What Made You Smile Today?

Hey y'all!   I'm Kate, from Classy Living.

Those of you who know me are already aware that I'm a fourth grade teacher.  I get such a kick out of the kids in my class, especially when it comes to their wardrobe choices.  The majority of my girls LIVE in sparkly clothing and accessories, many of which come from Justice.  Remember Limited Too, that super popular store from the 90's?  Yeah...well Justice is basically it's twin, right down to the funky decor and overpriced sequined tops.

Anyway, one of the girls in my class came in with the most adorable shirt on the other day.  It had a huge smiley face on the front, and the back listed forty things to be happy about.  Cute, right?

Reading that list made me smile from ear to ear.  How often do I take advantage of all the little things in my life that make me happy?  What if I stopped to acknowledge them more often?

Like the cute little keychains in the shape of breakfast foods.

Or my sweet adorable puppy.

Starbucks coffee on a cold winter day.

 Favorite TV shows.

Yummy food.

Beautiful church services.

Kick-butt barbell classes.

My list could go on and on, but today, I challenge you to stop and think about what makes you happy. Are you enjoying all of the little things?  

Tell me, what made you smile today?

Stuff Kids Say

Hi everyone! My name is Kati, and I blog over at Incorporating Color, where I talk about my life as a Midwestern, Jesus-loving middle school teacher. I'm so thrilled to be guest posting here for Brooke while she kicks back on vacation - although I am pretty jealous that I'm not currently somewhere warm!

To start things off, I have a sister who is eight years younger than me. I remember my mom once talking about things that you thought you'd never have to say to your child.

With my sister, it was the phrase, "We don't talk about body parts at the table" (don't ask).

I'm currently finishing up my first year of teaching seventh and eighth grade reading, and I've realized that teaching 12-14 year-olds is a lot like that. Going into it, I felt like they were relatively mature - I mean, they're not five years old! However, you end up saying a lot of things you really thought you'd never have to say - especially to eighth grade boys, like...

"Take your PANTS off your ARMS!" [Seriously, eighth grade boys? Thankfully, at least, they were sweatpants and they were still wearing gym shorts, but still... REALLY?]

"DO NOT lick him or I will give you detention!" [To be fair, it was hilarious since he was trying to lick someone's elbow to see if they'd notice - rumor has it that you wouldn't...]

"faces that ms. s makes" poem

"Stop calling me 'bro'." [One student still does, but he's quirky and weird, so sometimes I let it slide.]

"You are NOT allowed to call her a witch again." [Okay, this was to a seventh grade boy who shouted that the girl sitting next to him was a witch because she had "purple eyes" - which turned out to be purple eyeLINER.]

the ninja grading maneuver.

"Just so you know, if you talk like a robot during your presentation, you're going to fail." [This was to the same kid who calls me 'bro'...]

creative hyperbole.

"You need to stop hugging him. He doesn't look like he's enjoying it." [Same kid.]

"Where did your shoes go?" [Seriously, where were they? No idea.]

"Come OUT of the CLOSET!" [I have an empty supply closet. Do you know how many eighth grade boys can fit in there when I turn my head? Seven. The answer is seven.]

note on said closet whiteboard from weirdos.

Liked the stuff I thought I'd never have to say? Come check out my blog. I do regular installments of "Stuff Kids Say" - where you can live vicariously through my middle school teaching adventures instead of having to teach those yahoos yourself. :)

A Quaint Little Town

Hi! I’m Holly and I blog over at Back Home Again. When Brooke asked me if I wanted to write a guest post while she’s on vacation, I was so excited and happy because I love reading her blog. She is such a sweet woman and she’s a fellow Hoosier! In honor of her vacation (I’m so jealous – mine isn’t until the end of June!), I decided to tell you a little about one of my favorite trips my husband and I have taken.



When we lived in Pennsylvania, we would take a fall foliage trip every year. The first year we were out there, my husband planned a trip through the Poconos and Endless Mountains in northeast and northern Pennsylvania. We left super early in the morning to get around Philadelphia traffic, and drove up the northeast extension (I 476) to Jim Thorpe, our first stop of the day. I will never forget when I drove down the mountain (in my stick shift!) into the valley and Jim Thorpe was before us. Simply gorgeous!



Now, we’re historic preservationists, so we love exploring quaint little towns and old buildings in general. There was a little festival going on, so we picked up a few crafts and some amazing fudge and enjoyed it along with the scenery. After we left Jim Thorpe, we continued north to Scranton and Steamtown USA. This was probably my favorite part of our trip. We took a steam locomotive ride through the mountains!



It was so neat and we got to see things you would never notice if you were driving. Ever since this train ride, I have made it a point to find if train rides are given in our area or anywhere we are visiting – for you fellow Hoosiers out there, check out the Indiana Railway Museum!

After we checked out the rest of Steamtown, we got back in the car on our way to the hotel for the night, driving along US 6 through the Endless Mountains. But first, we stopped at the Tunkhannock Viaduct, one of the largest reinforced concrete structures in the world.



It’s so crazy that this is almost 100 years old now and was built without the technology we have today! After seeing the viaduct, we made our way along US 6 towards Mansfield, where we stayed the night. Driving along, we got to see beautiful vistas like this.



The next morning we woke up bright and early only to discover it was super foggy! We were headed to Pine Creek Gorge, aka the Grand Canyon of PA, another highlight of the trip. However, once we got out of the valley, the sun was shining and we knew it was going to be a beautiful day.

Now, I love to go hiking, but I will admit that I was not prepared for this.



We had missed the peak color by about a week, but it was still awesome to see. Can you believe it goes on like this for 45 miles?! I was determined that we were going down to the bottom, but little did I know that it would be a zigzagging trail that went almost straight down. I thought I was going to die coming back up!

Afterwards, we spent some time in the nearest town, Wellsboro before heading back home to the suburbs of Philadelphia. It was an amazing trip and I highly recommend that you check this area out!

Five Dollar Secret!

I am guest posting today on Brooke’s Blog while she is away on vacation. Lucky girl…I know right?!?! Who gets a vacation these days! I just hope she has fun for all of us. I know that I follow her on Instagram, and her “diva” daughter is too cute! I appreciate Brooke asking me to do this, I find that guest posting is a great way to reach out to new people. Well this is not my first, nor will it be my last time guest posting on Brooke’s blog..which I am grateful for. She is such a doll, and I just love her to death! Since I have posted on here a few times I will just do a simple introduction.
My name is Chelsee and I blog over at Southern BeautyGuide!

Well now on to today’s post! I am going to share a must have product that I discovered about a month ago. I was watching makeup artist Tayna Burr’s  YouTube videos and found that she raved about this product. It has single-handed change my makeup routine.

Product Information

As a makeup artist, I am constantly finding new amazing products. Well I hit the holy grail of drugstore products about a month ago. Of course the product I am referring to is Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder!  I personally, love the translucent version. I use this literally every single day as a setting powder. I have super oily skin and this just helps to set my foundation and concealer. I have found this this truly help add extra staying power to my foundation. The best part of this is that it is under $5.00! I mean what a steal, I think I paid like $4.99 at Walmart. You can find this product online at just about anywhere! 

The reviews are pretty great for this one! I mean in all honesty it is rare that you can get a majority of people to agree, because we all have different skin combinations  

I do admit though that for the price this item is one that I highly recommend for you to use. If your concealer is creasing, or face becoming shiny...then this will help eliminate this problem! Thanks again to Brooke for this opportunity. Additionally, make sure you visit here..to enter into my current giveaway! 

Have you ever tried this product???

Cheers! Time For A Happy Dance!

First thing is first, I am guest posting over at Kaitlyn's little neck of the woods at Wifessionals! I would love for you to go over and meet Kaitlyn! She is a mommy to be, a beautiful girl inside and out and will help you with anything and I mean anything. She is a generous well rounded person and you can't help but fall in love with her and her writing! I am so grateful to have found someone like her in this huge blogosphere! Also, if you want to check out a yummy recipe for Strawberry Pretzel Bars that only take a few minutes to whip up, go now because I am sharing all of my secrets!

It’s that time again for Thirsty Thursday!

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Wait I mean is It’s Ok Thursday!


IT'S OK that by Thursday I am wishing it was Happy Hour every hour of every day!

IT'S OK that I am also wanting sex on the beach!

The drink people! GEESH! Where are your minds at!

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Okay enough of the daydreaming let’s get down to business and then if you make it to the end let’s clink glasses and do our little happy dance 

It's ok...

I kind of miss posting statuses, checking in and snooping around on Facebook.

Work has been dreadfully slow and I find myself staring off into space throughout the day.

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I haven't went to Wally World for groceries and instead have eaten fast food every night.

I am in desperate need of a girls night out, fruity cocktails and lots of laughter.

Madison made her first purchase at a store with her own money and I may or may not of shed a tear.

Both mine and Madison's birthday is this month and I am having anxiety attacks about both of us getting older.

I am craving Froyo like it's nobody's business.

My tummy does back flips every time I receive a comment in my inbox or a new friend pops up around this little part of the Internet.

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I have unread blog posts from last week that I haven’t gotten to but can’t wait to do so.

I want to hear more about Blissdom but with all of the rumors and comments being made I am not sure if I want to.

I wish I had a bloggy friend to go to the Influence conference with me. Being alone in a place like that gives me goosebumps. Talk about terrified.

I have one month left until vacation and I haven’t bought a thing to wear!

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I am obsessed with The Client List and cannot wait for Sunday nights!

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It's OK that I am finished with this post and hope you enjoyed it! Don't forget to visit my buddy Kaitlyn and check out my guest post!

**It's also ok that I may or may have not been highly medicated on cold meds while writing this post :) Happy Thursday!