Weight Loss!!

Okay...some of you out there may be cursing me due to the picture of me soo skinny for WIWW....but...I'm not happy with myself at this current weight.  I know that the reason that I have put on a few is becuase of my obsession with Zapps potato chips, indulging in going out to eat and cocktails with my hubbs, and my love for TacoBell drive through...

So - I have been tracking myself on myfitnesspal.com (and the app for the iPhone) for about 9 months now. 

I don't want to lose a million pounds, just a few.  And the major part of the goal is to learn how to balance out exercise, the fatty foods, and healthy foods to maintain an appropriate caloric intake. 

Okay...the reason I was posting this at all was to preface why I am adding a weight loss tracker on the blog page....

I figured without an explination I would drop followers like hot cakes.

"This girl thinks she's FAT?! I don't need to read this stupid blog"

Hope you all understand the goal is for a healthy weight and a healthy lifestyle that becomes habit!!

Enjoy!!

Tilly

Routines!!

One of the ways that I keep myself organized is through daily routines.  I have a morning routine, a bedtime routine, and many 'to-dos' that can be considered routines.  Today we are going to look at an idea for a morning routine. 

I find morning routines the most important of all.  Mornings that are rushed and hurried can influence your attitude for the rest of the day.  I believe that starting your morning on the right foot can put you in the right mind to handle what every comes to you for the rest of the day. 

I always begin the day with my quiet time with God.  I know for a fact I can handle anything if I put Him first every morning.  I find I'm more patient with my little hellins...I mean students, I am able to handle any upsets in my day, and I feel more positive and happy, even on those days when I'd rather just stay in bed with a good book!

I like to wake up with my husband.  His job requires him to get up between 4:30 to 5:30 am.  We have compromised that I will wake up at 5:30 every day and that gives me time to do my bible study and get his lunch prepared before he leaves no matter what time he got up. 

He leaves for work between 5:30 and 6:30, so after I make his lunch, I go about my morning routine.  Okay...next comes working out...I HATE working out.  I'm not going to lie.  ONE of my MANY resolutions was to talk only positive talk about working out...so really..I LOVE LOVE LOVE to workout.  If I wait until I get home from work, I usually make excuses that I need to clean the house.  So, about a year ago I put it in my morning routine.  At first, it was a nightmare.  I woke up every morning in a terrible mood.  I hated that treadmill looming at me in the garage as I ironed my husband's shirt.  I cursed Jillian Micheal's name on the days I did her video.  It was horrible...until, one day I realized that I had more energy since I began working out than I had in years! So, the workout in the morning is here to stay!

After workout begins the necessities of almost any woman's morning routine.  I put them in the order that makes the most sense to me (why brush your teeth after you've washed your face?)

Now, the question some of you nay-sayers might be thinking out there...why do you have to have a routine!?  Why not just do it?! BECAUSE, how many mornings could you make excused to NOT do it?  I know for me, if it was a hard sleep night, or just a late night up grading papers, I could easily hit the snooze and sleep until 7:30, rush to get ready, and get to school just in time for pickup bell.  Why let the bad previous day influence the new day?  With a routine, even those mornings when I feel completely brain dead I can just follow the routine. 

Here is an example of my weekday morning routine!!

Now, to begin your own, FIRST list everything you need to do in the morning and how much time you estimate it will take.

SECOND, you will need to put it in the order you would like to complete it.

THIRD, use it as a living document.  It will change. You'll realize that you forgot about picking up the house, or walking the dog.  You'll discover makeup takes you longer than you thought. ETC!

FOURTH, once you think you have your time frames and order down, type it up, post it, and set weekly goals to meet every item on it until you build the habit.  Eventually you'll get to the point I'm at, it's a walk in the park.  I barely look at the routine order cause my mornings just flow. 

DON'T get frustrated when your routine is not perfect immediately.

DON'T overload your routine.

DON'T short yourself on time per item.  The point of the routine is for RUSH FREE mornings. Doing time frames that are too short creates more stress as you rush from thing to thing like running a relay race (not my idea of a calm, God centered morning).

DON'T make excuses and DON'T give up!!

Good luck all!!

Let me know if you need any help!!

Blessed By Him,

Tilly

I'm soooo sorry!!

Okay, I know all of you are thinking, "This lady thinks she is organized and she hasn't even blogged in over a week!"

Yes - I currently suck. 

I have sadly been sick.  :(  Not dire, just typical Louisiana weather changes causing congestion, sore throat, and headaches.  I'm finally feeling better today, but when you feel like that, teaching a day can feel like teaching 10 years! It's miserable.

But, I'm back.  Yay!!

I promise blogging is now back on the schedule!! Praise God life can get back in order...just sucks tonight...time to catch up on two weeks of grading... blah!!

Enjoy your night all!

xoxo
Tilly

Please pray...

One of the strongest women I have every followed in a blog is dealing with something that she hoped for, but also dreaded for years today. 

I'm talking about Courtney Roth from Ponchatoula, LA.  I have been following her and her struggle since she started posting, a few months after her son Tripp was born with "EB".

Here is a quote from her blog:

"Tripp was born on May 14, 2009. He was diagnosed with a rare genetic skin disease called "EB." Any type of friction on his skin or mucous membranes causes blisters. They told us he would not live to be a year old. Every day he amazes us by his strength. He is a fighter and with all he has been through, he has never given up. He is the strongest person I know. Tripp wakes up each morning with a smile on his face. Every day spent with him is a blessing. God has a special plan for him. I'm just blessed to be able to witness that plan. "

 

Today, Courtney's son Tripp is finally out of pain and in the most beautiful place on earth, Heaven. 

 

Please pray for the family as they deal with their mixed feelings of possible relief and most probable, grief. 

 

http://www.randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/

 

You can also read a great article from ABC news and see beautiful pictures of Courtney and the late Tripp Roth.

 

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/tripp-roths-tears-reveal-pain-epidermolysis-bullosa-strikes/story?id=15173125

 

 

Please pray for comfort, peace, and strength in this hard time. 

 

Blessings,

 

Tilly

Organization...Why I do, what I do!

I love being organized.  Believe it or not, I used to be a mess.  My dear friend Lori loves to remind me of my high school days where you could not see my bedroom floor due to the layers of clothes, papers, bags, etc that covered the floor.  My mother and father, however, were the perfect Type A Personalities.  My dad loves bins and labels. My mom love lists and perfection in cleaning.  With these two bringing me up, I guess it was just in my genes and had to grow into it.  When I became a homeowner and wife, everything just CLICKED.  I loved bins and labels, I loved routines, I loved cleaning, I loved lists!

My life is very organized, which relieves so much stress in my life! I love watching shows like 'Hoarders' and thinking, what could I do with their space?! I'd love to do something like organizing their lives.  When everything has a system, it just makes every little upset work out a little bit better.  I know where everything is in my house, and my hubby (who isn't as organized) knows where everything belongs. 

Here are some of the things that I do to keep myself organized...

Bins and Labels - yes they work, I love them.  I love Rubbermaid and Dymo - those two things together make my laundry room what it is, as well as my closet, kitchen, office, and classroom!

Planners - I'm trying a new planner out this year.  In the past I have always had a planner, schedule notebook, and to do list notebook.  This year I am trying my new Control Journal for the to do list and a 'meeting' style planner for a combination of planner and schedule.  I believe having your day in mind is very important to staying on track and organized.  Every night before I go to bed I write out the to dos I need to get done in the time slots that they fall into as well as what's going on in the day. 

Control Journals - where I keep everything for my home and for my school (I have 2).  For school I keep tabs for the Lesson Plans, Important Info, Calendar/Meeting Notes, To Do's, and To Copy and File. For home I keep a tab for Routines, To Do's, Family Calendar, Important Info, Home (Chores/Deep Cleaning List), Food (Menus, Reciepies, and Shopping Lists according to the store), and a couple of other things.

Routines - I have a morning routine and evening routine.  When I was getting used to them, I posted them.  Now I just keep them in my Control Journal for referenece when needed.

To Dos! - I love to do lists almost as much as I love bins and labels! I love the sense of accomplishment when I can cross something off...when I can see the list get smaller and smaller.  I have my to dos that are daily (the to dos are also like a routine when they happen daily, or weekly, but they don't have a time frame associated with them).  The daily to do's include things for my home and my school work.

There are many other things that keep my life in order and each week I will expand, help, and show how I do this!! I hope that I can help anyone out there that needs a little kick start for organizing the way they have always dreamed! Everything you see will be expaneded in the ....Gosh I still can't think of a cute name for Thursday...Thursdays! Lol..

Have a great one all!!

<><   (<= Thats a Jesus Fish...duh)

Tilly

Friday the 13th!!

What a week it has been!! I wouldn't have been able to survive without knowing that my Heavenly Father had a plan! I had to go to my quiet place in my mind several times this week and pray for patience with my kiddos!! Apparently the crazy LA weather (hot at the beginning of the week, raining in the middle, freezing today) and the fact that today was Friday the 13th, caused them to have diarrhea of the mouth and lazy brain.  They would not stop talking this week and on top of that, they didn't even attempt the work that I know my usually wonderful class is capable of! Anyone else having the same issues?! Haha - I'm sorry if so! SO ready for a three day weekend!!

Besides relying on the Lord during these rough days, or in this case week, I also rely on my dear friend Jodi.  She happens to think that she is a very funny person, and therefore, makes my life rather entertaining.  For example, she likes to pick at my OCD tendencies, and her favorite to get on me about is my germ-phobia.  SO...she bribed one of my cutest boys to pretend to pick his nose and then offer me a hug.  See...she THINKS she is funny!

One of our conversations this week dealt with the new growing medical condition sweeping public and private schools alike.  It's acronym is SAR.  Has anyone out there heard about this before?  It was brought to Jodi, Missy, and I's attention from our work friend Kim...or "Mrs. Smith".  Apparently, students with this condition exhibit disruptive behavior, poor grades due to lack of interest and motivation, and consistent excuse making.  SAR....Spoiled A** Rotten.... sound like some of your kids?  Lol.....

Now in all seriousness I love my job.  This week was stressful for the kids and me alike due to the weather and the build up for our state's standardized test! Poor babies - way too much pressure.  I just love the women I work with because if you can't laugh sometimes, you'll cry!

What else do Jodi and I do to relieve stress?  BOOK SHOP!! We got together last Sunday ... mistakenly at a bookstore ... so that I could help organize her life.  I bought books then.  On Monday, we could tell that it was going to be a long week, so we went to the bookstore...again! On my way home today, I needed some more retail therapy, and where better for a nerdy teacher like myself than at the...you guessed it....bookstore!!

As you can tell from this week's book collection, my interests are all over the place!! From Christian authors, to sardonic, sarcastic lol books, to easy romance/mysteries.  On top of it all...the best pen ever...LePen! I love them for my bible study.  They don't bleed through the thin pages of your bible, but they also don't wrinkle them like a ballpoint pen will!! They are totally the best, and can be found at ...yes... bookstores!

Well - now that I am done with my crazy rant, I am going to catch up on blogging and give you guys some "whatever my cute title is for Thursday's life organization"... still need help with that one guys!!

Blessed by Him!!

Tilly

My first what I wore Wednesday!!

M'kay...my first WIWW....and let me say, knowing I had to post my outfit on my blog tonight really kept me motivated to not hit the snooze into oblivion this morning, but to actually wake up and get dressed well! I love clothes and I actually have a fairly/ridiculously large and full closet, but between my love of sleep and the stress of the job...I tend to avoid waking up with enough time to make myself crisp. It IS my New Years resolution...to try and wake up and do my morning routine flawlessly (without stress and rushed feelings) and so far today, WIWW really helped!!

So, here I go!!

This is the whole shebang...My favorite pair of 'tweed look alike' pants from Twenty-one, an adorable white collared shirt from The Loft, and a cozy cardigan from...Walmart (yup...Walmart)!

 My up close view of the cardigan... I live in Louisiana...and today's FRIGID temperature was only 55 degrees...so needless to say, one cardigan was all I needed. 



 Since the temperatures were so devastatingly cold all day (not) I loved the little embellishment on the shirt that I could show off when I got into the classroom! I love me some happy little flowers.

 Once again, new to blogging, so I have no clue why my computer illiterate self could not flip the picture, but this is my 'bottom half' close up - thank God I've been working out! This picture would have been HUGE otherwise ;)

As WIWW progresses you will all learn that I have no particular style.  I love Indy clothes, clean and pressed clothes, the "Avril Lavigne" style, sexy and sensual (let's not go crazy, but I do like to feel ... attractive...like Gloria on Modern Family) and cozy, comfy jeans - I'm sure you'll see all facets, especially during the Summer!!

Blessings All!

Tilly

I have a little secret...

Okay world... I have a little secret.  And no, it's not that Jesus is Life! Haha...It's that, I'm an obsessive list maker.  Yes friends...I love lists.  I love organization.  I love label makers, binders, divider tabs, file boxes, PrintShop, planners, Cozi, and anything else that keeps my life in order.  My dear hubby makes fun of my obsession, but I KNOW there are people out there that appreciate learning a thing or two from me.  My life is not hectic, it is calm and in order.  I wake every day, spend time with the Heavenly Father, and then know exactly what to expect from the rest of my day.  If it goes a little off schedule, it doesn't matter because Jesus's peace will be with me for the rest of the day!

SO! Since I like lists and schedules I figured I'd make a schedule for my blog.  Now, if you make a schedule the CORRECT way, you must start with a 'living document'.  It may change, it may not.  So, here is how I THINK I'll be posting....

Monday - Motivational Monday's.  This will be the day that I post a verse, a good book quote, or song lyrics to maintain your Faith throughout the following week. Monday, is the first day of the week for my scheduled life.  So, what better way than focusing on His grace and mercy to have a positive outlook on whatever may come!

Tuesday - Teacher Tuesday's.  These will be the days my teacher fans can check out my ideas and freebies.  Please be patient with me as I figure out blogging and how to upload documents. 

Wednesday - What I Wore Wednesday's.  I'm stealing this from one of my fav blogs twothingsincommon.blogspot.com.  Angie does this weekly to keep herself from getting into the 'frump' rut.  WIWW will encourage me to dress up since I'll be posting a picture of the outfit on the blog! Eeekkk!! :/

Thursday - hmmm... I have to think of a cute little idea of what to title this, but I want it to be life organizational tips. I feel like it's something that I'm pretty darned good at and I'd love to help my unorganized friends (like one of my dearest...Jodi) get their life in 'order'...  :) I believe it's something God gifted me with and I'd like to share it with all of you as well!
... and if anyone can think of a cute little title for this I'd be much obliged. 

Friday - Fun Friday.  This will be when I post random things....what I may have done this week...my crazy 150 pound Great Dane's antic stories...what I may be reading (did I mention I love to read?)....or anything else I may have encountered this week!

Hmm...weekends....If my hubby has to work I'll post.  If not, I can't promise I will!

I'm doing this blog to help and inspire others but also to help myself!! I want to focus on the good in life (I can be a negative self talked sometimes) and this blog should be able to help me focus on the things I really do love in my life!! I hope it helps you (and you enjoy it) as much as it helps me!!

Blessed by Him,

Tilly

Teacher Websites ... oh how you dissapoint...

As everyone knows...teachers have a very humble paycheck.  We get paid from our nine to five...and oh we get the summers off, but only a teacher knows the amazing work that goes into having an authentically engaging classroom.  I don't work nine to five.  I don't get my summers off.  To make my room function in the awesome manner that it does, I have to work constantly. 

Now...although I work very diligently at creating my lessons...I also beg, borrow, and steal any chance I can.  Why re-invent the wheel when you can download or re-copy whats already been created?!  One of my all-time favorite teacher 'steal' sites was superteacherworksheets.com.  I looked up a wonderful elapsed time worksheet Sunday night, went to school Monday morning to print it out and discovered that, OVERNIGHT they began charging for their services.  It is only $20 a YEAR, but still, for everything we teachers do, sometimes $20 is hard to come by!

I hope I am not the only one willing to rant about such a subject, but I believe teachers everywhere, not just me, should be given a little more for what our job entails.  Now, not only do we bring home a very meager paycheck, but companies like to take advantage of our lack of time by charging for activity sheets. 

Okay, stepping off the soap box.  Hopefully, my site will create a place for you to download FREE (really) materials.  I love what I do.  Influencing children (in a good way) is very important to me.  If you can steal something from this site and use it in your room, have at it!! May the Lord bless you in your teaching endeavor and touch as many lives in a positive way as you can!

Much love!!
Tilly

Under Construction!

The Lord has created this wonderful life for me.  I am blessed in a profession that I know He put in my path and this blog will be the home to ideas and inspirations that I have throughout the day.  I will be blogging about life, love, and classroom 'teachspirations'.  I love the life God has blessed me with and I want to share those blessings with each of you!! Please be patient as I learn the ins and outs of Blogging and I can't wait to hear from each and every one of you!