We are buying a house?!?!

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That’s right!  We put an offer on a house and after receiving a very good counter-offer, we have accepted!  The house is absolutely perfect for us and is exactly what we were looking for.  We were actually in a 10 day option period for another house, but after finding this one we couldn’t imagine it not being ours so we cancelled the offer on the first house.  This house just matched what we wanted a little more closely than the first house.  We are scheduled for inspection today at 3, so everyone keep your fingers crossed that it goes smoothly – I know they usually find SOMETHING, but hopefully it will be nothing major!  Here are some pictures of the beautiful, soon-to-be-ours house!

Front of the house
Living Area 1
Newly renovated kitchen and Breakfast Table
Another view of the kitchen
Master bedroom
Guest Bedroom
Backyard and the AWESOME deck
As if going through the home buying process isn’t time consuming enough, I have also been studying hardcore for the past week and a half since classes got out.  We have comprehensive exams for our Master’s program on Saturday (yikes that is tomorrow!!!), and I have spent countless hours preparing to answer the 2 essay questions that will decide if I get my Master’s degree or not.  No pressure, right?  It’s rough, but at least they sent us a list of the 70 potential questions of which 3 will be chosen from reading and writing and 3 from our other core classes.  We worked as a cohort to eliminate some of the questions that are meant for Master’s with bilingual specialization or other areas and were left with about 40 questions or so.  (BTW this post is my attempt at a “break” from studying, yet I am still talking about studying!)
Since I’ve had a severe need for coffee this week, why not add even more to my plate, right??  Yesterday morning I got to meet with the lead teacher for 1st grade and she is GREAT!  I am even more excited for this year now!  And wait for it…. I get to see my classroom for the first time tomorrow before my comp exams!!
With the beginning of the school year rapidly approaching and my PD beginning on Monday of next week, I have been pinning like a mad man on Pinterest!  What a great coincidence that Cara at First Grade Parade is having a Favorite Pins Friday linky party!  So, here are some of my favorite pins that I’ve pinned over the last couple of weeks!

First,  with the excitement of buying a house building up, I have been  searching for ways to take care of a few of the small things we will need to do to make the place our own.  This post on Buzzfeed DIY has some great tips for painting that we will definitely be following!  I would have never thought of some of these tips.

I’ve been looking at ideas to use when planning this year (still don’t know what subject I will be responsible for planning, but I’m hoping for science/social studies or math) and I found this great “Math About Me” idea from First Grade Smiles.  What a great way to help scholars see how math relates to their everyday lives!

Here is another fun idea for a Fall math center.  Scholars match the top of the candy corn with the bottom that has the correct answer.  I think that my scholars might have some difficulty with this more abstract representation of addition/subtraction when it is still early in the year, but I am thinking of ways to modify it.  Maybe something as simple as giving them counters to use to visually represent the problem.  Unfortunately, the pin does not actually link to anyone’s site so I can’t give them credit for their idea.

Another thing that I have been looking for is fun ways to teach and practice sight words.  I stumbled across a pin one evening for Sight Word Money which is a great incentive for scholars to learn sight words and allows them to keep track of which words they have mastered.  For each sight word the scholar learns, they get a dollar with the sight word printed on it and can place it in their Sight Word Wallet and check the word off on the back of the wallet.  Seems like a fun and motivating idea!  Check out this sight word activity from TheMoffatGirls.

Time for one last pin.  This pin is from on of my cohort members who has a GREAT food blog for vegan food.  I am not a vegan, but let me tell you that her recipes are incredible.  This one is a recipe for a gluten-free banana bread that she made for us to have in class one day and it is delicious.  In my opinion, it is one of the best banana breads that I have ever had.  Check out her blog, Almonds and Avocados.

Happy Friday!

9 Comments

  1. Hi Bryce,

    I sure love your blog design….I think I already said that. ๐Ÿ™‚ Your new house is PERFECT! and I hardly know you. It is awesome ๐Ÿ™‚ Congratulations!
    We are moving too at the end of August (schools and houses!. When do you move?
    I also wanted to wish you good luck on your exam! I remember it like it was yesterday and I wrote it in 1995 lol.

    Cheers to you!

    Shelley

    The Perks of Teaching Primary

  2. Hey Shelley! We close on our house on August 23rd, but the sellers have asked for a week lease-back because they actually bought the house across the street and need extra time to move. So we will be moving in on August 30! Thanks for the wishes of good luck, I feel pretty confident about it and I'm ready for it to be over!

  3. Congratulations on putting an offer in for a new house! The pictures are beautiful. We have been looking, more like peeking, at homes in the area. I cannot decide if we want to buy or build…we'll see. Not this year. Good luck!

    I am headed back into first grade this coming school year and I am very excited! Would love for you to head over and check out my blog! I am currently doing a give-away!

    Lindsay
    If You Give a Teacher a Treat

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  5. Hi There! I stumbled across your page and I must say that I am in absolute awe! A first year teacher?! Are you sure? Everything looks amazing! I myself am struggling through (but loving) my first year teaching. I teach 2nd grade boys. I look forward to scouring your blog for more wonderful ideas to enhance my classroom. Thank you so much for sharing!

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