Happy Halloween!

So here's the deal, I'm kinda glad this day is OVER {work day at least}! We had a class full of anxious tricker-treaters today {well all week if I'm being honest ;)} We have been doing super fun Halloween activities each day... and then we had a big party this afternoon. So I am done, ha!
All of the teachers dress up at my little school. Originally, teachers were just going to put their costumes on during nap before the party {the kids could only wear costumes during the afternoon}, so that meant I wouldn't need a costume since I usually leave during nap... but yesterday {yes, the day before Halloween} they told us we could wear costumes all day. So that meant I had to come up with a costume, fast! I went to Michael's and left with this....

Well sorta... I left with the stuff I needed to make it at least! $6 and 30 minutes later, I had a ladybug costume. I think it turned out pretty cute. Plus I got to wear super comfy leggings all day, so I can't really complain ;) And all of the kids knew what I was supposed to be, so that's always a win! I ended up sticking around for the party after nap. I really wanted to see my cuties in their costumes. And they did not disappoint... adorable! And I know you're not supposed to have favorites, BUT... my favorites were Pete the Cat, a giraffe, Johnny Cash, and Dorothy! ;) Eek! It was a fun and CRAZY day and afternoon. And now all I can say is thank goodness tomorrow is FRIDAY!

Three Years

Three years ago today, this happened...

It was the day I finally got to marry my best friend! And three years later, I'm still wondering how I got so unbelievably blessed. Z is definitely my better half, and I'm so thankful I get to spend every day with him. You'll always be my favorite, babe. Happy anniversary, I love you so much!

We Went Apple Picking Y'all!

We had such a perfect fall weekend! Here's a quick recap...
Friday night we went to dinner with friends... thanks to a gift card from a sweet student, dinner was taken care of! Yummy dinner for free, yes please!
Saturday we woke up and headed to Dunkin' Donuts... they have pumpkin munchkins {doughnut holes} right now, and they are delicious!! Perfect start to a Saturday! We also went to the new Target that they finally finished... remember here when I found out they were building it?! Still super pumped to have a Target close by {although not nearly as close as it would have been before we moved!!} So after Target, we picked up chic-fil-a, because sometimes you just need chicken nuggets! ;) Later that afternoon, we made our way to Joe and Lolly's to watch some football. Lolly made buffalo chicken dip {yum!} and I made taco soup {mmm!} and Alabama won! It was a perfect Saturday ;)
Sunday, we got ready and headed to church. We usually walk since we don't live too far... we were walking along and realized the Chicago marathon was going on and the route included our route to church... and then we realized we couldn't cross the street so we couldn't even get to church! ha! Oh well... we did get to watch the marathon for a while! Speaking of the marathon, the guy that won ran all 26.2 miles in 2 hours and 3 minutes! CRAZY!

So what to do on a lovely Sunday when you can't get to your church because of the marathon madness?! Head out of town to pick some apples, of course! ;) And that is exactly what we did!! We changed clothes, headed the opposite direction of the marathon route and drove to an apple orchard!

The drive was supposed to take about an hour... and it did... until we got 2 miles from our destination... and then we saw this...

It's kind of hard to tell, but this is stopped traffic for 2 miles leading to the orchard. Apparently we weren't the only ones wanting to pick some apples!! It took us 30+ minutes to go those 2 miles :/
Here's what Z thought about that...

I was starting to think we should just go by Stanley's fruit market and get some apples... but then we finally arrived.. and it did not disappoint!! {although next year we might try to find one a little less commercialized and crowded, ha!}

We picked a full bag of apples... gala and golden delicious... and got some apple cider and apple cider doughnuts {oh my goodness! yummiest doughnuts EVER!}

It was a perfect fall day! And definitely my new favorite fall tradition! So now I have a lot of apples and can't wait to make an apple pie... mmm! Also on the menu this week...
Monday- I have small group, so we will eat a quick bowl of soup or cereal
Tuesday- I have a professional development seminar, again something quick... sorry Z!
Wednesday- chicken casserole
Thursday- spicy shrimp pasta
Friday- chili!
Hope you have a fabulous week friends!

From the Mouths of Babes...

So I think every preschool or elementary teacher could probably write a book about the hilariousness that happens during their day... I find 3 and 4 year olds to be especially funny and adorable ;) Here are a few things that happened lately that I just couldn't wait to come home and tell Z...
-I stay at the back of the line during our morning walks... I get to hear all kinds of funny things back there! The other day, a little girl told me ALL about her "Dora themed" birthday party for both "big girls and babies". I especially loved when she filled me in on the fact that it was a "sleep under" ;) SO cute!
-Another day a little friend asked if I wanted to go to his house. "We can have macaroni and cheese. And play with ALL of my toys." Sounds like fun ;) When his little friend beside him asked if I wanted to go to her house, the first friend quickly informed her that she could ask another teacher, I was already taken ;)
-One of our cuties was "sleeping" in the dramatic play area during rest time. She had an accident, and when she let one of the other teachers know, they asked her why she didn't ask to go potty sooner... she informed her that "she was cooking in the kitchen" ha! Never mind that she was supposed to be sleeping...
-One of the teachers asked a little boy what his dad's name was. He told her it was "daddy" {like obviously ;)}. So she asked him what his "grown up" name was... "like what does your mommy call him?" He replied, "you mean like babe?!" ;)
-A cute little friend during circle time informed the other teachers that he wasn't interested in having a job {classroom job} that day... he just wished that he was in Mexico ;) The next day he told me he was going to Mexico for the weekend, ha! {we aren't sure where his obsession with Mexico came from?! So funny!}
-One of our little guys knows every car that we pass when we're out on our walks... he constantly yells out "honda" or "bmw" or "toyota taxi!" ;) cracks me up every.time. My favorite was when he saw a "range rover" said it in his fabulous British accent... so stinkin cute.
-We have a little friend that knows EVERY word to the cups song from Pitch Perfect. Even the line about the "bottles of whiskey for the way" ;) Ha! He also knows the motions to do with the cup... pretty amazing actually.
-The other day when I got to school, a little friend ran up to me and started running circles around me... "Miss Brook, I had TWO energy bars for breakfast!!" Ha! No wonder he was running in circles ;)
So... I'm so glad I started this post yesterday... today was maybe the hardest day I've had at my new little school. One of those days that just won't end and you have to laugh so you won't cry. Glad that those days are a rarity and even when they do happen, they're so worth it. Going to work and hanging out with three years olds that  say the funniest.things.ever is really the best job there is ;) And it turns out that coming home and reading back over this post was just what I needed!
Hope you got a little laugh for your Tuesday!