Liebster Award!

This weekend I went to the lake and when I came home I found out I was nominated by THREE different teachers for the Liebster Award!
So, what is a Liebster?  Liebster is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.  Blogging is about building community, and this is a GREAT way to connect with other bloggers and help spread the word about newer bloggers/blogs!

I was working on the post yesterday and didn't finish, and woke up to a comment that I was also nominated by Kris from The Poole Pages. She made the sweetest comment about me and my blog. And she was going to be one of MY nominees! Dang it! I better get this posted asap!
I'm hoping to answer all the questions from everyone, cause I don't want to leave anyone out, but I'll take out the questions that are doubles. Be prepared for a long post! Thank you for taking the time to read it! :)

To accept the nomination there are a few things I have to do:

1.  Link back to the blog that nominated me

2.  Nominate 5-11 blogs with fewer than 200 followers

3. Answer the questions posted by my nominator

4.  Share 11 random facts about myself

5.  Create 11 questions for my nominees

6.  Contact my nominees to let them know I nominated them

I was nominated by:
1. My Challenger 2nd grade bestie and blogging buddy Kayla Delzer at Top Dog Teaching
2. Colleen at the adorable blog- Tales from 3rd Grade
3. Fellow 3rd grade blogger Katie from the super cute blog- Kdot's Learning Spot
4. One of my fav new bloggers Kris at The Poole Pages

First of all, here are my 11 Random Facts:
1. I love being barefoot
2. I hate sleeping with sheets. I do, but I'd rather just use a blanket. I can't stand when they get bunched up!
3. I love all kinds of music. I blare it while I clean the house and when I drive.
4. I wish I could play the piano.
5. I can't stand people that can only talk about themselves.
6. I am NOT a morning person. It's the only good thing about having a 45 min. drive. More time to wake up!
7. I really want a tattoo.
8. My husband and I have been together since high school.
9. I really like the color black.
10. I have twin older brothers and one younger sister.
11. I like to rewatch movies. Sometimes I put them on when I clean the house or work on other things for background noise.

Questions from Miss Kayla at Top Dog Teaching with Mrs. Delzer:

1. What do  you like to do when you're not at school? Go shopping!! Also, during the school year when I'm not at school, I like to sleep! Haha. By Friday I'm so tired I like to relax on the weekends and read! 

2. What is your favorite dessert? Cheesecake

3.  Do you have any pets? Yep! A chocolate lab named Layla and a cat named Morgan

4. What is your favorite holiday? I love so many holidays for so many diff. reasons. I really love Christmas, Halloween, and the 4th of July. My favorite is probably Christmas even though it stresses me out.

5. If you weren't a teacher/employee of a school district, what would you be? Oh boy, that's a hard one. I've never seriously considered anything else. I think it would be fun to own a little shop or boutique. Something low stress. :)

6. What inspired the theme of your blog? Well, I teach 3rd grade, and our school mascot is the Prowlers. That's how it became Thinking in Third Grade with Mrs. Johnson's Little Prowlers. We do a lot with "Prowler Pride" in 3rd grade, so it seemed fitting to have prowlers in our name somewhere.

7. What is your favorite book? I've always loved Number the Stars by Lois Lowry since elem. school. I also loved P.S. I Love You and Water for Elephants.

8. What is the best part of your job? The kids! The personalities of the kids really make each day awesome. I also love the team of people I work with.

9. What is your favorite grade to teach or age to work with? 3rd of course! I think it's the perfect age. They are independent, but still need guidance and still love their teacher! 

10. What is your favorite restaurant? Hmm.... right now it's gotta be JL Beers!

Questions from Colleen at Tales from 3rd Grade: (SO glad to have another 3rd grade blogging buddy!)

1. If you could choose to any two consecutive months as "summer" break, which months would you choose? June and July
2. What is your favorite vacation spot? Anywhere with a beach! 
3. What is your favorite beverage? I LOVE Dr. Pepper!
4. What was the last song you listened to? Luke Bryan- Crash My Party
5. What is your favorite tv show? My all-time favorite show is Friends. I still watch reruns every day on TBS and Nick at Nite. My current favorite shows are The Walking Dead and Sons of Anarchy. I am so addicted.
6. Mac or PC? Mac! :)
7. What is your favorite meal to eat? Grilled chicken breasts or steak and roasted vegetables. Simple, but I could eat it every day! I also really love sushi.
8. What is your favorite grade to teach? 3rd! It's the only grade I've taught. I student taught in 2nd and I long-term subbed for half a year in 6th grade. 3rd is my fav!
9. What are you reading this summer? I'm just starting a book called A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. For school I'm reading Teach Like a Pirate, and The Book Whisperer.

Questions from Katie at Kdot's Learning Spot: (Isn't that the cutest name?! LOVE that she teaches 3rd grade!) :)

1. What is your favorite aspect about teaching? That it's different every day. I couldn't do a job where I had to sit at a desk and do the same thing every day.
2. What is your funniest classroom memory? Ok- one day as I was doing a read aloud, a kid accidentally farted. Usually when that happens, a couple kids giggle and we move on. This time, it was kind of loud and the kid next to him looked over at him very dramatically with a shocked face and said, "that sounded just like my mom!" I laughed SO hard I was crying. Kids are not afraid to say ANYTHING! 
3. What inspired you to be a teacher? I've always loved school. I loved going and always loved my teachers. I think that's what made me want to be a teacher, that I had such wonderful teachers that made it a happy place for me. I used to force my sister to play school with me. ;)
4. If you could teach-abroad for a year, where would you? Hmm..... Australia. I don't really have a good reason, just seems like a fun, beautiful place to go!
5. What is your favorite piece of technology to use in the classroom? Well, I do love my Smart Board, but last year we had a cart of iPads we could check out that was pretty awesome. And now this year we are going 1:1 so ALL my kiddos will have an iPad! iPads take the cake. So pumped!!   
6. What is your favorite quote? I love quotes and sayings, my favorite is from Marilyn Monroe: 
   
   
   
   I also really like this one:
   
   
   
7. What is your favorite non-teaching hobby or activity to do? I love to play volleyball.
8. What is one new goal you have for this school year? Hmm....just one? I always start the year with lots of things I want to work at being better at. I want to be more organized, which is an ongoing goal so I can't really count that! I want to try and implement Words Their Way this year for word study, so I'd say that's my number one goal.
9. Who is your favorite author? Jodi Picoult or Nicholas Sparks
10. What is your greatest accomplishment? My greatest accomplishment is probably finishing grad school! I got my Masters in Reading Education from UND and am so thankful I went back and did it! It took almost 2 years, and I did it during teaching and coaching track. Easily the absolute busiest and most stressful time of my life, but now I feel very proud to be done. 

Questions from Kris at The Poole Pages: (Her blog is the cutest, and she's a super new blogger, go follow her!)

1. What is your favorite teaching memory? Not really "teaching" related, but more just a school memory. A couple of weeks into my first year of teaching 3rd grade, the other teachers gave me a cute basket full of teacher supplies, lotions, candy, and other goodies and a card welcoming me to the team. I teared up, it was so thoughtful. And memorable. :)
2. How long have you been teaching, and what grades have you taught? This year will be my 6th year of teaching 3rd grade. It's the only grade I've taught with the exception of a long-term sub job in 6th.
3. Where are your favorite places to shop? There's a little boutique Mrs. Delzer and I LOVE called Kittson. We go there way too much! I also love Maurices and Old Navy.
4. What is your favorite movie? Oh, there are SO many! The Princess Bride, P.S. I Love You, The Notebook
5. What's your favorite kind of cookie? Monster cookies!
6. What is hanging on your living room walls? Frames, two sconces, big clock, wedding photo, Uppercase Living saying: "Write your worries in sand, carve your blessings in stone."
7. What's your favorite area in your classroom? Classroom Library
8. Your classroom runs on love, laughter, and lots of _________? FUN!
9. What would your 'perfect' Saturday look like? Sleeping in, and either going shopping and out for supper and a movie, or hanging out at home and reading and watching a movie.
10. What's the one thing in your classroom you can't live without? My lamps! I have 6!! 

My Bloggy Friend Nominees are:
Jennifer at Mrs. Laffin's Laughings
Jennifer at Darling Little Learners
Tracey at The Teacher's Chair
Britney at Tailor Made Teaching
Mrs. Dixon at Teaching Special Thinkers
Secrets of the Second Grade Sisters
Jen at Teaching and Laughing

And here are my questions for them:
1. I'm a quote kinda girl, what's your favorite quote?
2. If you weren't a teacher what would you be?
3. What's your favorite store to shop at?
4. What books are you reading this summer?
5. What's your greatest accomplishment?
6. What's your favorite candy?
7. What's your favorite summer activity?
8. What is your funniest teaching moment?
9. What is your favorite book to read to your students?
10. What is one of your goals for school this year?
11. What's the best part of your job?

Whew! I'm sorry this got so long- thanks so much for reading to the end!! :)