Nemo

That's right... it's Nemo! 

When I make fondant characters for cakes, both flat and 3D, I always get questions from people about how I make them.

So this time I documented the steps to share on my blog!

First... I googled a picture of Nemo on my phone to use as a template.

Then I rolled out my orange fondant and used a toothpick (you can see it in the background) to freehand the outline and details of Nemo.  Including all of the details is important so that it will be easy to add the white and black accents!

I then used my carving tool to cut around the outside and make nice clean edges!

Then I rolled out some white fondant, nice and thin, to match the parts of Nemo that needed to make him the clown fish that he is!

Last but definitely not least, I rolled out some black fondant and carved it to match the black accents to finish out the character.

There you have it!

A fondant Nemo tutorial :)  It's pretty simple...

Happy decorating!

Who is it?

Can you tell who this is???

Straw bale gardening

When spring time rolls around I start itching to plant a vegetable garden.

The only problem in our neighborhood is that first of all our yard is microscopic and second of all if you dig down 6 inches it's all rock and gravel. I thought about a traditional raised garden but never actually did it!

Eventually I came across the idea for straw bale gardening on mckmamas blog and I've been wanting to try it since. It seemed like the perfect answer to my gardening dilemma.

So this year I bought 2 straw bales at $5 a piece. I soaked them everyday for a month until the were cured and ready. I added about an inch of organic topsoil and fertilizer to the top of the bales. Then I planted away!

One of the great things about straw bale gardens is you can plant into the sides of the bales. I took this opportunity to plant marigolds. This is not only pretty but it also keeps animals looking for a snack away because they don't like the smell.

In one bale I planted veggies: jalapeños, green peppers, green beans, and squash. In the other I planted some herbs: oregano, cilantro, rosemary, and then some snap peas. Hopefully in a couple of months they will be overflowing with veggies and herbs.

This is what they looked like right after planting.... Happy gardening!

So far...

in the past few months I've....

stuffed goody bags for my Kindergarten kiddos for Halloween,

dressed up as a witch with my K girls,

had a cat sit on my lap,

got to be a part of a friend's wedding day,

took a picture with my husband on Thanksgiving,

eyed the Thanksgiving feast,

compared the sizes of two cute nephews,

had a cat sit on my lap,

decked the halls Kindergarten classroom,

posed with my husband in front of a Christmas tree at the Opryland hotel,

posed with my husband in front of a Christmas tree at my parents' house,

watched a sleeping cat,

played with a cute Christmas Eve baby,

let my niece paint my fingernails two different alternating colors,

watched a  different sleeping cat,

had some fun by coloring my hair,

made a shirt for the 100th day of school,

made a present for a friend's 30th bday,

made a cake for a baby shower,

watched

a

sleeping

cat.

 

 

A List

What I've been up to since August:

1.  Teaching 21 Kindergarteners 5 days a week for almost 16 weeks.
     As you may or may not know I was hired four days before school started in Auguest.  As panicked as I was, I was even more over-joyed that the job search was over and all of the self-doubt and sweating could stop.  AND even more than that, I was pumped to finally have a job doing what I love to do with a group of people I really wanted to work with!

2. Staying at school until 5 or 6PM almost every week night.
    It's just part of the job.... especially at the beginning.  Yes, it's kindergarten, and I'm not studying the content that I will be teaching (b/c I know my letters and numbers;) or grading papers.  BUT I am still working on organizing my room just how I want it... and mostly trying to meet my students' needs.  Kindergarteners change a lot in a course of a couple of weeks and I'm always trying to see where they are academically so that I can push them a little farther.  It's been really fun watching them grow :)

3.  Celebrating friends' marriages.
     Seems like we are just at that age.  Everyone we know is getting married.  We've been to so many bachelor/bachelorette parties, wedding/bridal showers, rehearsal dinners, wedding ceremonies, and wedding receptions I think we could do it all blindfolded and spun around a bat 10 times without a hitch (no pun intended).

4.  Traveling... duh.
     We are just always on the go as a couple.  Since August we have been to Atlanta twice, Florida once (for fall break), Lexington 3 times, Nashville twice, Louisville 2 times.  AND all of that, with the exception of Florida, had to have happened on the weekends since we are both working.  So I'll let you do the math on how many weekends we've spent at home doing nothing between trips and weddings :)

5. Cakes
    It goes without saying I'm still doing cakes.  I love to do wedding cakes/cupcakes for friends... so you see where that fits into this story.  Not to mention other cakes I had booked for August and September, not knowing if I would have a teaching job or not.  I've cut back since then because of my work schedule, but I'm still doing it when I can!

Hope this catched me up on blogging... now that I've settled into my new job I think I might come back to this :)

A Kindergarten Haiku

No time for blogging.

Kindergarten is my life.

Happy but sleepy.

Firsts

So I have a semi-huge announcement...

I GOT A JOB!!!

Can you believe it?

Me neither.

I am officially a kindergarten teacher and it has been the best whirlwind I've ever experienced.

So, that means...

I got my first teaching job ever at the school that was my first choice.

I got my first keys to the school and my first very own classroom.

I'm a part of my very first team and experienced my first team lesson planning.

And today, I had my first day of school with my kindergarteners who truly had their first day of school!

I feel beyond blessed.

Sooooo...

who wants to see pictures?

Don't yell out, just raise your hands.... oh wait.  Sorry, teacher mode.

Here are the before and afters.

BEFORE

(this is what I saw when I first walked in the door)

AFTER

(this is what my kindergarteners saw when they first walked in the door)

BEFORE

(this is the view from the front of the room)

AFTER

BEFORE

(This is is the view from the back of the room)

AFTER

That ends the BEFORE and AFTER rendition but here are some more pictures of my class!

(calendar math and morning message area)

(reading center) 

 (carpet area and my desk)

(front of the class)

So, there's your first glimpse of my first every classroom!