Cincinnati Blogger Meet-Up & Formative Assessment Jot Spots!

Friends, I was the mayor of Crazy Town this past week.  For real.  There were not enough hours in the day, and now that I finally have time to catch my breath and "catch up", we lost an hour today.  Go figure! :)   I was out of the building two days last week, so my routine was completely out of sorts, and I am a creature of habit. I am ready to get back into the swing of things tomorrow and dig a little deeper  with our current main selection, "Fly, Eagle, Fly!" I'll be back in a few days to share some of our activities, but let's get down to agenda item numero uno for today, shall we?  We had a Cincinnati Blogger Meet-Up yesterday, and it was fantabulous!  Seriously, so much fun! :)

I headed down to Cincinnati on Friday afternoon, because I am NOT a morning person.  I would not be a fun person to be around if I had to wake up and drive four hours to meet up with everyone for lunch.  I know my shortcomings, and that is one of them. I am basically zombified when I have to wake up before my internal clock tells me that it's time to wakey-wakey.  I prefer to wake up slowly and take my good ole' time.   I also require a minimum of eights hours of sleep to operate.  Hence the Friday  drive.  I feel like I was doing everyone else a favor.  Ha!

Of course, I also thought I was so smart to leave at 3:30 after I left a doctor's appointment, and that turned out to be a big fat mistake.  By the time I hit Columbus, it was RUSH HOUR.  It was zero-percent fun.  My four hour drive was much closer to a five hour drive by the time it was all said and done.  Gotta love stop & go traffic.  In the end, it was all WORTH IT though!

I spent a nice relaxing evening in the hotel room.  I fired up a little Phillip Phillips, drank a little Earl Grey, and worked on a few Easter centers before calling the hubs to talk a bit before bed.   Then, I woke up the next morning, started getting ready, worked on my centers a little more, had more tea, and had an impromptu photo shoot out of boredom.  Inspired by THE Babbling Abby, of course.  Yes, I am moderately embarrassed sharing my shameless selfies with you, but really, this is why I should never be left alone by myself for too long.  Plus, I didn't have access to the Internet in my hotel room, and the cable signal was wonky, so what's a girl to do?!  I am a social creature, and I start to crack if I go too long without talking.   Enter Exhibit A and B.  :)  They totally take me back to my MySpace days in college.  Oh my word.

Um, yes.  I did, in fact, photograph my computer and tea.  Further proof that I am a big NERD.  :)  As if you needed any more proof!  I am hoping to wrap this packet up today!  Fingers crossed!!!!

Let's see, eventually I made it out of my hotel room, and I ventured out into civilization again. Before heading to the restaurant, I decided to make a quick trip to IKEA.  I had never experienced IKEA before, so that's why I mistakenly thought a "quick trip" was possible.  Goodness!  I had no idea that IKEA is like a labyrinth.  At first, I was excited, but then I started to realize that I could be late to the party if I didn't pace myself.  So, I basically started to speed walk through the crowds... weaving in and out... saying "Excuse me" every other second.  About half-way through the store, I started thinking, "Oh my goodness, if there is a fire, I am going to be trampled, and I will die here."  Ha!  Again, always the optimist!  :)  I'm not dramatic or anything!!! Bahahaha!  Seriously though, by the time I saw the light reflecting through the windows, I was literally ecstatic!  I picked up cute little numbered containers for school, and I bought two potted plants for my house.  I was out the door, and I didn't even crack $20.00, but that's probably because I had tunnel vision, and I just wanted to get the heck out of there.  I have decided to go back again during the summer on a weekday to maximize my IKEA experience.  I think we could really get along.  I think I could fall in love.  Just not on a Saturday afternoon!

I dashed out of IKEA, and I was in such a big hurry that I almost tried to get into the wrong black Rogue.  Oops!  That could have been embarrassing! :)  Luckily, I noticed the baby stuff in the backseat, and I continued on to the next row where my car was waiting for me...welcoming me back like an old friend.  Champps was really close to IKEA, so I made it there with plenty of time to spare.

Do you recognize some of the bloggers in this picture?!

Abby from The Inspired Apple

Michelle from Fabulous in First

Rebecca from Darlin' in First

Christi from  Ms. Fultz's Corner

Jessica from Second Grade Nest

Jodi from Fun in First

Chelsea from Blooming Into First Grade

Katie from Queen of the First Grade Jungle

Mel D. from Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations

Sarah from Permanently Primary

Lisa from Fourth and Ten

I LOVED meeting up with old bloggy friends and making new ones too!  :)  Every single person there was SO sweet, genuine, and fun to hang out with.  I think we were there for about five hours... gabbing incessantly!  I'm hoping this becomes a tradition, even though I am not a fan of the drive.  Like I said before, it was worth it!  :)  It's always fun to connect with ladies who have some of the same passions and hobbies.  :)   Aren't these cupcakes just adorable too?!  Rebecca organized everything, and all of the details were just absolutely precious!

In other news, I just HAVE to share my Sticky Note Jots Spots: Formative Assessments for the Common Core!  I am SO excited to use them with my kiddos!  I have had so much success with my comprehension set, that I just KNEW I could create resources that would make formative assessments FUN!  Who says that assessments have to be boring?!  :)  This time around, I created formative flaps too, just in-case you're ever running low on Post-Its!

Lastly, I wanted to update you on the status of my blog.  My blog basically kicked the bucket,  and I haven't been able to resuscitate it.  It's a long, complicated story.  So, I just wanted to let you know that I am currently working with a blog designer to fix the appearance of the blog.  I am  hoping that this will be a positive change that will help make my blog a little more user-friendly, so I am really excited about it!  Thanks for bearing with me during this transitional time!  I am hoping to have it fixed sometime this week!  :)  Fingers crossed!!!! Happy Sunday!