A Liebster award! Who, me?

I can hardly believe it, but after just a couple of weeks in the blogosphere, I've been nominated for a Leibster award! And not just once, but TWICE!! I feel so honored! Big thank you to Laurie at Special Education Love and Nicci at Chalet Re for making my day today!

In case you don't know, Leibster awards are for up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers. There are a few things I have to do to accept the nominations:

1.  Link back to the person that nominated you.
2. Answer the questions from your nominator.
3. Share 11 random facts about yourself.
4. Nominate 5 more blogs with less than 200 followers.
5. Pose 11 questions for your nominees

Since I have 22 questions to answer, I'm going to save them for last.

I'm nominating...

1. T-Share
2. Peaches & Palmetto Trees
3. Fancy in Fourth
4. Teaching with Class
5. Swashbuckling in Seventh

My questions for you...

1. What do you teach?
2. What school supply do you love most?
3. What is your guilty pleasure?
4. What's your go-to caffeine fix on sleepy mornings?
5. What are you most excited about this school year?
6. Who is the teacher who inspires you most?
7. If you were giving your students a wish list for Christmas gifts, what would be the #1 item on it?
8. What's your favorite Pinterest recipe?
9. If you could go anywhere on vacation, where would you go?
10. What time do you wake up in the mornings?
11. If you had a day off, and nothing to do, how would you spend it?

My answers...

1. When did you decide to become a teacher? 
• When I was 15, 16, & 17, my youth group traveled to an inner city area in DC and did Vacation Bible School for some very needy kids, who stole my heart every year. I knew after the first trip that I wanted to be a teacher.
2. What is your favorite meal?
• Anything that involves pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese! Lasagna, ziti, spaghetti, you name it, I love it!
3. Is this your first blog?
• Yep! Sure is!
4. Do you have any pets? Tell me about them.
• I have an 8 year old Boxer named Lulu. Poor baby hasn't been getting as much love lately though, since our little man was born. Even at 8, she's still a puppy at heart and plays too rough for him.
5. Name a blog you go to for inspiration.
• Hooty's Homeroom, Clutter-Free Classroom, & MissKinBK
6. What's your favorite Pinterest creation?
• I'm going ouside the "teacher box" with this one...Banoffee Pie! Bananas, caramel, graham cracker crust. Yum! And it's super easy, to boot!
7. What lesson are you the most proud of?
• That's a tough one! It was nothing fancy, but a couple of years ago, while discussing with my 5th graders the reasons the colonists were unhappy with England, we had the best class discussion. At the end of it, they could (almost) all tell me why we started the war, and not just "because they weren't fair to us," but specific reasons. It was exciting to see all the lightbulbs going off!
8. What do you teach?
• 5th grade. It's been my home for four of the five years I've taught, and I love it!
9. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?
• I've been to the Caribbean several times, so next on my list has to be Europe. Italy, France, Germany. (I think I'm going to need to spend the whole summer!)
10. What has been your favorite summer vacation?
• Jamaica! We loved it so much on our honeymoon that we went back this year! We stayed at Couples Tower Isle in Ocho Rios the first time and Couples Negril the second. If you go to Ocho Rios, you have to climb Dunn's River Falls, and if  you go to Negril or Montego Bay, you have to zip-line!
11. What is your number one goal for the upcoming school year?
• My team is implementing a handful of new things this year (Whole Brain, ClassDojo, Edmodo), so my goal is to keep up with all of them, and implement them well!

*I'll be back for the other 11 questions later!

11 Random facts about me...

1.  I started water skiing the summer before I turned 3. Since I've always been on the petite side, this gathered a LOT of attention from other boaters!
2. I love Papermate Flair pens, maybe more than is natural, even for a teacher!
3. I'm in grad school right now, and it's keeping me CRAZY busy, especially on top of going back to school and my TPT store.
4. My little man said Mama to me yesterday for the first time, without prompting! Squee! #onehappymama
5. I have a very musical memory. I'm pretty sure I can remember all the words to every song I've sung more than once.
6. I love Criminal Minds, even though it totally freaks me out and I can only watch when my hubby is home.
7. I am mildly obsessed with polka dots and chevron right now, preferably in turquoise, lime, and red.
8. My sister is deaf, so I've been signing since I was a kid.
9. I love football more than my husband does, and I'm counting the days until football season!
10. I could eat chocolate until I turned into it. Picture Violet from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, only chocolate instead of a blueberry. This could be me.
11. I just got an Erin Condren Life Planner and I *big puffy heart* it.

I think that covers it for now. Thanks again Laurie & Nicci for nominating me!