A little gold and a little sparkle...

My co worker gave me the cutest clutch ever! Actually, its not even a clutch its a bag that came with Victoria's Secret Angel's Gold spray, lotion and wash.  Let me just say that this fragrance smells so good! I love the scent. Anywho, I thought of using the bag as a makeup bag but its just too pretty. I think using it as a clutch is more fitting. 

I think it goes perfectly with my accessories today, don't you think? Hehe...

Deets:

Vest: JCrew// Top: JCrew Factory// Watch: Michael Kors // Bracelets: American Eagle Outfitters & J.Crew Factory // Bag/Clutch: Victoria's Secret

P.S I am linking up with these fab ladies!

Dinner at City Island

What better way to spend my day off than to have dinner with the lil sis and my long time friend Karen. Karen and I have known each other since the 7th grade. That's 18 years of friendship! Karen had moved upstate to Ulster County with her husband and son (who happens to be my god son) in October so I barely get to see her anymore.

We decided to have dinner in City Island. City Island is a small Island on the Long Island Sound in the Bronx. It is famous for its many seafood restaurants. It houses four yacht clubs all located on the Eastchester Bay side of the Island. Anyway enough about that. We ate at Sammy's Fish Box. It was actually my second time ever visiting that restaurant. The service was great. The food was awesome too!

Montessori Mondays (An update)

So sorry!!! I have completely neglected posting things about my classroom and Montessori. Well I guess I should make up for lost time and update you all on what my tiny students are up to. These past couple of weeks, my young toddlers have been flourishing in all aspects of the classroom. They are becoming so independent in Practical Life skills such as drinking out of an open cup, setting the table with a placemat, plate and cup, removing their shoes and flipping their coats over their heads. I must admit I am so proud of what these tiny beings can accomplish at such a young age.

This is our last week of school for the year....yay! And I am already thinking of what materials/activities I want to put on the shelves when we come back in January. So far, my favorite materials/activities have been our object to picture matching. My students LOVE these! And they are really easy to make.

I got these sea animals at Michael's Craft Store. I took a picture of them against a white poster board and I printed then had them laminated. I've made a couple more of object to picture matching cards using other objects like Zoo, Farm, and Safari Animals. 

Another favorite in my classroom is our color bears, which I got at the Lakeshore Learning Store. They are so great and perfect for their little hands. For the time being, we have been having the children match the bears to its corresponding color card (color bear matching) while naming the color they are matching. 

It isn't all about matching. Here are other materials/activities that are also very popular. 

Wooden Depth Peg board

Posting box

I made this using a:

*Gerber Baby Formula can

*Contact paper

*Wooden Flat Apples from Michael's Craft Store

I am definitely looking forward to two weeks off though. Between grad school, finals and work my brain is fried. I will be relaxing and hopefully catching up on my blogging :)

Happy Monday! 

In Love with Christmas...

I just LOVE the holidays!! Especially Christmas! It is definitely my favorite time of year. I love buying gifts for my loved ones and also wrapping them. It is pretty much a tradition for me to wrap all the gifts in my house even my own. Yes I wrap my own gifts...LOL I blame my mom for that. :)

I love decorating my Christmas tree every year!

Three years ago, when I first started working as a teacher, I bought my first teacher ornaments at Century 21 and Macys.

My sister says that I should work part time at Macy's during the holidays working in their gift wrapping department. Ha! I actually would love to do that and each year I say I will apply but never do. 

A tradition of mine is to watch Christmas movies throughout the month of December. It wouldn't feel like Christmas if I didn't watch All I Want For Christmas, which I find to be such an adorable movie! It always puts me into the Christmas Spirit. 

My other favorites are:

Miracle On 34th Street

Elf

The Family Man (Definitely a must see!)

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

and my ultimate favorite:

Home Alone. :)

Which are your favorite?

Thanksgiving Shopping and a Wedding...

This year I went Black Friday shopping on Thursday. That's right, after I ate my Thanksgiving dinner I walked over to the Old Navy near my Aunt's house and shopped till I dropped. Everything was 50% off! What did I buy? Nothing for me this year, everything I bought was for my adorable niece :)

So what did I do on Black Friday? I attended my dear and wonderful friend Sianna's wedding. What a beautiful wedding it was!  It was such an honor to witness such a beautiful union between two people who radiate such an amazing bond! Sianna is such a special person. Not only is she a great role model but she has a heart of gold. Her compassion for others is truly amazing. I worked with her for two years and she was such an amazing teacher to our little students! She is now pursuing her dream as a Bilingual 1st grade teacher.  I miss her so much!

Isn't this beautiful? I told you she has a heart of gold! This is such a great idea for wedding favors.

Sianna and Amaury, you two are perfect for one another and I wish you a lifetime of happiness! Congratulations once again! :) 

How was your Thanksgiving/ Black Friday?

Ode to Chambray tops...

I absolutely love chambray tops! Actually I love chambray everything!  Recently I was organizing my closet and I noticed I have quite the collection of chambray tops. I guess it wasn't intentional but I definitely have a handful of shirts. At my school, we have to dress casual yet professional but I work with small children and you definitely want to be comfy. Chambray tops are so versatile, I wear them with shorts, jeans and colored pants. I think wearing them with colored pants are my favorite!

Below are a few if not many of the outfits I've put together wearing my chambray tops.

Top: Forever21 (old) //Leggings: Forever 21 (similar here) //Shoes: J.Crew Factory //Bag: Coach (old)

Top: J.Crew Factory (similar) //Jeans: American Eagle Outfitters (old) //Shoes: American Eagle Outfitters Flats

Top: J.Crew Factory Popover (similar here) //Pants: Small Boutique in NYC //Flats: Factory Emery flats

Top: Oldnavy (old) //Shorts: Old Navy //Shoes: Minnetonka 

Top: Oldnavy (old) //Jeans: Gap Boyfriend Jeans //Shoes: Target (old)

Top: American Eagle Outfitters (similar here) // Pants: Ann Taylor (old) // Shoes: Michael Kors (similar here)

I am linking up this week with these fab ladies!

White after Labor Day...Yes Please!

I absolutely love white pants/jeans/jeggings! White definitely makes any outfit look classy and sometimes very nautical. When I was younger, I fell for that saying "Do Not Wear White after Labor Day." I never wore any of my white pants after the holiday but then had a hard time trying to figure out when I should wear white bottoms again. Honestly, I never understood why you CANT wear white after labor day. I mean I do get it is like a summer color but to me it can also be a great fall staple as well. Here are just some outfit ideas I put together, on how I would wear my white pants, jeans or jeggins in the fall.  

Tops:

J.Crew Popover (sold out), J.Crew Factory Classic button-down, Aeropostale Cable Knit-Popover Hoodie

Bottoms:

ANY WHITE PANTS/JEANS/JEGGINS will do 

Outerwear:

J.Crew Blazer, J.Crew Factory Puffer Vest (sold out), J.Crew Factory Herringbone Puffer Vest (sold out)

Shoes:

AEO Animal Pointed Toe Flats, Leather Boots, Factory Emery Flats (30% off)

Handbags:

Dooney & Bourke Bag (similar here), C.Wonder Tote (similar here), Marc by Marc Jacobs Classic Bag

Linking up with these fab ladies!

First Day of school/Last year of Grad school

Today is the start of my second year as a lead teacher in a Montessori classroom. I am excited but also a little nervous. I am nervous because, well, I am not sure what to expect. Each year is different.

I also start my final year of grad school. I'm very excited about that but again I feel nervous. It's been a long journey for me. When I started grad school, I wanted to just be a elementary school special education teacher. I really didn't want to ever work with young children. But as it turned out, working at my current job has made me LOVE working with young children. I think they're so bright and have this genuine love for learning. I changed my mind about working with elementary school aged children. Although my masters will be a Tri-certification in Early Childhood, Childhood and Special Education, my heart belongs in early childhood. 

Did I mentioned I am super excited to start decorating my classroom?mI have several ideas on how I want to arrange the furniture and what material I want to put on the shelves. Later this week,I will give all of you a classroom tour on one of my blog post.

(Below is how the classroom looked at the end of June).

                                                                        

Fall Must-haves

  

I am so excited for fall. It is actually my favorite season! A mixture of warm and cool air is always great. These are just some of the items I think will go great with any fall wardrobe.

1. Chambray Shirt J.Crew (similar here) - Everyone should definitely get a chambray shirt for the fall. I think it is so versatile you can wear it with a skirt or jeans as well as under a sweater or cardigan. 

2. Printed scarf (similar here) - Definitely a fall essential. I love printer scarves. They look great with a blazer and a nice top. 

3. Moccasins (Minnetonka) - I love moccasins they're so comfy and great for the fall. I usually wear mine to work for casual Fridays or when I know I will be on my feet for a while. 

4. Pants (American Eagle Outfitters Cords) - The fall is my favorite time to wear cords! They feel so great when the weather is cool and you don't want to layer yourself up to keep warm. Last year I went crazy and bought a few pairs from American Eagle. And now with their Labor Day say I say everyone should try to snag one up. :) 

5. Bag: Coach (similar here) - I absolutely love cross body bags. I mostly use them in the fall only because I don't want to carry a big handbag along with my jacket and sweater. So a cross body bag is ideal for me. My vintage coach cross body bag is often on repeat during the fall. 

6. Sweater C.Wonder (similar here) - The animal sweaters are such a huge hit this season! From the hedgehog sweater Target has to the beautiful Scottie intarsia sweater C.Wonder makes. I think these will be around all Fall season long. I went and snagged the French hen sweater from J.Crew Factory for myself, currently on sale for $52.50. 

7. J.Crew Factory Quilted Puffer Vest in Herringbone (sold out) - I wish I could've gotten a hold on this sold out everywhere vest! At least I was able to get the navy blue one but only if I could have gotten this one. Oh well...I did hear a rumor that it will be back in stock again soon (keeping my fingers crossed!).

8. Pom-Pom Beanie - Fall wouldn't be the same without a beanie hat. Not only is it comfy but it's also so fashionable.

What are your fall favorites?

Back to School Attire

Hello lovelies! Next week I go back to work..boohoo! Eh its no biggie, I only work two days next week and its only for classroom preparations (phew). On Tuesday, I will definitely be wearing jeans and a t-shirt, especially since all we will be doing is setting up the classroom. In the meantime, I thought I would start planning my First day of School looks.

Top and Skirt: J.Crew Factory // Shoes: Tory Burch // Bag: Louis Vuitton Neverfull 

I love this outfit because it is so casual! The skirt is perfect for transitioning into fall and paired with a striped shirt is just perfect! This is actually my favorite LV bag! At the moment I don't own one but this one is one that I would love to have one day.

Dress: Xhilaration (On sale!) //Shoes: Jack Rogers //Bag: Michael Kors

I recently purchased this dress on the clearance rack for only $12.98! Not bad for a cute eyelet dress! I love it paired up with a small belt to create a even better look. 

Top: J.Crew // Pants: J.Crew Factory // Shoes: J.Crew // Bag: C.Wonder

I can not get enough of leopard print and for back to school, it is a definite must have! I just ordered a pair of leopard print flats from American Eagle Outfitters for only $20.97 after using my 40% discount code (74693461). I just love a great sale!

I am still unsure what I will wear for my First Day of school (September 10th) but I think these outfits gave me a little inspiration as to how to style the current clothes I have. Happy Reading everyone :) 

Linking up with these lovely ladies!

Montessori Mondays: Must Read Montessori Books

When I took my Montessori Training almost three years ago, I was told to read many books on the Montessori Method. The ones that really stood out to me were Montessori From The Start: The Child at Home, From Birth to Age Three and Understanding the Human Being. These two books are amazing and I would recommend them to any parent, teacher, or anyone who wants to know more about Montessori and child development.

1. Teach Me to Do It Myself: Montessori Activities for You and Your Child  by Maja Pitamic - It gives you simple and easy Montessori styled activities that parents can do at home with their child. 
2. Montessori From The Start: The Child at Home, From Birth to Age Three by Paula Polk Lillard and Lynn Lillard Jessen - As I mentioned earlier this book is highly recommended by many Montessorians. The mother-daughter authors do a great job in explaining many of the Montessori practices that we use at our school. I think this book is ideal for parents who would want to foster the Montessori method in their home. 
3. Understanding The Human Being: The Importance of the First Years of Life. by Silvana Quattrocchi Montanaro MD. - I recommend this book to any first time parent, expecting parent or parents of infants. This book is amazing! It helps you to really understand more about your child's development and growth. I love how easy it is to read and it is not filled with jargon that we would not understand. Definitely a must read! 

These are just some of my favorite Montessori books. Which are your favorite? 

Wish List Sundays: Polka Dot Love

Kate Spade Keds // Polka dot georgette shirt // Blanc Polka Dot Slim Ankle Jean
Polka Dot ombré scarf  // Polka Dot Dress (Similar here) // Polka Dot Kate Spade Watch
Polka Dot collar sweater // Betsey Johnson "Pretty Polka Dot" // Zatchel Polka Dot Bag


I love love polka dots! They're just so adorable. For my birthday, I received a really cute polka dot peplum top (similar here) which I wore with a pair of skinny jeans. I feel you can't ever have too many polka dot items in your closet. The Katespade polkadot sneakers by Keds are definitely ones I want to get my hands on. Wouldn't they look great with a pair of skinny jeans or colored shorts? I guess I'll add the jeans and watch to my order. :) 

Which are your favorites?