people I surround myself.  I am grateful for you.  Each person I come in contact with has helped me become the person I am today. I am grateful that you listen to me, give me advice, let me cry and rejoice in life itself.

I am so grateful for so many people.. but I think I am most grateful for Troop 1810.  I know I talk about Girl Scouts a ton (I mean.. I have been one for almost 35 years!)  But these girls that are now 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders are so much a part of my life.. and I am so grateful for that. 

When William and I finally decided that after 10 years of trying to not have kids of our own, I was worried.  I was worried that I would not have the same opportunities that moms have.  I was worried that I would not be able to do things that I had done with my own family growing up such as camping, ceremonies, and various traditions.  I was worried that I would never have the opportunity to share some of my own stories or my own memories.  But, almost 4 years ago I had the opportunity to start the third generation of Troop 1810. Now, every Girl Scout troop is a little different, but I have to say that Troop 1810 is EXACTLY what I needed.  I am grateful that these girls allow me to be their leader. I am grateful that the families allow me to be involved in their lives. I am most grateful that these moms allow me into their fold. I know that I probably never have kids biologically but I am grateful for the conversations and the opportunities that you give me.  This weekend I loved spending time around the adult table at camp while the girls ate and just talking with the moms. I am grateful for the opportunities that this troop gives me to create memories that I might not otherwise get to have not having kids of my own. Thank you! I know that Troop 1810 will grow and shrink over the years, but these times I have already had I would not change them for the world, and I hope that the girls always understand that.

I look forward to making plans during spring break to hang out with some of the people that I am so grateful for.  Thank you for being you and allowing me to be a part of your life.