LOVE TO READ!

I've been a Goodreads.com member since April 2010 and have been reading a lot more ever since.  I just love that you can save all your books that you've read and want to read in one spot.  Plus, you can rate the books, share your thoughts, and read reviews from your friends and other people on the site.  If you haven't heard of or been to the goodreads.com website click here.  You are so missing out!

The goodreads rating system is a follows:
1 star -  I did not like it.
2 stars - It was ok.
3 stars - I liked it.
4 stars - I really liked it!
5 stars - It was AMAZING!



2014 Goal.......... Right now I'm at 10 out of 40 books read. The site says I'm 5 books behind schedule, that's why I'm in a reading frenzy right now.  Well not really, I just really LOVE TO READ!

2013 Goal.......... I read 40 out of 40 books for my goal!  I did it!!!  It wasn't always easy finding the time to read yet another book sometimes, but I did and loved almost every minute of it.  There were only a few books that I picked up along that way that didn't suck me in. 

2012 Goal.......... I read 19 out of 30 books for my goal!  Bummer, didn't make my goal.  Will try again next year.

I didn't know about the whole goal challenge yet, but here's how many books I read in the past years...

2011.......... I read 26 books!
2010...........I read 17 books!

I really kicked it up a notch, when put to a challenge!  

PICK UP A BOOK AND READ! 

Justice is served!

Chasing Justice by Danielle Stewart

When I first came across this book I thought it was a Danielle Steel book, which I've read a lot of her books in the past.  But after a double take of the authors name, I realized it was Stewart not Steel. This is another book I got from the Freebooksy.com site that I've mentioned before.  Click here to find out more about Freebooksy.com.  You can also get this book for free on the authors website.  Click the link at the bottom to get this book. ENJOY!

Wow, this book had me sitting on the edge of my seat most of the time.  After vacuuming and throwing in some laundry, I decided this would be my next book to read.  I couldn't put it down once I started it.  Thank goodness it was a cloudy, dreary, mostly rainy day yesterday.  I read this book in a day and half, although that's with getting nothing done.  
I LOVE TO READ!   I love a good book that takes you to another world.   This was the type of book that you can't put down, because you want to know what's going to happen with the characters next.  

Here's a preview from Goodreads:

Piper Anderson has been given a fresh start in the picturesque town of Edenville, North Carolina. But her plans of settling into a normal life are derailed when she witnesses a prominent judge in her community committing a violent assault. Running from her own past and fueled by a passion to make the judge answer for his crimes, Piper is forced to decide if she’ll play by the rules or achieve justice in her own way.

READ the book to find out what happens!

I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads, which means, it was amazing!

This is the 1st book, currently a series of  5 books (Piper Anderson series). Can't wait to read the next book, Cutting Ties. 

Check out the authors website HERE!

We Love Our Teachers & Staff ~

Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week Ideas ~

Teacher/Staff Appreciation week was a big hit this year.  Our theme - Get Ready for Summer!

Our PTA provided several meals and snack days for the T/S and fun gifts each day.  We also had a basket giveaway for each day as well (oops, no pic of this).

     Breakfast is served!
     Everyday you make a difference!
     All about you!
     Chair massage!
     Happy Friday!

I printed off each letter saying and had them in the T/S lounge on the cabinets, along with a lot of other Hawaiian decorations that we put up.  Darn it, no picture of this either and it was two other parents and myself decorating the room ( I there, so no excuse not to take some pics of our hard work).

Daily gifts given to all teachers/staff each day:

I did this part at home, so I made sure I got my pictures of all the little gifts. Can't wait for next year and what we have in store for our teachers/staff.  I'll make sure to get pictures of everything next year, hopefully!

All the daily gifts, except the chap stick!

Have a BALL this summer!

Variety pack beach balls from Oriental Trading.

Thanks for taking care of our little DUCKIES!

Hula duckies!

Mermaid duckies!

Surfing duckies!

Lifeguard duckies!

Variety pack duckies from Oriental Trading as well.

Thank you for all the EXTRA 
work you do!

HANDS down you're the best teacher/staff in town!

Have a CHAPPY fun summer!

Chap sticks from AVON!

       Monday - Breakfast is served!
       We will be providing you with a hot breakfast and coffee        
       to start your day off right!

       Tuesday - Everyday you make a difference!

And we want to make a difference in your day by providing a catered salad bar luncheon! Leave those lunch boxes at home for this one. 

Wednesday - All about you! 

We want to make this day your best by providing Sonic drinks and a sub sandwich lunch. (Be sure and get your Sonic drink order on the Google doc in the office before Friday, so we can get your order right!)

Thursday - Chair Massage and Snack Cart

Sign-up for a 10 min chair massage with a licensed massage therapist between 11-1. The office should have the sign-up sheet soon! 

And your afternoon will be uplifted by the popular snack cart making it's rounds!

Friday - Happy Friday!

Who doesn't love to end the week with a BBQ lunch. We will be grilling out hamburgers and hot dogs all morning to have them ready for your lunch hour along with some yummy sides and desserts! 

Spread Your Wings!

Fanny Bower Puts Herself Out There by Julia Ariss  

This month has been crazy busy, but I finally finished the book I was reading on my kindle.  I got this particular book from the Freebooksy site that I've mentioned before.  Click here for more information about Freebooksy.com. This book had kind of a slow start to it, but I didn't give up.  It ended up being a pretty good read. I stayed up until 2:30am last night finishing it.  One thing I didn't like about this book was the fact that it had a quite a few words in it I didn't know, that I had to look up and some of them didn't even have a definition when I clicked on them.  That bothered me as they could of been left out or another word could of been used in it's place.  


Here's a little preview, from Goodreads.com:  

Fanny Bower is not a joiner. She 

leads a quiet existence - keeping to the sidelines, avoiding high jinks, living in her head and waiting for something momentous to happen. A few weeks into a new job, at the urging of her socially savvy colleague, she decides to begin afresh to conquer her fears and release her inner dynamo – whatever that is.
Her inaugural foray at an office cocktail reception goes horribly awry when she finds herself caught up in mayhem and thrust into the spotlight, placing her at odds with her handsome and uber-powerful employer who takes a dim view of her shenanigans. Determined to fix her crippling social anxiety, stay employed, and discover her life’s purpose, she puts herself out there. Her new “butterfly wings” are tested as they flutter incessantly between mystifying small talk and mortifying gaffes in a bid to unleash a charm offensive – whatever that means.
At the very height of her confusion, she is spurred to action by the plight of a friend. She plunges headlong into a situation fraught with uncertainty and risks everything, including the alienation of the one person she’s managed to captivate in the process. Fans of quirky romantic satire will find Fanny’s journey irresistible.

Introvert vs. Extrovert:
Definitions from merriam-webster.com
INTROVERT -
Function: noun
1 : a person who is concerned or interested mostly in one's own thoughts and ideas
2 : a person who is shy or restrained in speaking and behavior 
 a shy person : a quiet person who does not find it easy to talk to other people

EXTROVERT - 
Function: noun
1 : a person who is interested only or mostly in things outside the self
2 : a gregarious and unreserved person 
a friendly person who likes being with and talking to other people : an outgoing person

I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads, which means, I really liked it!

READ the book to find out what happens!

This is Julia Ariss, first novel.  Can't wait to see what she comes up with next. 

2013-14 PTA Team News Bulletin Boards

 This year our PTA theme was JOIN THE TEAM!  I stuck to the sports theme and put up various boards with different sports.

Here are the ones I did, and others I wanted to do.  I only do the boards every other month, as I don't have time to do it every month.  I wish I could do all these fun board ideas, but just don't have the time to get them all up.  The months seem to fly by faster and faster each year.

AUG/SEPT	Soccer -	Join the team and kick a goal!
	(FALL)
OCT/NOV	Basketball -	Join the team and shoot the hoop!
	(WINTER)	Get in the game and join the team!
		Winter Wonderland of SPORTS!
DEC/JAN	Football -	Join the team and catch a pass!
	(WINTER)	Join the team and march on in!
		Kick off a great year by joining the team!
FEB/MAR	Baseball -	Join the team and hit a home run!
	(SPRING)	Join the team and be an ALL STAR!
APRIL	Swimming -	Join the team and swim to the end!
MAY	Running –	Join the team and I'll meet you at the finish line!

There should be one more board here, but can't seem to find the picture, which is driving me nuts!  If I happen to find it I'll post it later.  

December/January board -
KICK A GOAL & JOIN THE TEAM!
Thanks to our Art teacher for drawing the football 
& soccer goal for me.

February/March board - SLIDE INTO PTA!

April board (Not my favorite board, but quick and easy to put up)
 - We Are A TEAM!

We've got Spirit
How bout' you?

We've got Spirit,
YES, we do!

May board - Had to get on more board done for the year.
Summers almost here, Join the RV PTA Team
& Swim to the end!

Busy time of year!

Wow, sorry it's been so long, since I've posted anything.  I did a Love to Read the other day but also have several other post in the works, maybe this will get a fire burning under my bootie and I'll get them done.  

Here's what's to come:

• Teacher/Staff Appreciation week or We Love our Teachers & Staff!
• 2013-14 Team News Bulletin Boards - JOY of Scrappin'
• 5th Grade End of Year Activities
• Pineapple Pie - DELISH!
• Orange Jell-O Salad/Dessert - YUMMY!

Then to top it off, throw in traveling back home three times for the following:

Easter

Mother's Day & a graduation

and a wedding in June.  

Plus, getting another spring head cold (I'm so congested I can barely breathe, UGH).  I'm SICK and tired of this crappy weather we are having.  I'm ready for Spring to stay or just bring on the Summer heat, but no more COLD!

To be continued with the above 

posts coming soon!

Old / New Series to Read!

Divergent by Veronica Roth is the book/series to read.  This book came out awhile ago (May 2011) and has been a big hit with the teens.  Although, I know a lot of adults who have read it as well, and I wanted to find out what it was all about.  I finally got my name on the waiting list at the library, to get it through Overdrive.com to read.  Now, I'm on the waiting list for book two, Insurgent - currently 231 out of 240 people that want to read it from the library, that I check out from.   There are 64 copies available for checkout so it shouldn't take too long for my turn to come around.  The last book in the series is Allegiant, I should get on the waiting list for this one now, so I can read them back to back.  

This was a wonderful, quick, easy (3 day) read for me.  I read this book while on the ROAD again, to see family for Mother's Day.   Wish I would of read it sooner and can't wait to watch the movie now!  Click here for the movie trailer link.

P.S. - If you're a Mom, Mother, Mommy or whatever your children call you, I hope you had a great Mother's Day with them.

Here's a clip from Goodreads about the book:  In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.  

I gave it 5 stars on Goodreads, which means, it was amazing!

READ the book to find out what happens!

Click here to find out more about Veronica Roth and the books she writes. 

Going Back in Time!

Wow, this was a quick read!  I went back in time, and read a TEEN book.  My daughter's school is having testing this week, so she can't read on her tablet.  Plus it's being fixed yet again (same issue as before), maybe it's time to upgrade.   She has been using my kindle at night to read her book through adobe from the library.   She also has a regular book checked out from her school, since they can't use their electronic devices they have to check out a book this week to read.  She's been using my kindle to read her book at night, I asked her about her library book.  She was reading a book called Amazing Grace by Megan Shull, she said, "It is pretty good so far".  I ended up picking it up and reading it.  I started the book the evening of April 30th and finished the evening of May 1st, fast read in 3 days!

It was written a little differently, but very easy to follow.  Not a dirty romance, just good clean teen reading fun!  

Here's a little preview from Goodreads:
Grace Kincaid, the Anna Kournikova of the tennis world (beautiful, teenaged, and the BEST in the world), calls her mother on the eve of the U.S. Open and says three little words: "I want out." 

Read the book to find out what happens.

Check out the authors website HERE!