Let me start off by saying although it has been crazy busy for me at work and in my home life, I have tried to make time to update my blog each week. Taking pictures, writing the entries and crafting new FREEBIES helps give me a place to focus all my positive, creative energies! To that end, I am thrilled to have been chosen for a blog award from We Are Teachers. I look forward to writing a guest blog entry for them sometime in the upcoming year, and to being a Guest Pinner of the Week on Pinterest! Being nominated for and winning an award for my blog content has seriously brightened my week! . For the past couple of weeks all I have been able to focus on is updating IEPS, writing IPRC review invitations and getting my report cards finished on time. Although I tend to use similar comments from year to year, I have been trying to update the comments to reflect the increased focus on the BIG IDEAS being taught in my program. I have started to create a comment bank for all areas of the curriculum. I will try to post updates as the year progresses. The comments included below were created from the Mathematical Process Skills listed in the Ontario Curriculum Grades 1-8, Mathematics, 2005. "Presented at the start of every grade outlined in this curriculum document is a set of seven expectations that describe the mathematical processes students need to learn and apply as they work to achieve the expectations outlined within the five strands. The need to highlight these process expectations arose from the recognition that students should be actively engaged in applying these processes throughout the program, rather than in connection with particular strands. The mathematical processes that support effective learning in mathematics are as follows: • problem solving • reasoning and proving • reflecting • selecting tools and computational strategies • connecting • representing • communicating The mathematical processes can be seen as the processes through which students acquire and apply mathematical knowledge and skills. These processes are interconnected. Problem solving and communicating have strong links to all the other processes. A problem-solving approach encourages students to reason their way to a solution or a new understanding. As students engage in reasoning, teachers further encourage them to make conjectures and justify solutions, orally and in writing.The communication and reflection that occur during and after the process of problem solving help students not only to articulate and refine their thinking but also to see the problem they are solving from different perspectives. This opens the door to recognizing the range of strategies that can be used to arrive at a solution. By seeing how others solve a problem, students can begin to reflect on their own thinking (a process known as “metacognition”) and the thinking of others, and to consciously adjust their own strategies in order to make their solutions as efficient and accurate as possible. The mathematical processes cannot be separated from the knowledge and skills that students acquire throughout the year. Students must problem solve, communicate, reason, reflect, and soon, as they develop the knowledge, the understanding of concepts, and the skills required in all the strands in every grade. " (The Ontario Curriculum Grades 1-8, Mathematics, 2005) I have chosen to use these expectations as the basis of my mathematics reporting because they address the "bigger picture" of mathematical learning. These processes are deeply connected to the knowledge and skills which all students are learning across the grades. I will often include an "e.g." similar to those seen in the comments below. The examples describe what students have been learning in class during the previous term. Since the parents will be familiar with work which has come home over the course of the term, they will be able to identify where the content of those "e.g."s (specific skills and concepts) fits into the process expectations. Using this type of comment also allows me to identify student strengths, and help set specific next steps for improvement. Click on the image above to download you own copy. Looking for more ways to include assessment practices in your classroom? Check out this great visual representation of the 4 Levels of Achievement. You can EDIT the file to make the criteria match your classroom needs.

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Pre-wedding jitters are normal, and many couples worry that those jitters signal something more worrisome. When those jitters shake you up, the best way to overcome them is by turning to friends, taking a day to relax and staying away from those so-called ‘experts!’

As many of you know, last week I guest pinned for The McCall Pattern Company. Usually, as fashion transitions from one season to the next and also with sewing, I get overwhelmingly excited. Sure, th

The content revolves around web design, blogging and funny situations that we encounter in our daily lives as designers.

Detailed guide to visiting the Seychelles for 1 week, including a guide to how to spend 1 week in the Seychelles, the sights you need to see,, tips on getting around, safety, food, and much more!

Last week Pinterest changed the way I pin. I’m dubbing it one-step pinning. I looked for an announcement in the support and engineering blogs but didn’t see any chatter about this. It’s not a huge change but it does affect the way you pin and repin. I think this change is a bit annoying because […]

Overnight House Guests means many meals, here is a Make Ahead Meal Plan for Overnight House Guests to make entertaining much easier.

How much does it cost to travel in the UK? If you're planning a trip to the UK, you have probably asked this question. In this post, we provide a detailed breakdown of all the costs you need to consider when travelling in the UK, including accommodation, food and transport. There are also lots of cost saving tips!

On average, full-time workers in America spend more than one- third of their day, five days per week at the workplace. What if considering your...

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From delicious pasta to amazing pizza fondue, next week's meal plan for the week before Christmas is simple and tasty.

i feel like i've been on a blog vacation. i had an absolute blast indulging frivolity and fantasy last week and giving an old cabin a virtual facelift. but in case any math geeks out there started adding it up, we spent...well yeah, there's no way i'm adding that up. let's just say, it was a lot. more than i'll probably ever have, and certainly more than i'd spend even if i did have it! it was a lot of fun, but it also made me very thoughtful about design and real life, and how they need to co-exist. to some, making a home pretty is a waste of time and money. to me, it's really really important. i'm totally affected by my surroundings. i can (and daily do) live with clutter, but i'm sooo much happier when things are pared down, picked up, and neatly organized. i'm content with (and do currently have) dusty, broken, burgundy mini-blinds from 1991 (#bloggerconfessions), but a lovely curtain fluttering in the breeze truly lifts my spirit. i crave and need beauty around me. i know that some people don't value it, or appreciate it, or think it's a noble pursuit. but here's where i need to talk about where beauty came from, and why i think it's ok that it's important to me. if you've visited me on twitter (seriously, visit me on twitter. i feel like i'm talking to myself in a mosh pit on there), then you may have seen my profile. i thought long and hard about what i wanted to say to define myself as a designer. i came up with this: "the Lord is my portion. beauty exists because he is beautiful. design exists because he is a designer. may i delight in the Creator above any created thing." i started homeschool with my daughter, my old-soul-kindergartner, last week. and for sure we were starting with creation. (naturally i hear jack mcbrayer's voice in my head saying, "science is my most favorite subject! especially the old testament!) but it's true. i want her to know that the foundation of everything she sees around her, everything she touches, smells, enjoys, loves, studies, and experiences, comes from God who thought it up and spoke it into being. without Him, there is nothing, and without Him, there is no point to anything. when my surroundings are beautiful, they remind me of that. order is a reflection of him, and so is peace, and so is a nurturing home. think of the garden of eden that he designed and gifted to his beloved adam and eve. he said it was good. everything in it. can you imagine? i maintain that God was not only the first designer, but he was the first interior designer too. have you ever read the instructions for how moses was supposed to build the tabernacle? God straight up geeked out over gold overlay and purple linen. seriously! on my most anal days, i am not that bad about how things are supposed to be styled. my point is, he cares what things look like. and even if there isn't value in it to everyone, there is value in it. it's all about him. the heavens declare the glory of God. now how does someone who so values beauty in her surroundings live in a fallen world (and my house is so fallen), where there isn't enough time or energy (or coffee) in a day to make it the haven she wishes it was, where her toddler will spill blue paint on her new rug within 24 hours of her owning it (yes he did), her daughter obsessively changes her clothes and leaves the trail on the floor, her dog pukes in her bathroom, and her son (no joke) hits himself in the face with his wii controller, knocking out his loose tooth and spattering blood all over her family room including her newly washed sofa slipcovers? how, i ask you?! well, for starters, she lives as a half insane person. after that, she does her best. you have to know that the world of magazines and blogs and the world of real interior design are like, distant cousins. the former is a shadow of the latter. you have no idea how much staging and styling goes into shooting a room and making it pin-worthy. (and don't even get me started on instagram...it's art, it's fun, but it is NOT real life). the actual interior design field seeks to meet people where they live, but then sadly, collectively, they're not doing much better. as one friend put it, "i saw a playroom where there was a $5000 sofa and one bin of toys tucked neatly in a corner. what kind of a playroom is that?!" and even further removed than that is the world that real people actually live in. someone told me shortly after starting this blog that i should think of my "target audience." i knew right away it was people like my dear friend stephanie (who is basically me with better hair and social graces). we love beautiful things- rooms, clothes, parties, you name it. if it's pretty (and preferably pink) we are automatic suckers. we also have both chosen to put our careers on hold in order to stay home and have babies. that is a huge monetary sacrifice, and though worth it, it leaves us both having to be way more creative than we'd like to be in decorating our homes. lastly, we both have to live with all those babies we had (and did you know those things turn into kids?! big ones, that smell like boys and eat you out of house and home?! why doesn't the rh baby and child catalog warn you about that?!) anyway, we have families. joy-giving, love-filled, belly-laugh-inducing families. the last thing i want ringing in my kids' ears and memories is mom yelling, "don't touch my rug!" so my quest as a blogger is to merge the worlds. yes, i have the highest-end taste on the planet, which my husband frequently reminds me of, and so i'm going to keep rounding up the best of the magazines and spec pillows from zinc door. does the expense of those things make me sick? yes it does, but who cares? it's entertainment, an escape. voyerism into the lives of the 1%. and after that i'm going to tell you what i'm doing at my house, or what i want to do, which will also sometimes include delusions of grandeur, but will usually be more down-to-earth. and then i'll share with you my dollar store projects and all my garage sale finds, hopefully to inspire you that you can have a beautiful home without spending a lot of money. take the one as inspiration; put the other into practice. the spaces i design have to be for real life, real families. people have to live in it. and my kids' version of living is jumping on ottomans, setting lego booby traps on the staircase, and eating like animals at the zoo. (seriously, at least 50% of the reason i got a dog was to have him clean up under the table after meals. hence, his name: dyson). i'm trying to walk the fine line between teaching them to respect their surroundings and care for their possessions (and please, oh please, do not jump on other people's furniture), but i also want to let kids be kids. so, what i post here may never be worthy of a magazine. it's never going to be high-budget. it's going to be comprised of ikea and hand-me-downs and the good will. but i'm going to do my best to make it pretty, and to share my tips for how along the way. it sometimes feels like the "year" starts in september. i wish i could say i was ready...with a full blog editorial calendar, brimming with ideas, and lots of plans in the works. eh, not so much. we've started tinkering in the powder room, but we always need some time to decompress between projects. i'm slowly moving things around in the family room, but at this point i'm emailing emily henderson for design advice because i'm so stuck. i do have my girl ellen coming to take pictures of the office, as it's almost done, and i am really excited to show you the results. but as for big plans, i don't truly have any. we'll just hang out together and see what comes. 'till then, how about some pictures? some a little too real, some of life and house in progress, and some just for fun. the mudroom...one of our house's many dirty little secrets. shudder. this is our powder room. and the two sinks i can't decide between. our spectacularly non-designer playroom. i swear i cleaned it after this was taken. my kids leave the screen door open a lot. also, our screen door has a lot of holes in it. i eat donuts every thursday. every. thursday. i don't know how to finish this. the untouched version of this photo includes coffee dribble, which actually looked much more menacing in real life. i don't usually look like this. my fridge always looks like this. i'm grateful every day for my office, where even messes look pretty. i take a lot of selfies. i would make kim kardashian proud. my bedroom ain't makin' anybody proud. (that giant grey thing against the wall is a homeless box spring). this happens. every hour on the hour. yesterday i ate two of these. thank you for reading this blog and for coming along on this journey with me. and hey, don't leave me hanging...anyone else have some real life going on at their house?!

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Ok guys – we have another special PFF guest this week! And I have to just say that I love this girl – and the featured pinner she chose – so much! I was able to hang out with them both a few months ago and they are a couple of the sweetest girls you’ll ... Read More about Pinterest Feature Friday

After a photo of their pregnant bellies went viral, these women are speaking up about healthy pregnancy and critical comments.

Detailed guide to visiting the Seychelles for 1 week, including a guide to how to spend 1 week in the Seychelles, the sights you need to see,, tips on getting around, safety, food, and much more!

So here it is, my gallery wall! My husband and I with the help of our three sons have been working on this wall and think it’s done. We’re going to live with it for a bit and let it evolve if need be. I am someone who loves symmetry and that’s what drove me …

Supplies: 1/2 yard of fabric or scarf. buttons This is an easy DIY to turn a plain v-neck into an interesting cowl collar. You can use a scarf, fabric, anything that will fit around the neckline. Before: Mine was a crew neck so I made it a vneck by cutting a v... DIY: I made a tube by folding a rectangle of fabric that measured 36 by 30 inches. I folded it in half long ways and sewed right sides together, then flipped it out. That way it had a heavier texture and the edges didn't need to be finished. If your using a scarf, fabric, or making a deep v-neck you will need to measure it accordingly. Gather folds with one end of the neck panel starting at the point of the vneck. Leave about 3 inches from the shoulder for the panel to wrap around. Sew right sides together. Pin the rest of the neck piece along the vneck and back...Top stitch around or sew right sides together. Gather the rest on the collar overlapping with the front gathers. Sew right sides together...Trim any excess. Add buttons...or not.

rage 'clip of the week' - May 5th 2012 director TIMOTHY MELVILLE producer ALY WHITMORE production company CAMERA CLUB. 2012 cinematographer SHELLEY…

Want a glimpse of what living the good life really looks like? Then check out Slim Aarons' new book La Dolce Vita, which captures the glamorous lives of the Beautiful People in Italy — six decades-worth. Shot everywhere from Porto Ercole's famed Il Pellicano Hotel to the snowy mountains of Cortina d'Ampezzo, his images inspire us to add a bit of bohemian glamour and Old-School chic into our lives. Needless to say, some of our favorite motifs — bold jewelry, nautical stripes, Sixties and Seventies silhouettes — feature heavily here. It's the good life, Italian style.

Big and beautiful - they've embraced their thickness, and they're here to stay. Add dimension and sophistication to your projects with Thickers letter and accent sitckers. Thickers are made of archival-quality materials and feature a variety of cool new fonts,...

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From worksheets with cool themes to a clever trick to get older kids putting pen to paper, we've got 7 handwriting practice printables right here.

WHAT WE’RE CREATING: Hello there! It’s Simon on this end of the keyboard for this week’s second tutorial here at Design Cuts. We are exploring the possibilities offered by the 33 typefaces which are a part of The Typographer’s Dream Bundle. The brief this week is to create a lovely and whimsical lemonade recipe card, […]

Things to do in Savannah Georgia. A detailed guide to what to in Savannah that covers everything from exploring the historic district to meeting mountain lions, plus tips on where to eat, where to stay, the best museums to visit and out of town attractions you should see!

Laura Taddei, Cathy L. Seeley, Zane Dickey, Laura Fleming, Billy Krakower, Diane Friedlaender, Richard Byrne contribute their thoughts on developing creative students.

Here’s part two! Get the e-book: 14 Days to Opening Your Front Door to Guests My book: How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind How to Clean a Messy House post (with printable checklist) How to Clean a Messy House Podcast part one How to Clean a Messy House Podcast Part Two […]

I haven’t had a chance to do a book post for a week or two! We have been outdoors so much, making the most of the good weather and I was so busy documenting the fun we were having that I for…

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I shared this printable over on the furniture.com/blog several weeks ago but wanted to share it with you here as well! I’m always trying to come up with small ways to make our guest room more functional and more welcoming. One simple way you can make your guests feel at home is …

Tidying up your empty nest with Marie Kondo's KonMari method can be just the spark of you need to ignite the next phase of your life. Looking at everything you own and deciding whether it sparks joy can help you get in touch with your true self once again.

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Feeling stir crazy? Scoop your little one up and try out one of these outdoor activities for babies.