Insta-Friday: The Saturday Edition

I’m a day late, but I attempted to be somewhat productive yesterday around the house. Plus, it was way too hot to be sitting on a computer all day, even though I need to play catch up.

Kid is super happy for #blogher12 swag! He said, "Hi mama...can you open your suitcase and so me what you brought home, NOW!"
The kid is very happy with all of the goodies {swag} that I brought back from New York City. He asked where the rest of it was….seriously kid? Ok, I had way too much so I had to mail two boxes back. It arrived yesterday.

He loved the NYPD shirt. #nyc
NYPD shirt. He loved! Win for me!

Love my new patriotic wallet from @Gucci GG Flag Collection. My mommy bought it for me. #olympics
New wallet. My mommy spoils me. My old wallet is 10 years old. I was due for a new one. And perfect timing with the Olympics!

Hello Palm Springs! Hello Heat!
Two-day trip to Palm Springs with family. My parents recently bought a house out there so we will be going there a lot. Although 112 degree heat is not fun.

Who is this kid? Bleach blond hair, dark tan....He has aged so much this summer.
Everything about this kid says, “summer”! Bleached hair from swimming, tan, and no shirt because it is too hot. Carne asada tacos for dinner that night. Yum!

Mike's Black Cherry Hard Lemonade vs. Light Colored Carpeting. #FML
A little accident with a bottle of Mike’s Black Cherry Hard Lemonade and white carpeting. I think we spent about $30 on cleaning products. My mom checked on it today and said the stains look like they are gone. What a nightmare though!

Posing with Big Boy at Bob's Big Boy yesterday. HAD to take a photo!
Posing with Big Boy on the way home yesterday. My son didn’t understand my geekness and that I had to take a picture of him near this.

Watching #BMX on the DVR from Thursday night. #olympics
Watching BMX that was on the DVR from Thursday night. Our life has been consumed by the Olympics the past two weeks. I will be super sad tomorrow night when it is all over.

life rearranged

Mission Possible: The Road To Good Teaching with Giveaway

Some of the hardest working people are teachers. I cannot imagine being a teacher right now. With learning disabilities being diagnosed left and right, food allergies, and helicopter parents…teachers have a full plate.

It seems that the media and special interest groups are always pointing their fingers at the teachers whether it be about pay, union contracts, or test scores.  These people (teachers) have families to support and lives also.  I think that sometimes people tend to forget that.  Teachers are in charge of your children at least 6-7 hours a day, 5 days a week.  We need to respect their education and experience more.

I went to public school from kindergarten through high school, and so did my husband.  I also attended and received my Bachelor’s Degree from a state university.  My son goes to our local public school.  I believe in public schools and teachers.

My son is going into second grade this year, which will be his third year of public school.  I’ve been involved in the beginning.  I’ve volunteered in the class, signed up to work at the Book Fair, and even baked cupcakes for an event.  Teachers cannot do this alone. Like I said previously, teachers have a full plate and with economic barriers, they are severely burdened.

mission_possible_book

I recently read the book, Mission Possible: How The Secrets of The Success Academies Can Work In Any School by Eva Moskowitz and Arin Lavinia. Eva Moskowitz, founder and CEO of the highly regarded Success Academy Charter Schools, and literacy specialist Arin Lavinia offer groundbreaking, classroom-tested methods for dramatic improvement in teaching and learning. Moskowitz and Lavinia reveal how one Harlem charter school, comprised of neighborhood children selected at random, railed against all odds to emerge as one of the top schools in New York City and State within its first three years. Success Academy scholars have met or exceeded the test results of public schools for gifted students and elite private schools.

Do I agree with everything in the book? No, but I do think that sometimes you need to look outside the box and see how things can be improved.  I think in any career field, you need some kind of mentor or training program.  If you don’t have staff development or education for the employees, how can they evolve?

Stagnation, being unable to accomplish one’s job at a high level, is one of the greatest sources of low teacher morale.  Why do you think this country treats teaching so differently than it does other professions? 

Every career field can be stagnate.  People turn into robots, doing the same thing over and over. This is even more so for teachers.  Can you imagine teaching the same curriculum over and over, year after year?  I don’t think that their is enough input received from the actual teachers.  Most teachers are given the curriculum from the administration and are told to teach it; to pass state tests, etc.

How can any of this be positive? Without a peer support system or mentoring program, there is no way for teachers to evolve.  I know that every teacher has some kind of feedback that they want to give, but is there anyone listening to them?  In the United States, careers in teaching are not thought of as highly as doctors, lawyers, or engineers.  But who do all of these professionals start their careers with? Teachers are the foundation of everything, they should be respected.  Without excellent education, there would be not  doctors, lawyers, or engineers.

What can we do as parents to help out our teachers and schools? To prevent this stagnation and evolve into better and excellent academic programs. Is is charter schools, mentoring programs, volunteering?

Answer this question along with other options for a chance to win a free copy of Mission Possible along with a DVD of video from Success Academy Classrooms!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  I was compensated for this post.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Wordless Wednesday: Rainbows, Glitter, and an Unicorn

This was my 4th year attending the BlogHer Conference.  Every year I’ve looked forward to Mama Pop’s Sparklecorn Party.  It is my favorite part of BlogHer. But really, the best part is the cake. This year’s cake was made by Charm City Cakes. They always have an awesome unicorn themed cake.   Here are the cakes from previous BlogHer Conferences 2009, 2010, and 2011.

BlogHer12' Sparklecorn Cake

Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project Alicia, Better in Bulk, Crazy About My Baybah, Dear Crissy, Five Minutes For Mom, Live and Love…Out Loud, Naptime Momtog, Parenting By Dummies, Seven Clown Circus, The Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.



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Operation Pixie-Cut Grow Out: One Year Later

For the past year, I have been growing out my long-time pixie hair cut. I had my hair cut super short for about 4-5 years. It was easy to style, cute, and fun! But sometimes, you just have to take a chance and grow it out.

I’m not sure if anyone believed me that I would actually grow it out this time. I’ve tried several times before and failed.  Honestly, looking back, I think that it was the way that I was maintaining it through the grow-out process.

oneyearlater

I went in and got my hair colored and cut last week before I left for New York City.  Tera highlighted it and also gave it a trim.  We were both very excited because I finally had a bob. Tera took some photos of my hair with my iPhone to show the side and back of my hair also.

Back and Side Profile of My Hair, One Year Later
Now you probably want to see the before and after, right?

Project Pixie Cut, One Year Later Before and After

Yes, you have to cut your hair while growing it out. Otherwise, you look like a hot awkward mess that no one wants to see.  And you can’t wear a baseball hat twenty-four hours a day. A mullet does not look good on anyone. My hair on the back of my head was not even an inch long in July of 2011.  I had the front of my hair, top, and bangs a little longer, like 2-3 inches.  You can only imagine how it all looks when growing out, one word = MULLET.  I actually waited to get my hair cut and colored from the end of July 2011 till mid-October 2011. By then, it was a hot mess, and needed cleaning up.

Finding Tera Rae Stephens as a hair stylist is the best thing that has EVER happened to my hair.  Tera was able to fix the jagged and rough edges of my mullet, and also color my blondish-brownish mess.  We discussed the grow-out process at my first appointment.  I told her that I wanted my hair longer, but I was unsure how long that would be.

Every few weeks, and sometimes even a few months, I made a visit to Tera. She colored/highlighted my hair, and also gave it a trim.  I was still growing out some of the razoring in my hair, and also the split ends.  My hair has never been this management.  It is extremely hard to grow out razored hair.  It usually splits and breaks off, which for me, just means frizziness.

I learned to accessorize more. Whether it be headbands or hair clips, I pinned back those awkward pieces of hair from my face.  My bangs wanted to do their own thing, and they drove me crazy. Instead of cutting them off, I just used snap clips to hold them back.

12 months of hair
I went through all of my photos the past year and found some self-portraits that I had taken. These photos are from September 2001-June 2011. I couldn’t find a photo for December, but they are in order starting from the top left corner.  Obviously, my bangs were a huge annoyance but somehow I dealt with them.

I cannot wait to have a normal ponytail. This is my next goal in this journey.  I want to be able to pull my hair up, put a rubberband around it, and not have all of the side hair falling down.  Hopefully, I will be near that goal around Christmastime, maybe sooner.

Hello Monday: The NYC Edition

Hello Monday!

Hello Reality!

Hello Post-Travel Coma!

I got back late last night after being in New York City for the past five days.  I was there for the BlogHer12′ Conference.

Hello NYC at Night!

I arrived at JFK Airport at around midnight Wednesday night.  I didn’t make it to my hotel until about 1:30am or so. Luckily, I caught a cab from the airport with my friends Janice and Susan from 5 Minutes For Mom.

Hello NYC!

Hello Central Park!

Hello Six Miles Done!

I followed my training plan and my 6-mile long run for the week. Yippee!! Worst run ever though. It was hot, humid, and muggy outside.  I was also having side pain the few days prior to leaving for New York. I held my side a ton while running.  I also did the BlogHer 5K the next day.  Nine miles of running done while in New York.

Oh hai...just a little run around Central Park. 3 miles of 6 done.
Hello Subway!

I have never taken the subway. I took the subway all by myself to meet Carrie in Chinatown at The Garment District. Go Me!

I posted on my personal Facebook that I felt like I was in an episode of Law and Order.  I didn’t get attacked running in the park, and I braved the subway.  Silly Julie. But seriously, the subway was so much cheaper than taking a cab. Silly bloggers were spending tons of money on cabs.

Hello Garment District!

Hello Jem Fabric Warehouse!

Jem had great stuff. I was overwhelmed.

Jem Fabric Warehouse

Hello Times Square!

I went to an event at a very tall building overlooking Times Square!

I had to get a shot of The Hunger Games DVD Release Advertisement from above.

Taken from above, Ad for Hunger Games on DVD, NYC! #latergram

Hello Good Friends!

I was super excited to see my friend, Cynthia aka Nap Warden.

I met Cynthia in person at BlogHer in 2009.  She lives in Chicago so we see each other only once a year. But we talk on the phone or text at least once a week.

I may have had a glow stick in my hair as a headband.

The lovely @NapWarden and I at #sparklecorn last night. #blogher12 #latergram

Hello Tired and Sore Feet!

After tons of walking and nine miles of running while in New York, my feet were done!

I was hungry and lazy. I totally wore my pj pants and flip flops to Chipotle. I dressed it up with my Lululemon jacket. I’m fancy like that.

I totally just wore a @lululemon jacket, Target Pants with Koi fish, and black rainbow sandals to @chipotletweets tonight. Yes, I walked three blocks in NYC in my pjs to get Chipotle. #blogher12 #nyc

Hello Reality!

My flight got in at 8pm last night. Got home at 9pm. Work at 7am.

Busy day at work, and a ton of laundry to do.

I hope to post more about New York soon with photos, stories, etc.

Hello Monday!

Linking up with Lisa Leonard and her “Hello Monday” series!

Wordless Wednesday: Sixty-One Miles

I finished my last three miles of running for the month of July, tonight.  It has been a busy hectic month, plus with the heat…totally not fun to run.  I got my running clothes on and the kid asked to go too. He strapped on his helmet and rode his bike ahead of me. Ya, no way was he going to wait for my slowness to catch up.  My goal was to do 45 miles in July. I did 61, yipee!

Last run of the month. 61 miles done. Kid joined me on his bike. #45milesinJuly + more #running #motherrunner

Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project AliciaBetter in BulkCrazy About My BaybahDear CrissyFive Minutes For MomLive and Love…Out LoudNaptime MomtogParenting By DummiesSeven Clown CircusThe Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.



(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)

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