Chicken Delicious

The great thing about this Slow Cooker recipe...you don't have to defrost!

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
salt
pepper
paprika
celery salt
Cream of Celery soup
Cream of Mushroom soup
1/3 cup Sherry
Shredded Parmesan cheese

Place chicken in slow cooker. Season with salt, pepper, paprika, and celery salt to taste. In a separate bowl, mix together soups and Sherry. Pour over chicken and then sprinkle cheese on top. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Break apart chicken and serve over rice.

*This made enough for two nights. For the second night, I put the chicken and sauce into a baking dish and sprinkle with cheddar cheese. I swear it was better the second night.

Learning Place Value

I don't normally blog about teaching. In fact most of my career has been spent trying to find something else to do that makes more money and makes less stress and earns more respect.

But as I have come into my own over the last 12 years, I have come to find the enjoyment in teaching. And that enjoyment comes from engaging and encouraging the children that I love...the children that I consider my own.

I have also become quite creative and resourceful, especially with PowerPoint presentations and songs. And when I graduated recently with my Educational Specialist degree in Instructional Technology and Design, it was with a thorough understanding of the importance of incorporating technology into student learning.

I now put every unit I teach into a 3-5 day PowerPoint unit complete with songs, videos, games, interactive manipulatives, proven teaching strategies, test practice and tons of graphics and animations.

My husband has been on me for a long time about trying to make money off of my creativeness. I have started so many books about everything from teaching to couponing to reasons for hating teaching...all of which sit on my computer unfinished. (My ADD tends to really get in the way sometimes.)

So when I discovered TeachersPayTeachers I thought I would try it out. Why not get paid for all of this hard work?

I posted my first PowerPoint presentation yesterday for free, and now I am just waiting to see if it will get enough hits to be worth paying the $59.99 it costs for a membership.

Learning about and understanding Place Value is the most important concept students can accomplish in elementary school. Everything revolves around it. The PowerPoint is more than just a presentation. It is a 4 day standards based unit that incorporates Singapore Math teaching strategies while providing concrete examples with interactive manipulatives and standardized test practice.
Here is a little preview. To see and download the whole unit on PowerPoint please visit my TPT store.

                            

Good Times! Good Times!

This was one of my first posts. I decided to re-post it after my most recent gyno visit. Dr. Novak: This is dedicated to you!

Disclaimer: Not sure if you want to read this if you are a man, but maybe you should so you can see what we women must go through. 

So today was my fabulous appointment with my gyno. You know the one I am talking about. The one where you have taken more time to prune and clip than you did on your wedding night. The one where you actually take the time to paint your toe nails since they will be on display in those oh so lovely stirrups. The one for which you tirelessly shave your stubbled legs (which is now a gymnastic feat what with this ever growing belly)  that may not have been shaved for days upon days, yet as soon as you take your clothes of become immediately stubbled again. The one where you feel like all of your goodies are on display for all of the world to see even if that world is only one person with some scary instruments and thankfully some Vaseline. 

Now this event is not pleasant for any woman, but it is especially not pleasant for a pregnant woman. I mean our bodies are already doing all kinds of crazy and many times disgusting things. And now all of that will happen with someone's face mere inches away from Ground Zero. The thought is paralyzing, and if it is for me I can only imagine what it is like for my Gyno.

But I arrived today ready and willing to have my "area" invaded and my mounds prodded. Part of it was ...I mean, whatcha gonna do? Run away screaming? I think that is frowned upon. Plus, the gown doesn't close in the back and that would lead to a-whole-nother embarrassing experience. The other part was that my midwife is the most fabulously cool chick that has ever existed and makes the whole experience feel like we're at a bar having some drinks and chatting about our lives.

Ahhh....that is how they could improve this whole unpleasantness....offer drinks. I can see it now "Pap Smears and Pina Coladas" or "Scraped with Schnapps". You could even go for "Mammograms and Martinis". I really think someone should run with this. It is GOLD!

Other improvements for any office that performs these extremely uncomfortable procedures:

1. Turn up the heat-hello we are naked!

2. Cloth dressing gowns-not only are they better for the environment, but they are better for my ego, too! Nothing depresses a pregnant woman (or nonpregnant woman) more than putting on a gown only to have it instantly rip in all the wrong places. I get that I have gained weight there is no reason to make it worse. (Now that I am not pregnant any more you would think these lovely paper gowns would fit better. Alas, it does not. In fact, it provides an awesome view of my....ass-ets for anyone who enters the room!)

3. Provide some form of distraction-not elevator music, but a TV on the ceiling or better yet pictures of Edward and Jacob gazing down at me.  Oh how I wish someone would bite me.....wait a minute, that is for another blog.

4. Bikini Waxes- If we are already naked and already extremely exposed and uncomfortable why not throw in a bonus service "Free Wax with Scraping".

All in all in was not that bad of an experience thanks to my super awesome midwife and nurses. I just think that men should have to go through the same thing. Having someone grab your manhood while you cough is not the same at all. Really all I can say is ....Good Times! Good times.