What I'm Loving Wednesday

Hey y'all!   Here's what I'm loving on this last Wednesday of March :)   I'm loving...more substituting experience! Today I'm subbing in 3rd grade at my school for the afternoon. I've never been in 3rd grade so this will be exciting! I definitely think I'm partial to K-2 (love first grade) but I would love more classroom experience in 3-5. As of today, I have about 7 other sub days already planned! So far I am loving the experience - it can get a little nerve wracking, especially if I get confused about something or am in a new classroom, but overall I think this will really pay off when I am looking for a job! Note to teachers: simple, clear, concise sub plans that out in plain view ready to go = SO NICE :) I always return the favor with a friendly note about how the day went.
I'm loving...this self-tanning how-to from The Kinch Life!

A bronze body is a happy body - for me at least. This late March snow has me DYINGGGG for a summer glow. I've never been to a tanning bed and probably won't ever but I may try this Fake Bake that worked so well for Aubrey! I'll at least try it before graduation so I have a little color.
I'm loving...The Croods (previews)! I cannot see this movie soon enough! I am hoping to go to PA this weekend to see Steven and if I do, hopefully we can go see this. I absolutely love animated movies & this one looks SO cute! Anyone seen it yet?
I'm loving...books about allergies.

 This book, The Princess and the Peanut Allergy, looks too precious. These days it isn't rare at all to have children with food allergies (especially nut) in your classroom & I think this book would make them feel special! Do y'all know of any other cute food allergy books?
I'm loving...that I'm on my second Spring Break! Yes, that's right. The public schools' spring break has FINALLY rolled around which means I'm off from kindergarten & work duties until Tuesday! Yippee! This makes it possible for me to (hopefully) go to PA this weekend for Easter :)
I'm loving...these dresses I got from francesca's!

I may wear the one on the left - seersucker - for Easter -- if it's warm enough! :/ The one on the right is for a wedding I'm going to on April 13th!
I'm loving...the Carrie Underwood concert!

AH! It was AMAZING! I've only been to a handful of concerts but it was by far the best one I've been to. She sounds perfect live, puts on a great show (floating stage! confetti! giant beach balls!), has great outfit changes, sang ALL of her great songs - fit so much into just 2 hours. The last picture is her singing with Hunter Hayes who was the opening act and ALSO AMAZING. Swoon. I love him. If you ever get the chance to see her in concert - you definitely should!

I'm lovin' lots today. I think I could keep on going and going :) Instead - tell me something YOU are loving today!

Games That Kept Me Occupied in the 90s

I was thinking the other day about all the games that I used to love as a child. I was thinking about how kids these days almost all have iPads or other tablets and are obsessed with Angry Birds and whatnot...I wonder if they even play computer games anymore? I only know of a couple popular ones. This isn't to say I wouldn't love an iPad, but if I could get my hands on these "old school" games I would definitely still be entertained for hours, even at 22 years old...
1. Spyro

  2. Freddi the Fish

  3. Pajama Sam

4. Barbie and Her Magical House

  5. Putt Putt

  6. Zoombinis

  7. The Amazon Trail

  8. Crash Bandicoot

  *List doesn't include classics like Mario and Duck Hunt...or Sims, because I legit still play that*     Any other 90s kids remember playing any of these games?

Misikko Hana Pro Flat Iron Review

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by Brian of Misikko to review one of their professional hair straighteners! Specifically, the Hana Pro 1" Flat Iron. I was so excited to do this review I immediately said yes! Since I had cut my hair short in December I was really wanting a new flat iron so that my hair was doing "that weird flippy thing" at my shoulders, as my hairdresser and I discussed.

I received this huge box just a few short days after sending my address! A brush, sanitizer, nail files & e.l.f. goodies were among the sweet extras they included!

Here is the iron! It came with that mat you see in the back that I set it on when I'm heating it up/using it. It also came with a little heat resistant bag/pouch to store it in. It has two sections so you can separate the iron from the cord. *The cord is nice and long - this is nice when trying to reach the back of my head.

Me using it with my old haircut!

About to use it with my most recent haircut!  **Sorry for the ghetto phone pictures...#collegeprobs, also no one was home to help me take pictures.

Before using it on my top layers

In action

All done, in the back

Done!

I put it at a pretty high heat setting since my hair is so darn stubborn

I seriously LOVE this flat iron!! You can see the sweet features about it here :) I use it every morning and without it, I would definitely have weird flippy action going on. It heats up really fast and stays VERY hot! Definitely can't touch my hair right after I've ran it through. The only con is with the pouch/bag...its hard to get the cord in the section. Either that or I'm trying to do it some difficult way & really there is an easier way? I usually end up just putting the iron in and then wrapping the cord on the outside or just leaving it loose.
I 100% recommend this Hana Professional flat iron to everyone! It works on all hair types. Be sure to check out Misikko's Top Sellers and see if they have an item that you may be missing in your hair routine! Thank you Brian & Misikko for allowing me to use this wonderful tool!

Misikko sent me a Hana Professional flat iron to review and keep. ALL opinions in the post are my own.

Spring Flowers

I don't know about you, but flowers make me dang happy.
In honor of the first day of spring (yay, yay, yay!) here are some beautiful flowers for you to etch in your memory so you can be happy all day long!

I hope and pray the warm weather is on it's way. Lord knows I need it to keep me sane.

Speaking of which, I am back in kindergarten this morning after a hiatus due to sub jobs - PRAISE THE LORD because I have missed those kinder babies more than anything. I'm spending the afternoon substituting for the music teacher - which should be interesting - and then staying for work! Definitely going to get my fill of the kiddos today.

Happy Wednesday, y'all.

bloglovin'

Follow my blog with Bloglovin   a) I don't understand any of this. b) I use GFC and Blogger Reading List, not Google Reader...am I the only one? Apparently those aren't going away. Just Google Reader is.   c) This is a helpful blog post   d) Someone help me figure it out so I can keep on reading y'all's blogs!

Yuengling Shamrock Anthem 1/2 Marathon

My second 1/2 marathon is in the books! Last Saturday we headed down to the 757 for race weekend. This was pretty much the best weekend ever...finishing out Spring break with a race & St. Patty's Day!   This was my brother James' first half-marathon which also made this very exciting. We picked a great race for his first! So flat. It was a nice relief from my hilly Blacksburg training runs.    For anyone looking to run their first half-marathon, or even just looking for a fun, fast race...this is it!   Our first green drinks of the weekend...and mimosas! When on vacation...

At the expo!

I can't see these things and not get a picture!

Haha this one cracks me up!

CAN YOU BELIEVE they had this shirt? Apparently I was the first Hokie fan to walk through! Of course I had to buy it.

Arriving at our hotel!

Didn't mind having this view from our room. Just wish it were warmer!

"Woohoo we're here!"

My outfit for the race. It was in the 40s, and yes the beginning was freezing, but I felt great while running! The headband is from bondiband (got it at the expo) and I loved it! Great no-slip, wide headband that you can use to cover your ears as well as keep your hair back.

6:45, ready to start!

I moved up to Corral 3 because...well, I do what I want. I tried to get up with my brother to find the 1:52 pacer but couldn't find him.

And, WE'RE DONE!

Reached our goals!

Official chip timing - was impressed to receive this in an email! This race was so organized.

With our sweet finishers blankets at the sand castle - those blankets were the PERFECT thing to receive...it was so windy/cold when we finished!

The perks of having Yuengling sponsor...4 free beers. Holla.

Very crowded beach tent! And this is only a fraction of the half-marathoners.

 Peeking down at the marathoners from our hotel!

Post race lunch at Beach Pub

More green drinks!

Went to the Virginia Aquarium!

So fun!

The river otters! My absolute favorite.

Last green drinks of the weekend at our hotel! These were so delish.

Overall I had an amazing weekend. I am so glad that I signed up for this race and pushed myself through the cold, sometimes snowy, training runs. It all paid off to reach my goal of running under 2 hours.   I'm already looking for my next race to sign up for in the upcoming months. Any suggestions? Also trying to decide whether I should take the leap into full marathon training. Any advice/suggestions would be appreciated :) Have a great Tuesday!