Elf Antics

Elf on the Shelf is something I use in my classroom to help bring the Christmas spirit and help with behavior. This year I have been on my game with his arrival back to the classroom each night, but realize I have 10 more days of the elf antics ahead of me. So I am in the process of toning back the intensity of his endeavors. So far he arrive on the Smart Board but promptly after he:

Brought a tree and decorations to the Dramatic Play center.

Brought an Elf Pet that needs love to help Santa's sleigh fly. 

Decorated the "trees" with more lights.

Another teacher: Sledding in "snow."

Created a countdown chain till winter break. 

My students are having a blast with Chippy this year, wondering each day where he is hiding and what he's been up too. They love giving the reindeer love each day to help Santa on Christmas Eve. Their behavior is decent for December, kids get more and more excited as Christmas approaches. Chippy helps give them another reason to be responsible in their choices/control of behavior.

Unconscious Mutterings - wk 670

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. That’s awesome! :: Dude!!
2. Moldy :: cheese
3. Cloth :: robe
4. Boys :: stinky
5. Chains :: ball
6. Tennis :: ball
7. Chart :: topper
8. Band :: aide
9. Clinking :: glasses
10. Pores :: oily

We got a Dog!

So a few weeks ago we rescued a dog from San Antonio Pets Alive, a great organization that saves animals from euthanization at kill shelters. When we adopted her we opened up space for another dog to be saved. We knew from our time with her at the shelter that she was energetic and sweet, but we still weren't sure why she had been surrendered by her previous owner or if she was going to have any quirks.


We have realized how lucky we are, and she is for us finding her. She is an amazing affectionate dog, who still does have a lot of energy but we have a yard for her to run. She loves tennis balls and chasing a frisbee, and I cannot forget her squeaky chicken. She became part of our family quickly. :) We feel very thankful to have found our Scarlett to complete our home. I highly recommend adopting an animal from a shelter if you can.

Getting a new dog after owning a cat for over 15 years required some changing gears, we have given away most of the cats things after he passed away. The dog also has different needs than a cat, obviously. The shelter gave recommendations on food (grain-free) and basic items needed. Obviously there are items that are more wants vs needs. Some of the basics we picked up for Scarlett were from Target and PetsMart. We purchased a crate at PetsMart but the bed we got did not fit correctly, so we looked online and found this memory foam version, it is very soft and squishy. We have already washed it's holding up awesome, it was a bit more "fluffy" after being washed.  The next things we realized was more of a need was a cover for the back seat of my car, she loves the car and likes to stand to look out the window. He nails are now not directly on the leather seats, she seems to have a bit more traction.

Otherwise we got her all the basics; bowls, food, leash, crate, bed, and a few toys. One spoil factor I got her was a dog blanket, she really liked lying on our blankets and would even crawl under them. So I began looking online, I found some fairly pricey options. I went to Tuesday Morning and found one for $9.99, Scarlett loves it, right now she's enjoying it by the fire. We feel very lucky to have saved our little girl.