Dirt Pudding Fun and Freebie, Nooks, & Other Musings About Randomness.

Howdy friends!  I feel like I haven't posted in FOREVER!  When I sat down at my computer tonight, it was the first time since Thursday night.  That is a lifetime for me.

Yesterday I did it.  I bought a Nook.  Now, I'm pretty sure that Barnes and Noble has my photo posted somewhere in the back with a sign that says "Never sell a Nook to this woman" because I, as a crazy book lover, have hissed and booed at the Nook guy every time I've walked in the store for the past three years.  And if you think I'm joking about that, then I am so happy you think so highly of me!  :)  I have been very anti-e-reader technology and embraced that crazy "our world will become Fahrenheit 451-ish if we start getting e-books!!!!".  I'm just weird like that.  And who doesn't love that crazy book?!

Anyway, earlier this week I found out some of my colleagues were using their iPads to do their Aims Web progress monitoring online and I was JAH-el-ous!  I've been doing it online but my kiddos come to my desk where my computer is, and they can see the screen, so they are freaking out the whole time and hoping I don't click my mouse because, if I do, it's probably an error so then they're looking between their passage and the computer screen and I'm trying to shield them from the screen... it all adds up to a stressful one minute!

So, I took in my hubby's Kindle and did my progress monitoring with it this week and looooved it!  So I had to have my own.  Hubby did some research and we found that, for what I want it for, the Nook Tablet was the best choice and the right price... iPad... $500?!  No thanks!  I'm sure it's super awesome and all of that, but my debit card was weeping in my wallet last night after I bought the Nook, a cute cover, the replacement plan, screen protectors, and treated myself to a gift card I could pre-load on my Nook and have already blown through.

I bought some math game apps and a super super cool drawing pad that I'm going to let my kiddos do for their spelling words on "Work on Words" during Daily Five.  I think I'm going to let the "leader" use the Nook each day... I don't know yet though.  Any other ideas for using it in the classroom?

And, of course, I got some games for me too!  I've been shooting bubble birds and doing Doodle Jump Deluxe all day!

But, here's the big news.  I have been buying books on it.  Me.  The freaky girl who thought owning an e-reader would instantly turn me into some kind of book burning weirdo and would lead to the destruction of the role of literature in our society.  I've been very passionate about this, so this is a biggie for me!  And I'm reading them.  AND.  I.  LOVE.  IT.  I love it!  So far, I've bought I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella (which the awesome Lisa from Made in the Shade in Second Grade recommended to me after we got to talk books at our Michigan blogger meet-up), I got Catching Fire for free, and have been downloading samples of potential books too- tonight I read a sample of Deadly Little Secrets, A Thousand Never Evers, and Switched by Amanda Hocking which I started reading via the Kindle app on my cell phone, but it was just too tiny and, because that counted as having an e-reader and contributing to the downfall of society, I just couldn't make myself read it!  I even subscribed to my Weight Watchers magazine on my Nook and SO loved reading my magazine like that last night!

Anyway, hopefully you don't think I'm too big a weirdo now!

So, school.

Being gone Monday, Tuesday and half a day Wednesday was not fun.  I missed my kiddos... even my sweetest little sweetheart who makes me crazy!  He had a rough two days and, when I asked him about it, he said, "I just needed you to be here for me!"... Awwwww!  So, Wednesday afternoon he wasn't very nice to me because he was mad at me for abandoning them for the first part of the week.  But Thursday and Friday there was nothing but love from him!

We have been learning about mixtures and solutions in 2nd grade science.  How many adults do you think there are who know the difference between a hetero and homogeneous mixture?  Well, I have 21 1st and 2nd graders who do, oddly enough.  Last year we made ice cream in a bag to wrap up our study on this but I couldn't do that again since I looped with half of my kiddos... so instead, we made dirt pudding!

It was super fun!  :)  We mixed 6 cups of milk with three of the big boxes of instant chocolate pudding... talked about how we couldn't get the milk or the pudding back now, added crushed Oreos and whipped cream... and put a worm on the top of each!  It was tasty!  Then they wrote about how they knew dirt pudding was a mixture and which type of mixture it was.  One of my girlies wrote:  "I know dirt pudding is a homogeneous mixture because it's like this- for example, if you mix salt and pepper and then say 'oh no!  I need that pepper back' you can never get it back out.  That is the same with the pudding and the milk.  You can never get them back out".  Loved the voice in that one!

Here's the writing page we did in case you can use it too!

I also introduced my kiddos to our new classroom blog this week and they have LOVED writing blog posts for it.  I have several sitting in the folder on my desk that I forgot to bring home to type today, so I'll pick it up when I go in to my classroom tomorrow.  I did get up a post by two of my girlies on Thursday, so you'll have to check it out if you haven't.  They love writing the posts and I love that they are doing such great, authentic writing!




And, last, a big thank you to Kaleigh at Kaleigh's Classroom, Karlie at We are all Special, Natalie at Teachery Tidbits, and Buggy in Kindergarten for awarding me with this "Lovely Blog" award!  :)  I'm always so psyched when someone finds my blog useful enough to be award worthy!

Last for real.  Why I love bloggers.  I got an e-mail this morning that one of our own is sick- Ginger over at Ginger Snaps has been in the hospital and there is some organization going around in the blogosphere to send her flowers and some units she can use in her classroom for subs or whatnot to help ease the burden of preparing for subs or even so she's got something ready when she returns to the classroom.  So, I just want to say that I love you guys!  I think it's so awesome when we all come together to help and support each other... some of whom we know only from what we read on our screens every day!  I love being a teacher!  What other group of professionals cares for and supports their own the way that we do...?  It's awesome!

Ok.  Officially the longest post ever!  Only three followers to go until 1500... and I'm planning a giveaway and a sale when that happens!!!!!!!!