Halloween Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division and More on Terrific Tuesday

Teachers Pay Teachers
I've been trying to crank out more mystery pictures for Halloween. It is really encouraging to see the feedback from other teachers that say how the pictures were helpful and that their students liked them.

I just finished a set of multi-digit multiplication and division worksheets for the upcoming holiday. These are great for centers, individual practice, and more. Each worksheet also has an answer key to help when it comes time to correct the worksheets.

The larger the math problem, the trickier it gets to make the worksheets. I need to figure out an easier way to have the worksheets cover more difficult concepts. 

They are pretty fun to make! After I put the worksheet together, I duplicate the slide so that I can color the image in Photoshop.

You can find the Halloween Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division Mystery Pictures packet on Teachers Pay Teachers.

I am split on what to create next. I've been thinking about translating the worksheets into Spanish for dual-immersion classrooms or Spanish classrooms to use. I've also considered doing Halloween sight words and decimals too. If you have an opinion, comment below!

Currently Reading
It's been a while since I have shared what I am reading and here's why:

This book weighs in at just over 1,000 pages. I haven't read a book this long before and it is smaller print than I am used to. From Goodreads:

"Speak again the ancient oaths,
Life before death.
Strength before weakness.
Journey before Destination.
And return to men the Shards they once bore.
The Knights Radiant must stand again.

Roshar is a world of stone swept by tempests that shape ecology and civilization. Animals and plants retract; cities are built in shelter. In centuries since ten orders of Knights fell, their Shardblade swords and Shardplate armor still transform men into near-invincible warriors. Wars are fought for them, and won by them."

This isn't my first Brandon Sanderson, which is good because I think I would have abandoned this story or not even tried. My current thoughts:
-The characters are interesting so far. Kaladin and Shallan are interesting.
-The style is pretty similar to the first few Mistborn books
-I don't know if I can finish 1,000 pages

Before you read this book, read some others by Brandon Sanderson so you can keep the faith that this book will be good. Book 3 is coming out next month so it would be nice to be done with the first 2 books by then; however, life is crazy and I am easily distracted. haha. We will have to see.

LDS General Conference
We had General Conference September 30th and October 1st. The church leaders speak to all of us on various topics that they want us to hear. You can find them here.

In order to re-listen and try to learn from them (because I am horrible at remembering to set aside time for Gospel study), I have been downloading different audio files of the talks onto my cell phone and then playing them when we go for morning walks. 

This is one of my favorite talks from Conference. You can also find it here.

Being a Mom Update
Naptimes have been rough. Baby A is 1 1/2 years old. She sleeps great at night, but right now naptime is a pain. We are trying to figure out a new naptime because she would only sleep in the morning and then be super crabby by dinner or she would just be on a sleep strike. Any tips out there? Please share below!

Happy (late) 10 Months!

Baby A also understands:

+Can you turn on/off the light? (She isn't 100% on actually doing it though)

+Do you want to get the mail?

+Do you want to go to the library?

+Do you want to read a story?

+Do you want to read ________ or ________? (She reacts more to one cover over another)

I'm leaving, on a jet plane or Packing is a nightmare

We are heading to Chicago this afternoon to spend Christmas with my family. Packing is one of the most stressful activities ever.

(source)

I agonize for hours as I lay everything out for Baby A and myself. Last time we flew to my parents house, I read some tips online that said to bring 2 extra outfits for each day. By the end of the trip, I had maybe used 1/3 of the clothes I packed for her. Plus, I didn't think about using my parents' washer and dyer. Life could have been that much easier had I not over planned....but I am too much of a worrier to learn from that mistake. I'll update later on how much I pack vs what I use for this Christmas vacation.

What are some of your packing tips for babies?

Flying with Babies: What I've learned so far

We have now been on 4 flights with Baby A and she is just over 9 months. I can't say I'm anywhere close to being an expert on flying with a baby, but I've learned a few tricks that have made it a lot easier. I'm adding tricks other people have shared with me too.

Tips, Tricks and more to Flying with a Baby under 1
1. Baby items fly free
     I can't speak for pack-n-plays, but strollers, car seats, and a diaper bag fly free! We deposit our car seat when we drop off our luggage. Then, we gate check the stroller as we board the plane. I put my carry-on in the container above our seats and stick anything I absolutely need during the flight in the diaper bag.

2. Boarding the Plane
    Once you have little kids, you can start boarding the plane in the families traveling with small children group. Having the extra time to get settled is super nice. Definitely take advantage of it if you can.

3. Layers, Layers, Layers
    On flights, you never know how warm or cold the flight is going to be. I've been on flights where it has been freezing and on other flights where I thought I was in the Sahara. During the summer flights, I had Baby A in a bodysuit and shorts and had pants and a jacket in the baby bag. In November, I put her in pants and a long sleeved bodysuit along with having a back up jacket and warmer pants.
     Be sure to bring a couple back up outfits for the baby and a back up shirt for you so that if you get soaked, you don't have to stay like that the entire trip. I didn't need the back ups, but another lady on the flight went through 3 outfits on a 4 hour flight.

4. Prepare for anything
     Have plenty of extra diapers. Going on flights can make a baby's system go nuts and it would stink to run out of diapers in the middle of a flight. I figure out how many diapers Baby A will go through in the length of the flight, and then bring 1.5 times that many.
     Bring plenty of things to distract the baby, but they may sleep through the whole flight depending on their age. Try to keep it to things that are "new" (aka haven't been seen in a while) to help keep the baby's interest. I brought things that Baby A hadn't played with in a while to distract her.

5. Takeoff with a snack
      I was pretty worried about the takeoff on the first flight because when I was younger, I always had ear pain. I asked around and people suggested timing a bottle for take-off or having Baby A use her pacifier until take off ended. It worked like a dream! The first set of flights after the bottle, Baby A passed out for the whole trip. During the second set of flights, it still worked but it took her longer to fall asleep. For landing, do the exact same and you'll be all set.

    Those are the most useful tips and tricks that I've picked up. Does anyone have any other tricks for traveling with babies?

The 2017 Reading Challenge-Walking Edition

         I love Goodreads! It's a great way to keep track of what you've read and get recommendations on future reads. Goodreads has also helped me find Christmas and birthday presents for family members. I can't quite speak for everyone, but every book I've found for my husband has been a success. It's like Facebook for books because you can see what your friends are reading too!

     Each year, Goodreads has an option where you can say how many books you are going to read that year. I've done it this year and last year, successfully so far. However, there have been other reading challenges that I fell flat on. They tell you book descriptions to read for the challenges. I started off okay, but then I was distracted by other books and my new edition.

     This year, with all of the new things that I am trying out, I'm going to try making my own 2017 Reading Challenge! This will also include a Kids' Edition so your kids can join in as well. There will be several different levels that I will come out with. The first level:

     In order to move on to the next level, you need to read all of the books in this level...or just move on anyways, but I'm going to try and read all of the books in each level. 

     Read the books in any order you choose! The categories are:

Adult/Young Adult Edition:

1. A bestseller

2. A nonfiction book

3. A fantasy book

4. A recommendation

5. An author you've never read

6. A book you normally wouldn't read

7. A book that will either be a movie or has been a movie

8. Re-read an old favorite 

9. Read a book with a kid

10. Read a book that you've never finished

Kids' Edition:

1. A bestseller

2. An award winner

3. A picture book

4. A recommendation

5. An author you've never read

6. A book between 100-200 pages

7. A fairy tale

8. Re-read an old favorite

9. A poetry book

10. Read a book that your teacher recommends

Does anyone have books that they would like to use for this challenge?

Four Months and Counting!

Why does my 3 month old hate tummy time and why is she in love with her legs?

I like making these announcements in Photoshop. I think it's a bit of a step up from just posting one picture and commenting on things that are new.

My mom and I struggled to get pictures of Baby A on her blessing day, so she thought I should try and take a few. Baby A hates her blessing dress! She cried most of the time, but I did get the funny one where she is sticking her tongue out at me, so at least there's that.

We are supposed to do tummy time every day, and we do, but she cries the whole time. I've tried all of the tricks in the book and on the internet....any recommendations? I try and have her in different positions, different surfaces and toys to grab her interest. I am at a loss.

When Baby A was first born, she had a lot of trouble with gas. Doing bicycles with her legs was the only thing that worked. Now, she plays with her legs and swings them up all the time. Is this normal?

Every week I feel slightly less and less like a zombie and more like a human being again. While I do love Baby A, I can't wait until she starts sleeping through the night. I've always had trouble sleeping, but this is a lot, even for me.

Baby Must-Haves:Swaddling Blankets-Aden + Anais and Ideal

Aden+Anais muslin blanket

Ideal by Aden+Anais

      While I was pregnant, people were always giving me advice on what to do. Some of it revolved around swaddling blankets. Doing research on blankets, I found a bunch of different brands. However, I was given a ton of blankets for my baby showers to use. We live in California and it gets pretty hot here (this last summer hit 107+ degrees), so a lightweight blanket would be best.

    One person gave us the first blanket pictured and it was perfect! Nice and big, plus super soft and light so I didn't have to worry about Baby A getting too hot.

Aden+Anais blankets

         I really wanted back up blankets in case something happened to the first. I searched and found them, but we are on a pretty tight budget since we are saving for a house. So I did my research and found this:

Ideal by Aden+Anais

         I found the Ideal by Aden+Anais at Walmart and immediately snatched them up. I thought there would be more similarities, but these are pretty different blankets. Both lines are lightweight and fairly big. However, the original Aden+Anais blankets are significantly larger than the Ideal line. The quality is similar, but in this case, you get what you pay for. Baby A can't tell the difference, which is great! She is happy with any of the blankets and loves to chew on them .

       In the end, if you want a higher quality blanket, go with Aden+Anais. However, if you are fine with anything, Ideal will save you some money.