Teacher Tuesday....a bit late, and a Linky Party!

After two weeks of travel we are finally home to stay.....well, Katie and I are.....Jake is headed to Canada with his dad on Monday.  We have had the BEST summer and are so thankful to our family for making our vacations so much fun!!  All this relaxing summer vacation stuff has given me time to think about my back-to-school-to-do-list, and it's a long one!  Thanks to Tara at Fourth Grade Frolics I've been able to get lots of stuff done on her Monday Made It!

I put this classroom promise together last week when we were home for two days between vacations.  I saw it on Lori's blog Teaching with Love and Laughter and fell in love!  I can't wait to hang it in a prominent space in my classroom and refer to it daily. 

It will look so much nicer on the light colored walls in my new classroom!

And my very favorite one of all....

Don't for get to head on over to Tara's blog and check out all the other fabulous things teachers are making this summer!  I love seeing how incredibly creative these gals are!

I am also linking up with Lorraine at Fabulous 4th Grade Froggies with a To-Do before school starts list.  It's a long one and majorly overwhelming.  Of course, I feel this way at the start of every school year, and some how I always manage to get it done!

Here it is in no particular order.....

1. Unpack everything I own and put it all away in my new classroom.....decorate, organize, clean and rearrange.....this should take until the end of October :)
2. Create 3 more options for Word Work
3. Revamp my Work on Writing activities and create a class blog on Kidblog.
4. Create and organize a sample reading/writing notebook
5. Label all of the name tags, classroom supplies, etc. with student's names
6. Lesson plans for the first month of school
7. Year long plan
8. Create a No Name plaque for papers
9. Print labels for library books (so they can be organized by genre)
10. Buy bookcases for desk group organization
11. Print back-to-school packets for Open House night
12. Revamp powerpoint for Parent Orientation Night
13. Make a schedule
14. Make a sub binder
15. photocopy, photocopy, photocopy
16. laminate, laminate, laminate
17. Make business card magnets with my contact information for parents to take home
18.  Make a teacher tool box
19. Re-do my brain break sticks
20. Buy fabric and boarder for bulletin boards.
I could go on, but 20 seems like more than enough for now!

The list is almost as overwhelming at home.....
1. Enroll in my masters course and follow up with the University about financial aide (I have a feeling this one will take a while)
2. Enroll the kids in school and buy school supplies
3. Get auto insurance for Jake, buy his birthday gift, and a few other things that can't be mentioned on the ol' blog for fear that he reads it....they are a big 16th birthday surprise!!!
4. Jakes' sports physical
5. Dentist appointments for all of us
6. Urology follow up appointment for Katie
7. Get the house good and clean before August 21st.
8. Make more hand cream (gotta have enough to last until Christmas break)
9. Prep some crockpot freezer meals for the school year.
10. Get the new Little Britches signs printed and help Sarah with any prep work!

Okay, stopping there because a little bit of panic just set in!!