Life Lately...

Ok I really do suck at this blogging thing! It seems I never have time to blog. But do not worry, summer is here and I am not working this summer yay!! Finally a real summer vacation. Actually I am subbing but that is okay because it is very different from working each day at summer camp.

I have to reflect on how my school year went. Things were not always so great. It was a challenging yet rewarding school year for me. I learned a lot.  A lot about myself and what I do and don't want to do. There were days that I would ask myself do I still want to teach? Is this the career for me? But with the help of family and some friends I came to the realization that this is what I want to do.

Which brings me to those annoying New York State Teaching Exams, can we just say how much I loathe them!? As of yet I am not a NYS certified teacher. What am I missing? Well lets see, I am almost done with my masters (just a year left...yay!) so that leaves...oh yea those exams! Can you believe I have to take not one, not two, not three but four, yes you counted right, four state exams! These new Board of Education requirements are no joke. But this is just a step closer to my goal which is to be a NYS certified teacher. I registered to take my first one at the end of the month. So lets see how that goes. Wish me luck!

July 4th came and went. I drove upstate to my cousin's house and spend some time up there. I took some photos for my blog with the outfits I wore. I can tell you one thing for sure, I am no fashion blogger. Below are a few of the photos I took:

A Trip To The Zoo

This past weekend, I went to the Bronx Zoo with my nieces and cousins.  Note to self: Never visit the Zoo on a Saturday especially on a day where we hit almost 80 degrees! It was so crowded, we couldn't park in the zoo's parking lot, so we had to park on the street. Luckily we found parking across the street so that was not too bad.

We bought the total experience tickets, which give you access to the Butterfly Garden, Bug Carousel, the 4-D Theater and the Children's Zoo, just to name a few. Here are a few snapshots of our day:

Big Bears

Butterfly Garden

Sea Lion Pool 

Madagascar 

Carter Giraffe

The girls had so much fun! I especially enjoyed the 4D Rio movie. I really thought they would get a little scared but they handled it very well! The Bug carousel was fun too! I think I became a paparazzi taking so many photos of the girls haha!












Until next time,

My Spring Break!

Happy Weekend! I have officially been on spring break for a week and some days now. And what have I done during this time off work...absolutely nothing! I have thought about my little students and what they are doing, but honestly it feels great not having to wake up so early in the morning.

What I did do this week is spend time with my adorable niece. I took photos of her on Easter Sunday. She looked absolutely adorable! I took her with me everywhere! Here are a few photos of her on Easter:

I also went to Barnes and Noble and picked up a few books for my classroom since we are starting our ALL ABOUT ME/MULTICULTURAL UNIT when we return from spring break.  (I try not to think about work during my time off but it is hard...teacher problems). I found these funny spring break pins on pinterest. I thought I'd share some: 

We went to one of my students' 3rd birthday party. (Technically I am not allowed to attend any of my students birthday parties but he is actually another teacher at my school son. So since he is a co worker's child it is okay right?) 

On Saturday, we went to have brunch at Tosca Cafe, its this really cute restaurant in Throgs Neck in the Bronx. We went with my sisters High School BFF and her two children. My niece had an amazing time. 

Afterwards we all went to the Mall and ate frozen yogurt! This spring break was different from the others, usually I would visit Atlantic City or go away for the weekend or a few days. But I had fun this year just being at home, not thinking too much of work and spending time with my niece. 

Until next time, 

Montessori Conference 2015

This year I attended the AMS Annual Conference in Philadelphia. It was my first Montessori conference and it was also my first time visiting Philadelphia. So I was pretty excited! The conference was from March 12-15th.

Montessori Teachers at a bar haha! 

I arrived Thursday evening or should I say Thursday night because it was about 10pm when we arrived at our hotel. We stay where the conference was being held, Philadelphia Marriott.  My co-workers and I went to a bar in downtown Philadelphia.

I do not remember the name of the bar...how sad is that? (Sorry had to look it up, its called McGillin's Olde Ale House) But I remember they serve the yummiest Chili nacho platter ever!


Friday morning, I attended my first workshop. I decided to attend the "Supporting Infant & Toddler Language Learning in English, Spanish and ASL". I loved this workshop! This workshop was about children learning a different language at home and at school and how we in the Montessori environment can help that child continue to learn and be fluent in the languages they learn. What I enjoyed the most was the examples they gave and the 5 Simple Strategies to Facilitate Language Development.

I loved the displays all around the hotel that showcased work from so many different schools.

Philadelphia Montessori Charter School

Montessori Peace Table

I attended a few vendors at the conference and bought some materials for my classroom. I seriously wanted to buy so many things at the conference but I tried to stick with the list I had made before attending the conference.  I bought a practical life frame (shoe clips) and a few object to picture matching activities for counting.

I would have to say my favorite vendor was Mad About Montessori only because I got so many things from them! I think I bought about five key chains to give to family and friends, so many pencils and pens and I also got a bumper sticker for my car that says, "Montessorian". I even bought a small tote bag which I absolutely adore.

I was excited to take a photo with Frank Leto. My students love his music and so do I! They're so catchy and fun for children to sing and dance along to.



Saturday, very early in the morning,  I attended a workshop being presented by my director, Dr. Kathy Roemer and Mary Ellen Kordas. Let me just say, I have been working at my school for four years now and I have never heard my director speak outside of my school setting. It was called "Support for Aspiring Leaders". This was such an amazing workshop! I have always respected my director but I honestly gained a whole new respect for her. Lets just say her workshop was very inspiring.

We had a keynote speaker that day, Jennifer Senior (she is the author of All Joy No Fun). I loved to hear her speak. She was so brutally honest about how parents really feel about their children and what goes on at home sometimes. She left us all with a quote that totally resonated to me "Joy is grief inside out".

Saturday night, my co-workers and I attended the Philadelphia Freedom Party. It was so much fun! They had little video montages where we wore props to take photos. 

It being my first Montessori conference, I totally enjoyed myself! I left this conference feeling inspired. It was such a special feeling being amongst other Montessori professionals who understand and value the philosophy just like I do. I am looking forward to next year's conference which will held in Chicago!

Until next time,

Our beloved dog, Dino

It has been ages since my last blog post. I have been so busy this school year that I have neglected this blog. So sorry! I promise to write more now that I am on spring break.  I wanted to do a post about my dog Dino. He was such a special pet. 

I remember it like it were yesterday, the day I saw Dino for the very first time. 

It was the end of summer 2001, I was just about to start my first year of college. My family and I had gone to visit several animal shelters but had no luck in finding the perfect dog. It wasn't until we visited the last shelter of the day, Yonkers Animal Shelter, where I spotted Dino next to a hound dog. What I remember most about that day is the way Dino looked. He had beautiful white and black fur. The shelter worker asked if we would like to take him for a walk, but we walked right out with him! We adopted him on the spot.

On September 9th, 2001, Dino came home to live with us. He was truly the best pet/companion anyone could ever hope for. He had such a sweet demeanor and always wanted to run around and play. I remember he loved to have balls in his mouth as well as bottles. If he saw someone with a water bottle or a soda bottle...you better run because he would start to whimper and try to get it from you. We could not play catch with him because once he caught that ball...game over! LOL

We would dress him up in sweaters that were too small for my brother. Dino was so sweet. Whenever any of us came home, he would greet us and want one of us to pet him. When my sugars were low while I was sleeping, Dino would try to wake me up by licking my hand or jumping on my bed.