The *Best* Teacher Pens

Move over Papermate Flair.  Take a seat, Gelocity.  There's a new favorite pen in town.

If you know any teachers, you know we have a thing for pens.  Fun colors make grading more fun (and more fun for the kids), filling in our calendars, and taking notes.  When I started teaching, my favorite pens were Papermate Flair.  They are nice but more like a marker than a pen.

Then my son introduced me to Gelocity.  Very nice. Great colors, but I find that they occasionally skip while I'm writing.

From there I hit on Pilot FriXion.  The advantage to these is that they are ERASABLE. But not like the old school erasable pens. These are more legit and they aren't clunky to write with.

Until one day I borrowed a pen from my principal.  A kind I'd never seen before.  I was hooked. 

These are also Papermate, just not flair.  These are Papermate Inkjoy GEL.  GEL is important. The other inkjoys are nice but...well, they are no Inkjoy Gel.

The best teacher pens ever

I treated myself after we started the lockdown because I wanted some new pens.  These bad boys came in the mail and make doing my teaching-from-home a little more fun.  Plus I'm writing lots of cards and letters to my grandparents these days so these come in handy for brightening it up.

If you are looking for a pick-me-up treat for yourself or a teacher in your life, I would highly suggest the Papermate Injoy Gel pens.  This is not a sponsored post. Papermate gave me nothing to write it. I just LOVE a good pen!  These Papermate Gel pens run about $15-20 for a pack of 14 pens.

AMAZON  I  TARGET  I  WALMART

  *Amazon links are affiliate links-if you purchase something through the link, I may receive small commission.

Out with the old...

...in with the new!

If you've been here long, you know this blog's design hasn't really been updated in years!  I started this 9 years ago and it was the cloud background for a long time.  The old header featured a photo that I took of bright chairs in Buffalo, NY.  My old header font was bright purple.  Cute, but it's been years and my tastes have changed.

We're quarantined right now and stuck at home, like the entire rest of the world, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.  So I have some extra time on my hands. Nevermind the fact that I should have put away laundry or reorganized the pantry.  No sireee. I decided that 10pm on a Friday night was the right time to update the colors of my blog. ha!

Old:

New:

I used Canva (free!) to redesign the header and even the logo for Facebook.  

Pinterest got a little lift too. 

This counts as productivity while quarantined, right?  Right??

Coronavirus. Anxiety.

Turns out that a world-wide deadly virus that can make you die alone in isolation is not exactly great for people with anxiety. 

On the plus side, every store I have ever even LOOKED AT has emailed me that they are deep cleaning and care about me.  Thanks, Sbarro, for letting me know you're encouraging employees to use hand sanitizer.  Do you usually not?  *suspiciously eyes mall food court*

Our state is shut down, although an awful lot of non-essential people still think they are essential and are out gallivanting around the town.

In these anxious times, (wait, didn't Staples send me an email that began the same way?), there are a few things that I say/do to keep myself calm.  Fine. Calm-ISH.

I'm not a therapist, counselor, or doctor. So if you need to check in with those people, please do!  I'm just a Fellow-Anxious-Person here, sharing what helps me in case it might also help you!

Things I Say:

• "This will not last forever."
• "I am saving lives by staying home."
• "The sun still shines."
• When my brain says "BuT wHaT iF yOu GeT iT aNd DiE!!!1!1!" I tell it "Yeah, but what if I DON'T.  If I'm going to think the extreme scary then I also have to think the opposite."

Things I Do:

• Take a deep breath. Hold for a count of 4. Let it out while counting to 4.  Repeat.
• Watch a 5 min mindfulness video on Youtube
• Do some daily squats.
• Limit news headline checks to morning/lunch/night.  Limit more if you need to!
• Listen to the birds outside and enjoy that nature and life are still happening!
• Use paper plates and frozen dinners and don't even feel bad about it for a second.
• Pet my dog and tell him he is the goodest of all good boys.
• Take a drive by myself.
• Text Tiger King memes to friends.

If you have found healthy ways of coping with anxiety during this Covid-19 crisis, please let me know!  If simple strategies and deep breathing aren't enough (many times they aren't), please reach out to your local physician or counselor.  If you need immediate help, call the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

 

((hugs from 6 feet away))

*Shared at CreativeKKids ThoughtfulThursday

It's Okay To Be Scared

In case you live under a rock and haven't heard, we are in the midst of a worldwide pandemic.  The Coronavirus has a higher death rate than the regular flu, no known treatment/cure, no vaccine, and is highly contagious.

Fun times.

My family was so excited for 2020 to start! 2019 was...not great.  In the last 6 months of 2019, we'd had:

• 2 surgeries, 
• 1 ambulance ride, 
• 3 EKG's, 
• 6 X-rays, 
• 2 ultrasounds, 
• 1 cat scan,
• 4 (?) blood draws

We were READY to ring in 2020. 

2020 started with the threat of going to war with Iran (remember that?  That was THIS YEAR, you guys!), impeachment of the President, and now a worldwide pandemic.

I'm fine. Why do you ask?

Occasionally I see fellow Christians post things on social media or blogs about just "Trusting God."  Or some verse about anxiety.  Or they talk about God being in control. Or this being his plan.  

Hold up. First of all, people have varying beliefs about God but I don't buy that he plans tragedies to kill millions of people. So, no.  Second, we can trust that God will be with us but that doesn't mean there won't be pain or suffering for some. Third, there are verses that you may find comforting in this time, however, for me, they don't eliminate all of the fear about getting COVID-19 or passing it on to someone.

And you know what? 

Are you scared of the COVID 19 pandemic too?  It's okay.  We're allowed to be scared of scary things.  It's not a good idea to wallow around in that fear. That's why I'm keeping to a pretty good schedule, avoiding 24 news, taking deep breaths, and journaling.

But if you're scared?  Know that you're not alone. I'm scared too.  Scared that I'll get it. Scared that I'll give it.  Scared that I'll be trapped in this house with stir-crazy kids for the rest of the year!  Fear. Anxiety. Scared.  Those are human emotions.  Are you human?  Yes? Then you're allowed to feel those.  Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

**sends social-distance-appropriate cyber hug*

~shared at Thoughtful Thursdays

Stuff I Bought While Self-Quarantined

2019 was rough on our family---we had something like 8 emergency room visits and 2 surgeries.  

When 2020 rung in on New Year's Eve we celebrated. YAY new year!  No more crud!

And then 2020 was like "Not so fast."

Worldwide, we've had threat of war, wildfires, and now a literal pandemic of a deadly virus.

Enter online shopping.

I decided to try to write a note each day and mail it to my grandparents in another state. But I had run out of cute notecards and envelopes.  So I bought this cute set of bright cards from Amazon.

And of course needed wanted some new pens.  My boss has these Retractable Paper Mate InkJoy Gel pens and they are fabulous so I pulled a "Treat yo self" and got a set. 

My youngest has worn out most of his pants.  2 pairs of Russell brand sweats from Walmart found their way to our house.  Then he used some of his money for a new Angry Birds Lego Set.

We paid $3.99 to rent Contagion on Amazon Prime Video.  A movie about a surprise virus that attacks your respiratory system? How did we miss this back in 2011?  It is relevant now and not too horribly scary (unless you are presently sick and then DO. NOT. WATCH.)

Before we decided to self-quarantine in an effort to help stop the spread of illness, I hit the Dollar General (yep, we are in a small midwest town, why do you ask?) and loaded up on cough / cold medicines, Lysol spray, some snacks and cherry coke. The essentials. 

Has anyone else done some online shopping while stuck at home?  Any must-see deals out there?  Good things to keep yourself busy and away from crowds? 

**Amazon links are affiliate links. This blog is part of the affiliate program and will earn a few cents from any purchases through these links (at no additional cost to the buyer). Full disclosure here.

Daylight Savings Time

Daylight savings time.  Fall back is great. Spring forward is my enemy. Is it time to eat? Why is it dark outside? Why is everyone grumpy?  Blegh.

Easter Baskets for High School Guys

I've been doing this blog for awhile now and no longer is my oldest kid a tween....he's a full on teenager.  He doesn't do egg hunts anymore but I still want him to get an Easter basket.  So the question is "WHAT do you put in a basket for a high school boy?!".  I've been brainstorming and will share here just in case you are in the same boat as me!

1. Nintendo Switch Case.  Our son bought himself a Switch but didn't get the case. I scored one on clearance at Target for $10! 

2. Cologne / Body Spray.  He likes the scents from Hollister.  Online prices start at $15 but I've found some small sample size bottles in-store for $10.   

3. Candy. Skittles are his current favorite and I can get a giant bag for under $10 on Amazon.


4. Rubik's Cube. My son has mastered several size cubes so I'm always on the lookout for something new.  This Rubik's Edge looks pretty cool!



5. Charging Cables.  Can you ever have too many of these?  Not in our house!

6. Blender Bottle.  Pretty popular among the teen guys these days!  We have....too many already.  Nonetheless he continues to build up his collection.

7. Body Wash.  (All the toddler parents are perplexed right now.  All my fellow parents of teens are nodding in solidarity)

8. Faith based item.  Easter is obviously a very important holiday to our faith and we want to honor that by including something faith based in our children's Easter baskets. However, I haven't yet decided what to get for our teen boy! There are some teen guy devotional books available but the couple I looked at didn't seem like the right fit for us personally.  Since my son is old enough to drive, I may go with a keychain with a verse engraved on it.

9. Snack foods.  Easter baskets don't have to be ALL candy!  Add in some snacks your teen likes. For us that means Gatorade protein bars, beef jerky, and goldfish crackers.
 

10. Pens. Bic Gelocity are his favorite pen to use for school.  You can find them at Target, Walmart, and even Kroger!  Amazon of course carries them as well.  He will just want basic black (like below) but there are lots of colors available if your teen prefers colored pens!



If you have any other great ideas for a teenage boy's Easter basket, please post them in the comments!  It takes a village to figure out what to get for young men!

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