Weekly Recap (Instagram Style)

We've been on a weather roller coaster this week.  Last Friday, this was the scene.....

By Tuesday, I was mowing in shorts.

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Something took over my desk area.......

This is very uncharacteristic of me.

Don't worry.  It's on its way to recovery.

Mainly because upon lifting up a paper, I found this.........

Who put that rock there?

Not me.

Shenanigans run rampant in our hallway, and I love it.

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We had middle of the week sushi take-out.........

For my birthday!!!!!

Yep, I turned 29 again on Wednesday.

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And finally, after a pretty long drought, the thrift shop delivered last night.......

Something told me I should go.

Always listen to that still, small voice.

Especially when it tells you to go thrifting.

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Oh yeah!  The print giveaway ends tomorrow!  You still have time to enter!!!!

Follow me on Instagram @thisvintagegrove!!

Linking up with......High Five for Friday and Insta-Friday. 

Weekly Recap (in Instagrams)

The Christmas shirts made their debut..........

This is my favorite one.  

It does not, however, sum up my feelings for the season.

I just think it's funny.  And I like the graphics.

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 A vintage cardigan was purchased........

I snatched this up for a song at Relics.  

That's the danger of having a booth at a great antique mall.  You buy things when you're there checking to see if you sold anything.

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I won a great giveaway from a lovely blog buddy..........

You are looking at some handmade boot toppers.  I'm in love.  Thank you Sara!

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Whit and I brought identical lunches one day..........

Down to the BBQ chips.  

I mean, first it's outfits.  

Now it's food!?!?

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And more work shenanigans.........

I mean who wouldn't be caught off guard by that penetrating stare?  

While in the staff bathroom.

Could it get more random?

Or awesome?

I think not.

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Follow me on Instagram @thisvintagegrove!!

Linking up with......High Five for Friday and Insta-Friday.

This Week (Instagram Style)

The last few days have included:

Decorating the bathroom for Christmas..........

Yes.  I said bathroom.

What!?!

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Work shenanigans........

Leaving Consuelo the dinosaur in the doorway of an unsuspecting coworker is great fun.

You should try it.

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A much needed manicure........

I just don't have the patience to do my own.

It always ends badly.

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 Adding a little Christmas to the special room.........

What you don't see is the pile of clothes on the bed.

I'm working on it.  Gosh!!!

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 And enduring enjoying music in my classroom...........

We have outgrown our building, so music comes to us every week.

I know all the words to Shenandoah.

In fact, on a Saturday morning not so long ago, I woke up with that song playing over and over in my head.

I can't wait for the recorder unit to begin.

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Follow me on Instagram @thisvintagegrove!!

Linking up with......High Five for Friday and Insta-Friday.

This Week (Instagram Style)

I got domestic........

Tried a new pumpkin bread recipe.  Streusel makes everything better.

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I got crafty.........

Spray painting bottlebrush trees is just one Christmas craft I've got up my sleeve.

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I got crafty at school too.  Or had the kiddos get crafty!  No scissors allowed.........

These turkeys make me smile. 

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I got a free bracelet at Starbucks on Election Day.........

Coffee and the red, white, and blue.  Good things.

 

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I got pranked.........

Just a new round of work shenanigans.

Imagine moving a stack of notebooks only to spy that quite realistic creepy crawler inches from your hand.

It was the shriek heard 'round the world.

And just so you know, it's not over.

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Follow me on Instagram @thisvintagegrove!!

Linking up with......High Five for Friday and Insta-Friday.

Above the copy machine...

I mean, what more could you want?

Makes you laugh annnnnnd puts a little song in your step, right?

Thanks, Pinterest (for more fun work shenanigans).  And way to go Whit (for vertically orienting that text).

You know you want to.

But if Lionel isn't right up your alley, maybe velociraptors are?

A new phase of work shenanigans....

Pinterest is very inspiring.  You can find lovely home decor ideas, recipes, craft projects, and so many other wonderful things.  The list really does go on and on.

Little did I know, however, that work related shenanigans could also be sparked by this amazing web-site.

One day, while scrolling through all the inspiration, my eyes became fixed on something so outstanding I just knew it would have to be replicated.

And replicated it was.  A few Google images and Picnik edits later, we (Whit and I) had ourselves a nice little poster to hang directly above the copy machine.....

 
You can't say you weren't warned.

It's that time again....

School is practically in session.  Which means my classroom must be put back together again.......

The best custodian ever painted my room this summer, so I'm in the mood to redecorate my space.  Light gray is so much better than butter.  Butter colored walls are bad.  Gray colored walls are good.

Another good thing?  My new rug.........

That's chevrony goodness, huh?

And my sort-of-new chairs, which were headed to storage until I spotted them..........

To match my brown and blue color scheme!

Instead of these awful things........

  

Which are orange.  And huge. 

And very wide.  And won't stay on 

desks at the end of the day.

And they are orange.

The chairs, newly painted walls, and my chevron rug inspired me to buy curtains too......

To hide six shelves of this........

But let's talk about this horse.........

I mean last summer it was a sombrero wearing JFK bust.  Now this?

Who is messing with me?  And why do you like to leave random objects on my desk over the summer?

This isn't over! 

Let the horsing around begin!

Panic in the Classroom

Three weeks are left of my summer. I am panicking. For lots of reasons.

But mostly because of this:


This is the current state of my classroom.

One word: overwhelming.

I don't even know where to start.

And I am not the most motivated person. I find lots of ways to piddle when I'm standing amongst a sea of unpacked boxes.

I'm very accomplished at dilly dallying.

Very accomplished.

And then there are distractions to contend with. Such as this:


Who put a sombrero topped bust of JFK on my desk?

I can claim the sombrero. It's a Cinco de Mayo staple.

But that is most definitely not my JFK bust.

Even so, I can feel the beginning of some excellent shenanigans coming on!!

Watch out folks......

Daredevils

Sometimes you just need to break the rules.

That's when you smuggle Starbucks into the movie theater!

How you ask? Well, when you have a coat with big pockets, it's not a problem! After carefully placing the cup upright in the pocket, strategically position your scarf over the exposed part of the cup. Walk as slowly and smoothly as possible, to keep the cup from jostling (much harder than you think, without looking odd). Look casual. And calm. And confident!


Next thing you know, you're sipping pumpkin spice lattes while watching the latest romantic comedy!

And feeling like SUCH a daredevil! Right, Nancy?

Rats - The New Scarecrow

If you remember, I had some fun with a scarecrow back in October. Well today, when I got to my classroom, I had a similar, yet different sort of surprise waiting for me..........

Can you see it?

Yep.............it's a rat! Right there, by my phone. Yeah, it made me jump.......my heart did skip a beat. I don't mind rats, I just don't want them on my computer desk.

So after regaining composure and laughing a little, I took a picture, of course! THHHEEENNN I proceeded to shout down the hall to Whitney about the critter. We decided it had been much too long since the "Scarecrow Shenanigans."

That's when the "Rat Festivus" began!

A strategically placed rat can liven up the workplace quickly. For instance, carefully position the rat on a copy machine. Close the lid on the rat. It's okay that it doesn't go all the way down. It's normal that the lid rests that way. Then go back to your room and wait. The squeal will come, as it did today at about 7:45 this morning.


Yes, the squeal delighted me. Whit and I rushed to our first victim's side to console..........and to crack up. Thank you for being a great sport Amanda!

Once the copier had claimed it's first victim, I decided the rat should be placed elsewhere. The next logical spot????


Unfortunately, no one had to use the restroom this morning. So back to the copier the rat went, at the last minute..........where it did claim victim number two. While I was teaching math, victim number two (also a scarecrow victim) declared revenge upon me from across the hall. I tried to place blame on Ashley, who placed it on my desk, but I'm not sure that worked.

Afterward, the rat was confiscated by another teacher, who hurried away............to plot another crime scene, I'm sure.........we can only expect the Rat Festivus to continue at this point.

Be afraid, be very afraid.

Sneak Attack Photo Day: My Version

If you've already read Whitney's blog, you know all about Sneak Attack Photo Day. If you HAVEN'T, well first of all, you NEED to..........second of all, let me fill you in........

Last week, Whitney and Ashley devised a plan to launch a sneak attack of photo taking during the school day. This occurring ONLY when we didn't have kids, of course! Education is our first priority. BUUUTTT when our darlings were off to lunch, recess, or music, we decided to partake in the festivus (Sneak Attack Photo Day). We promise that no students were harmed in the making of Sneak Attack Photo Day.

It began innocently......me on the look out for my first victim.........


I spotted her! In a paparazzi style barrage of flashes, I captured my first collection of sneak attack photos..............


After a moment of regrouping at my desk, I decided to scout out my next victim. The next one would be tricky though, so I had to work extra HARD at hiding.........


Catching Ashley off guard was next to impossible.........always ready and posed, it was hard to sneak up on her!


One last mission was necessary to complete photo documentation needed for this day to be a success. It would require the utmost in surveillance techniques.........the poinsettia camouflage! It had been very successful for Whitney, so I just had to try it out..........


It looked like the last few shots of the day would be perfect! Hidden by the foliage of the poinsettia, I was able to take the last round of pictures............


BUT WAIT! What would Sneak Attack Photo Day be without some actual video footage????

I probably shouldn't quit my day job, huh?

Scarecrow Shenanigans

Meet my class scarecrow. He was made for a contest and has found a home outside my classroom door for the last few weeks.

At first, I had him in a spot where I could see him if I glanced at my door. After thinking I was being watched for about two full days, only to realize it was my scarecrow time after time, I moved the thing............to a spot on the OTHER side of my door, so I couldn't see him. That worked out MUCH better.

Before long, I realized that OTHERS were also caught off guard by my innocent scarecrow. Once that discovery was made, the scarecrow shenanigans began! With the help of Keith, our night custodian, scarecrow ended up in a few doorways and closets......and the assistant principal's office.........to greet people in the morning when they got to their room or office. Opening your door, only to be greeted by the lifelike scarecrow, can most definitely cause even the calmest person to jump back just a little. The reactions were quite worth it. I had way too much fun with this. Anyway, he is gone now. He went home with one of my kiddos. I'll miss the shenanigans. I had one really good one left.......