This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

Don't you hate those ginormous journals that have stuff just pouring outta them and every paper starts to get folded and tattered because the journal won't shut??? Well, I have a solution.... and sound like I am on an infomercial!! I have had some questions in the past about closing the journals. I wrote about it, but pictures make it so much easier to understand:) You will need: You can also buy them at Walmart. I bought this bag at Walmart for a little over $5.00, used 80 of them and we hardly put a dent in this bad boy. Also needed: Handy-dandy hole punch. You can see how enormous the rubber bands are here. Step 1: Punch hole in the back top outside corner. I didn't do it on the bottom so kids would be less tempted to play with it. Step 2: Put the rubber band through the hole like this: Step 3: Take the large loop and go through the small loop like this: Step 4: Pull the longer loop tight: TA-DA!!!!! Now you can close that journal that is overflowing with knowledge and foldables!!!!! Quick reminder: Don't forget to enter my GIVE AWAY!!! Just click on the word Give Away and you will go to my link. I am soooo close to 100 and would love to give away the bracelet and pen with 100 followers!! Thanks for reading and supporting!! :)

As a jack-of-all-trades the BoXZY can do multiple things ­— and can do them well.

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

Here are some interesting facts about comedian and singer Jack Black, who recently starred in the film Jumanji.

Africa is an amazingly beautiful continent. It is so rich in the beauty of its' people, their culture, and the animals and scenery of the land. It's not every month that you get to go on Safari, but that is just what my preschooler and I are doing through our preschool curriculum from Mother Goose Time. Last week I shared how to prepare to go on a safari, and this week we ventured into the African Grasslands to get a closer look at the African Culture. On this particular day, we looked at how native people dress- specifically focusing on jewelry and the beadwork African tribes make and wear. It is exquisite and the perfect way to teach patterns. Being inspired by the beautiful beadwork in our photo, my preschooler decided she would make a bracelet. Using a pipe cleaner and pony beads (both provided by MGT) my daughter practiced her math skills. She created her own pattern, counted the beads in her pattern, then transformed her line of beads into a bracelet. (Twist a loop at the end of the pipe cleaner, make your pattern, then put the end of pipe cleaner through the loop and twist to close) Our jewelry session did not end there. Next, she made and African necklace during our Make and Play activity. Using paints, a paper plate cut to become a necklace, and qtips, you too can create your own African inspired jewelry. How can you incorporate beads into reading? MGT does not disappoint- make word "bead" bracelets! We read through our I Can Read book, looking for and underlining "-it" words. I showed her the "-it" band and told her it said "it" and we would use it to make words. I then asked my girl, "Avaleigh, can you spell the word "fit"?" It was so cute hearing her make the first letter sounds to decide which bead would be placed on her arm. It didn't take her long to spell all the "-it" words provided from the paper bead rings, so I decided to challenge her. "Avaleigh, what letter would you need to make the word "mit"?" " Mmmmmm mit. Mmmmm.... M!" "That's great! What about "kit"?" "Kkkk like kitten. K!" (I was so surprised that she didn't pick "c"!) "Wow! Great job sounding that out. What do you think you would need for the word "quit"?" "Qqqqq like queen. Q!" Even though she didn't say the "u," (and I didn't expect her to- if she did I would have dropped to the floor in shock) I was so impressed that she recognized the "q" sound! Who knew you could incorporate so much into a day of making jewelry! Now onto learning about African homes, food, music and migration! Happy Learning my friends! Follow us on Facebook and Pinterest for more great ideas!

This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

So I have been out of the loop on my blogging for the last 2 weeks and I am missing it!!! Last week our church hosted VBS- Pandamania style by Groups; it was also the same week that I was in Guatemala on a mission trip... which I will post about next. I usually help paint, decorate, and do crafts for the little 3yr-6yr olds during VBS, but since this year I was not going to be able to do that, I decided I would do mucho decorations. How does this relate to my classroom???? Well, unfortunately we don't do "themes" at my new school :( but it is both a blessing (on my checking account) and a curse (what do you mean we don't have a theme?? what will my classroom be based on now...) Anyway... back to how to use it in the classroom... so ADD... You can use any of these ideas to do a JUNGLE theme in your own room! Check out these pics... hope they inspire you! This is the entrance to our church. A wonderful member built this bridge for the kids to cross. They LOVED it! The vines and leaves really made it feel like a jungle. Here is a mural that I painted. The panda is made from 2 sheets of poster board taped together. A crafty friend of mine and I traced the panda on the poster boards and we each painted 10 different pandas. She painted this guy :) We had a ton of lanterns and umbrellas from Hobby Lobby. We hung them from the ceiling using fishing line and paper clips... I still think paper clips rank in my top 5 inventions. Here are a couple of waterfalls. The top one is made from a scene setter that we had left over from last year. The bottom is made from blue plastic table cloth cover. We got a huge roll for $17.00 and even made a pond from it! Speaking of ponds... This is our massive stage! We made this pond using blue tarp and had it come off the stage and go to the floor in and around a kiddie pool we also had. Add a couple of pandas and we are good. I love that one spitting! Carpet tubes donated by a local carpet store. All we had to do was tape some bamboo paper around it. This is our stage. Too bad the back lights aren't lit. The made the soji screens green. All the characters were traced onto Styrofoam sheets and cut out with a hot knife. Another top 5 invention... Then hand painted. The cave was also made from a a Styrofoam sheet and covered with brown paper to look like a cave. We used green cellophane to cover the lights. I have seen teachers use the plastic table cloth cover to do this as well in their classroom. Gets rid of that horrible fluorescent lighting :) LOVE the pandas!!! They really changed the the atmosphere to a fun loving one! This is the dining room. A man volunteer (so helpful) helped me hang this white cloth that we had using PVC pipes and a little wire. The kids felt like they were in a tent. The doors were covered in wood panels that I made from insulation foam last year. The red roof was done also using insulation foam (my husband painted most of them...LOVE him) and some awesome ladies figured out how to hang them at an angle using fishing line. AWESOME!! Well... that's about it! I hope you get inspired with some ideas on how to use this for a jungle classroom. Be sure to contact your local churches after VBS. Most of them are more than willing to donate decorations that will most likely be trashed at the end of the week, and you DON'T have to make them or buy them! Can I get an Amen?!?! :)

This week, Hobby Lobby has a LOT of scrapbook items on sale, including paper and stickers!!! I LOVE stickers... can't have enough! Anyway here is a set up of my craft project that took me about 1.5 hours to do 4 notebooks from start to finish. The composition books are on sale at Staples for $0.50. This year I am teaching two classes (morning and afternoon) but I am teaching both Math and Science to 6th graders. I am a huge fan of notebooks and have been doing it for the past 2 years diligently in Science. This year I am going to give Math a shot, but I had an amazing teacher in high school who made me keep a Math notebook for Algebra 2, and you know what??? I still have it!!! In fact, I referenced it a few weeks ago when I was brushing up on parabalas for my 4-8 Generalist test. So glad I had that notebook. Anyway.... the point of this blog is this craft. A month or so ago, a friend of mine, posted some images of these notebooks on her Facebook and I knew I had to make them. The key ingredient to making them is not in the picture above... see below: No mod podge glue... just this tack spray, but it smells and can go everywhere!! I did this project in my house, but I had a fan going the whole time. I sprayed my notebook COVERS... not the paper, inside a box I was going to throw away-- that was the glue stayed in one place... the box. Then I placed my papers the way I wanted them and then cut around the edges using an exacto blade. I also did the back with the same papers, but maybe a different layout. Then the real fun began! STICKERS!!! I purchased all sorts of school stickers the other day at Hobby Lobby and they worked out wonderfully. I also added some ribbon to all four. The ribbon is not a bookmark or anything, just glued to the front cover for added interest. During the first few days of school, I will let the students decorate their notebooks using colored copy paper, magazine cut-outs, stencils, and glue sticks. I think if they take their time creating them, they will feel more connected to their work, and therefore, less likely to lose it. One thing I have not done yet is use a hand held hold punch and punch a hole in the top right corner and attach a large rubber band to it. This way when my notebook starts to expand ( and believe me ... it will) , the rubber band will hold it all together. I'll write a post later about how I organize my information inside, until then...Happy Crafting!!!

This week, Hobby Lobby has a LOT of scrapbook items on sale, including paper and stickers!!! I LOVE stickers... can't have enough! Anyway here is a set up of my craft project that took me about 1.5 hours to do 4 notebooks from start to finish. The composition books are on sale at Staples for $0.50. This year I am teaching two classes (morning and afternoon) but I am teaching both Math and Science to 6th graders. I am a huge fan of notebooks and have been doing it for the past 2 years diligently in Science. This year I am going to give Math a shot, but I had an amazing teacher in high school who made me keep a Math notebook for Algebra 2, and you know what??? I still have it!!! In fact, I referenced it a few weeks ago when I was brushing up on parabalas for my 4-8 Generalist test. So glad I had that notebook. Anyway.... the point of this blog is this craft. A month or so ago, a friend of mine, posted some images of these notebooks on her Facebook and I knew I had to make them. The key ingredient to making them is not in the picture above... see below: No mod podge glue... just this tack spray, but it smells and can go everywhere!! I did this project in my house, but I had a fan going the whole time. I sprayed my notebook COVERS... not the paper, inside a box I was going to throw away-- that was the glue stayed in one place... the box. Then I placed my papers the way I wanted them and then cut around the edges using an exacto blade. I also did the back with the same papers, but maybe a different layout. Then the real fun began! STICKERS!!! I purchased all sorts of school stickers the other day at Hobby Lobby and they worked out wonderfully. I also added some ribbon to all four. The ribbon is not a bookmark or anything, just glued to the front cover for added interest. During the first few days of school, I will let the students decorate their notebooks using colored copy paper, magazine cut-outs, stencils, and glue sticks. I think if they take their time creating them, they will feel more connected to their work, and therefore, less likely to lose it. One thing I have not done yet is use a hand held hold punch and punch a hole in the top right corner and attach a large rubber band to it. This way when my notebook starts to expand ( and believe me ... it will) , the rubber band will hold it all together. I'll write a post later about how I organize my information inside, until then...Happy Crafting!!!

This week, Hobby Lobby has a LOT of scrapbook items on sale, including paper and stickers!!! I LOVE stickers... can't have enough! Anyway here is a set up of my craft project that took me about 1.5 hours to do 4 notebooks from start to finish. The composition books are on sale at Staples for $0.50. This year I am teaching two classes (morning and afternoon) but I am teaching both Math and Science to 6th graders. I am a huge fan of notebooks and have been doing it for the past 2 years diligently in Science. This year I am going to give Math a shot, but I had an amazing teacher in high school who made me keep a Math notebook for Algebra 2, and you know what??? I still have it!!! In fact, I referenced it a few weeks ago when I was brushing up on parabalas for my 4-8 Generalist test. So glad I had that notebook. Anyway.... the point of this blog is this craft. A month or so ago, a friend of mine, posted some images of these notebooks on her Facebook and I knew I had to make them. The key ingredient to making them is not in the picture above... see below: No mod podge glue... just this tack spray, but it smells and can go everywhere!! I did this project in my house, but I had a fan going the whole time. I sprayed my notebook COVERS... not the paper, inside a box I was going to throw away-- that was the glue stayed in one place... the box. Then I placed my papers the way I wanted them and then cut around the edges using an exacto blade. I also did the back with the same papers, but maybe a different layout. Then the real fun began! STICKERS!!! I purchased all sorts of school stickers the other day at Hobby Lobby and they worked out wonderfully. I also added some ribbon to all four. The ribbon is not a bookmark or anything, just glued to the front cover for added interest. During the first few days of school, I will let the students decorate their notebooks using colored copy paper, magazine cut-outs, stencils, and glue sticks. I think if they take their time creating them, they will feel more connected to their work, and therefore, less likely to lose it. One thing I have not done yet is use a hand held hold punch and punch a hole in the top right corner and attach a large rubber band to it. This way when my notebook starts to expand ( and believe me ... it will) , the rubber band will hold it all together. I'll write a post later about how I organize my information inside, until then...Happy Crafting!!!

Bookbinding University

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

So I have been out of the loop on my blogging for the last 2 weeks and I am missing it!!! Last week our church hosted VBS- Pandamania style by Groups; it was also the same week that I was in Guatemala on a mission trip... which I will post about next. I usually help paint, decorate, and do crafts for the little 3yr-6yr olds during VBS, but since this year I was not going to be able to do that, I decided I would do mucho decorations. How does this relate to my classroom???? Well, unfortunately we don't do "themes" at my new school :( but it is both a blessing (on my checking account) and a curse (what do you mean we don't have a theme?? what will my classroom be based on now...) Anyway... back to how to use it in the classroom... so ADD... You can use any of these ideas to do a JUNGLE theme in your own room! Check out these pics... hope they inspire you! This is the entrance to our church. A wonderful member built this bridge for the kids to cross. They LOVED it! The vines and leaves really made it feel like a jungle. Here is a mural that I painted. The panda is made from 2 sheets of poster board taped together. A crafty friend of mine and I traced the panda on the poster boards and we each painted 10 different pandas. She painted this guy :) We had a ton of lanterns and umbrellas from Hobby Lobby. We hung them from the ceiling using fishing line and paper clips... I still think paper clips rank in my top 5 inventions. Here are a couple of waterfalls. The top one is made from a scene setter that we had left over from last year. The bottom is made from blue plastic table cloth cover. We got a huge roll for $17.00 and even made a pond from it! Speaking of ponds... This is our massive stage! We made this pond using blue tarp and had it come off the stage and go to the floor in and around a kiddie pool we also had. Add a couple of pandas and we are good. I love that one spitting! Carpet tubes donated by a local carpet store. All we had to do was tape some bamboo paper around it. This is our stage. Too bad the back lights aren't lit. The made the soji screens green. All the characters were traced onto Styrofoam sheets and cut out with a hot knife. Another top 5 invention... Then hand painted. The cave was also made from a a Styrofoam sheet and covered with brown paper to look like a cave. We used green cellophane to cover the lights. I have seen teachers use the plastic table cloth cover to do this as well in their classroom. Gets rid of that horrible fluorescent lighting :) LOVE the pandas!!! They really changed the the atmosphere to a fun loving one! This is the dining room. A man volunteer (so helpful) helped me hang this white cloth that we had using PVC pipes and a little wire. The kids felt like they were in a tent. The doors were covered in wood panels that I made from insulation foam last year. The red roof was done also using insulation foam (my husband painted most of them...LOVE him) and some awesome ladies figured out how to hang them at an angle using fishing line. AWESOME!! Well... that's about it! I hope you get inspired with some ideas on how to use this for a jungle classroom. Be sure to contact your local churches after VBS. Most of them are more than willing to donate decorations that will most likely be trashed at the end of the week, and you DON'T have to make them or buy them! Can I get an Amen?!?! :)

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

What can we say? Craftspeople are crafty. In this tiny work studio (first spotted on Design Sponge), a woodworker/metalworker/jack-of-all-trades makes clev

I am the eggman, They are the eggmen - I Am The Walrus, The Beatles Modifications to a miter jack for accurately cutting ...

This week, Hobby Lobby has a LOT of scrapbook items on sale, including paper and stickers!!! I LOVE stickers... can't have enough! Anyway here is a set up of my craft project that took me about 1.5 hours to do 4 notebooks from start to finish. The composition books are on sale at Staples for $0.50. This year I am teaching two classes (morning and afternoon) but I am teaching both Math and Science to 6th graders. I am a huge fan of notebooks and have been doing it for the past 2 years diligently in Science. This year I am going to give Math a shot, but I had an amazing teacher in high school who made me keep a Math notebook for Algebra 2, and you know what??? I still have it!!! In fact, I referenced it a few weeks ago when I was brushing up on parabalas for my 4-8 Generalist test. So glad I had that notebook. Anyway.... the point of this blog is this craft. A month or so ago, a friend of mine, posted some images of these notebooks on her Facebook and I knew I had to make them. The key ingredient to making them is not in the picture above... see below: No mod podge glue... just this tack spray, but it smells and can go everywhere!! I did this project in my house, but I had a fan going the whole time. I sprayed my notebook COVERS... not the paper, inside a box I was going to throw away-- that was the glue stayed in one place... the box. Then I placed my papers the way I wanted them and then cut around the edges using an exacto blade. I also did the back with the same papers, but maybe a different layout. Then the real fun began! STICKERS!!! I purchased all sorts of school stickers the other day at Hobby Lobby and they worked out wonderfully. I also added some ribbon to all four. The ribbon is not a bookmark or anything, just glued to the front cover for added interest. During the first few days of school, I will let the students decorate their notebooks using colored copy paper, magazine cut-outs, stencils, and glue sticks. I think if they take their time creating them, they will feel more connected to their work, and therefore, less likely to lose it. One thing I have not done yet is use a hand held hold punch and punch a hole in the top right corner and attach a large rubber band to it. This way when my notebook starts to expand ( and believe me ... it will) , the rubber band will hold it all together. I'll write a post later about how I organize my information inside, until then...Happy Crafting!!!

This week, Hobby Lobby has a LOT of scrapbook items on sale, including paper and stickers!!! I LOVE stickers... can't have enough! Anyway here is a set up of my craft project that took me about 1.5 hours to do 4 notebooks from start to finish. The composition books are on sale at Staples for $0.50. This year I am teaching two classes (morning and afternoon) but I am teaching both Math and Science to 6th graders. I am a huge fan of notebooks and have been doing it for the past 2 years diligently in Science. This year I am going to give Math a shot, but I had an amazing teacher in high school who made me keep a Math notebook for Algebra 2, and you know what??? I still have it!!! In fact, I referenced it a few weeks ago when I was brushing up on parabalas for my 4-8 Generalist test. So glad I had that notebook. Anyway.... the point of this blog is this craft. A month or so ago, a friend of mine, posted some images of these notebooks on her Facebook and I knew I had to make them. The key ingredient to making them is not in the picture above... see below: No mod podge glue... just this tack spray, but it smells and can go everywhere!! I did this project in my house, but I had a fan going the whole time. I sprayed my notebook COVERS... not the paper, inside a box I was going to throw away-- that was the glue stayed in one place... the box. Then I placed my papers the way I wanted them and then cut around the edges using an exacto blade. I also did the back with the same papers, but maybe a different layout. Then the real fun began! STICKERS!!! I purchased all sorts of school stickers the other day at Hobby Lobby and they worked out wonderfully. I also added some ribbon to all four. The ribbon is not a bookmark or anything, just glued to the front cover for added interest. During the first few days of school, I will let the students decorate their notebooks using colored copy paper, magazine cut-outs, stencils, and glue sticks. I think if they take their time creating them, they will feel more connected to their work, and therefore, less likely to lose it. One thing I have not done yet is use a hand held hold punch and punch a hole in the top right corner and attach a large rubber band to it. This way when my notebook starts to expand ( and believe me ... it will) , the rubber band will hold it all together. I'll write a post later about how I organize my information inside, until then...Happy Crafting!!!

Bruce Elfstrom shares his skills on using the Hi-lift jack for overland vehicle recovery and winching. Safe use.

Bruce Elfstrom of Overland Experts offers a detailed tutorial on the use of this most essential tool.

This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

The new Milwaukee M12 FUEL Installation Driver/Drill is designed for installation and construction. The 4 unrivaled attachment heads make this a necessity.

Take this quiz to determine whether or not you should attempt that next DIY project.

Jack of all trades, master of none – or so they say. Trick your audience into believing that you are the master of knitters, as you show off this fun stocking cap. The spectacular multicolored cables are actually really easy to make, but that will be our secret! Combine your favorite Malabrigo colors, for once you don’t have to decide between them. It’s not easy, being a jester, but with a hat like this it’s not hard either. Experience with Intarsia knitting is recommended for this project. Yarn requirements: MC Stocking Cap - 240 m 260 yds MC Slouchy Hat - 140 m 153 yds CC1 - 50 m 55 yds CC2 - 30 m 32 yds

A workhorse wheel: spinning, plying, fine-weight, it can do it all. A double treadle wheel with Irish Tension, this wheel is perfect for the spinning enthusiast who wants to invest in a jack-of-all-trades wheel but isn’t ready to splurge on all the bells and whistles. Your S10 will last for generations with minimal upkeep required to keep it spinning. 20, 30 and 40-year-old S10’s are commonly used by spinners around the world, every day. Versatility is the key to the modern S10 wheel. - Classic main wheel - 3 standard bobbins - Lazy Kate Rack - Standard flyer with hooks - Main wheel: 19 3/4″ (50 cm) - Orifice: 1/2″ (12 mm), height from the ground 27 5/8” (70 cm) - Weight: 13 lb (6 kg) ** FREE SHIPPING (Continental USA) ** FREE 4oz Fiber Variety Pack ***NOTE: Typically Ships in 3-6 Weeks Be sure to visit our Etsy store for a wide variety of fibers, tools & more!! https://www.etsy.com/shop/LaughingLambFibers **NOTE - THIS ITEM SHIPS DIRECTLY FROM THE MANUFACTURER **

This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

This will be my first year hosting Thanksgiving! And I’m going the very sacrilegious route and not making turkey… I know.. It’s weird. But I’m not huge turkey person, and af…

Susan Beatrice is an artist who recycles old vintage watch parts and turns them into beautifully intricate sculptures. This true jack-of-all-trades (whom we previously wrote abouthere) is also a talented sand sculptor and painter, and uses her many talents to perfect her watch sculptures. Beatrice writes that her recycled sculptures are “Earth-friendly and artistic items […]