Best "Beehavior" Catalog

We have 5 rules in our classroom, known as "The Five Bees Promise".  You can see the 5 bees {here}.  I have learned over the years that positive reinforcement is a wonderful way to manage behavior, and makes the classroom environment one that is happy and encouraging!  When my students follow The Five Bees Promise, they have the opportunity to earn "punches" on their "Good Behavior Golden Tickets" a.k.a.  "Punch Cards".  When the ticket is full of punches, that little friend can redeem the ticket for any prize found in the Best "Beehavior" Catalog.  All items found in the catalog are meaningful, fun little prizes that cost me absolutely nothing.  I do not have a treasure box--and believe me, they really don't miss it!  Here are some of the "bee-utiful" prizes:

We have something called recognitions at our school.  They are like tiny certificates that the teacher fills out, the child takes to the front office for a big sticker, and they wear it for the rest of the day.  You would think these things were made of gold!  They love them!  

The prizes have worked out wonderfully!  My most popular choices are "Swip-Swap" and "Friendly Lunch".  Any other great ideas for fun and free prizes to add to my catalog?  

P.S. I would love to share this with my teacher friends, but I don't know the rules about sharing with Lettering Delights materials.  Does anyone know if it is okay? 

It's a "Picto-Schedule!"

I finally find out who my new little friends will be this Friday!  I hope that by this time next week some of my new first grade families will be checking out our blog {hi!} and viewing this fun little picto-schedule, showing everything your busy first grader will be doing throughout the day! Our schedule is very different this year--we have our specials first thing in the morning followed immediately by P.E.  The rest of our day is packed full of learning fun!  This teacher is definitely getting excited for a brand new year!!!  

Redraw and Challenge 14 - Winners and Top 3

Hi everyone

Well another week, another dollar lol, and without further adieu - here is the winner of the Meljen's Design 4 Digi's of your choice. 

Using Random.Org, the winner was No 17 which is: 

Debbie

Congrats Debbie, please contact Donna at cardsformen@donnasden.co.uk with your choices from Meljen's Designs :)

Our top 3 this week are, in no particular order:-

1 - Di Cox

3 - flourgirl

22 - keeley

Well done ladies, please grab the logo from the blog and add it to yours :)
___________________________________________________________

Redraw of the Challenge 11...
1st prize 3 digis from Kenny K is...

72 - Littlehamsterz

and 3rd prize 1 digi from Kenny K is...

39 - Caro 


Please contact Donna at cardsformen@donnasden.co.uk

Challenge 15 - Use a key

Another challenge here at Cards for Men Times fly by in a hurry.

The theme this time is "Use a key"... so get those key's out and use them on a card. Our sponsor this time is Prairie Fairy. Go and have a look - you will probably find some fab stamps :)

Website: www.prairiefairydesigns.com/cart/home.php
Prize: 5 digis of your choice
Blurb: Hello! I am Roberta from Prairie Fairy Designs. I am a new digital stamp company featuring artwork not only created by me but also my two kids, ages 9 and 12. They are featured on the site as the Fairy Princess and the Prairie Prince.

I have been an artist for as long as I can remember and have always loved to create. Two years ago my sister-in-law invited me to a rubber stamp party. I laughed and said "Maybe I will buy something if I can use it to stamp on canvases.". Needless to say, I was hooked! Two years later and a lot of learning about computers, I have finally accomplished my goal.

While digital stamping is relatively new in the papercrafting scene, it is what I believe to be such an amazing tool. Printed images have such clarity and vibrancy and gone is the need to re stamp an image because you didn't press hard enough or maybe you pressed too hard! They are also a lot easier to store and they can be reprinted over and over again. The fact that you can rotate and flip files, print them off the size of a postage stamp or as large as a scrapbook page makes them such a versatile medium. It is my sincere hope that I can help anyone who has hesitations about using digital images to embrace these amazing creative tools. If you have any questions about going digital, check out the site and the blog for more information. So head on over to http://www.prairiefairydesigns.com/ and check it out!

Roberta kindly sent us some images to play with and here's what we came up with:

Wenche:

Alex

Shirley

Alison
(I am offering the sentiment used for this card as a freebie on my blog)

jen

Mandy

Sarah

Tussemaja

So, what do you think?  Hopefully they've given you some inspiration.  Now for the rules:

1. Your card must be for a man/boy

2. It must follow the theme/sketch set

3. It must be a new card for our challenge.

The challenge will close at 12 Midnight (BST) on 31st July 2011. Leave your name and a direct link to your project (not just your blog) in the link tool below. If the link tool is not there for some reason, then please leave details in the comments and we'll add you in before we do the draw.

Time Warp

Living fully engaged.
IN the moment.

Intentionally.

Travelling back in time.
All the way back to the
days before computers.
At least to the days before
MY computer.

Living according to HIS plan
for me ~

Just. This. Day.
By HIS Grace.


I'm taking a little hiatus
from email, gmail, internet,
blogging ~
online anything.

Just a little break from this.

But, not forever ~
Just for about a month.

This means that any comments
you may choose to leave
will be published at the end of
my time away from this screen.
At that time, my plan is to
reconnect with all of you.
Thank you for understanding!

(I do *L*O*V*E* to hear from you ~
Please let me know that you stopped by.)

If you have my phone number,
please feel free to call ~
Let's get together! :)

In the meantime,
I'd like to leave you with a beautiful
passage of Scripture ~

"The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee,
and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee,
and give thee peace."
~ Numbers 6:24-26 ~

See you in about a month ~
LORD-willing!

In HIS Love,
Camille


**Photo credit ~ Calvin

Special Delivery

Birthday Roses...

Hand Delivered...

With Love...

Thank you Dad! xo

Salty Caramel Anyone?

Are you a salty caramel person?
If so, this is the ice cream for you!

Come on over and I will
serve you some with a smile ~
That is, if there is any left! ;-)

Sweet.
Salty.
Yum.


It is time consuming.
And fussy.
And a bit tricky.

BUT...
worth it!
(In my opinion, of course).

After reading about this ice cream
on David Lebovitz' blog,
I knew I had to give it a try.

Do you have an ice cream maker yet?
Hurry...summer is waiting.
And so are your family and friends.

Quick!

This is the one I have.
Gifted to me from my family
for Mother's Day.

(A little tip ~ Amazon's prices fluctuate...
check back periodically for the best deal).

It's been a fun journey.
A person could get used to
having ice cream daily.

I know.


Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream ~
Oh. Dear. Me!

ENJOY!
And...don't blame me
if you become addicted to
its creamy saltiness! ;-)

Many Blessings,
Camille

**Links are working....

Baked Berry Almond Oatmeal

Y.U.M.M.Y.

SO good!

It was a hit all around.
And the boy who can NEVER get filled up...
did! :)

Click Here to find the recipe ~
You will need to scroll about half-way down
the post to locate it.
It's worth the hunt! :)

FYI ~ I doubled the recipe to serve my family...
using two pans of the 7" x 11" variety.
AND...I used old fashioned oats
and thawed raspberries (they had been frozen).

Enjoy!
Blessings,
Camille

Day After Day

Time flies.
That's not a surprise, is it?
It's like this for all of us.

Seize the day!
Enjoy the moments!

One of the ways I seek to
do this is by counting.
Numbering the blessings.
Treasuring up the moments.
Day after day.

By HIS grace.
For HIS glory.

They are all gifts from HIS hand.


1432. Evidence of children in our home

1433. Stocking up

1434. My custom-made budget in excel...
Howie created it for me years ago and I *love* it!

1435. Licorice Mint Tea

1436. Random games of Uno

1437. A quick trip to the pool for the two youngest...
free swimming and all done in less than an hour


1438. Swimming lessons for Fraser and Emma

1439. That the pool is just around the corner
and we can walk


1440. Chocolate!

1441. Getting the hang of this diet

1442. That it's helping

1443. Teaching boy #3 how to make
grilled cheese sandwiches

1444. That tomorrow is always fresh with
no mistakes in it yet!

1445. That the LORD always forgives
and meets us in our need
and gives us grace and mercy.

1446. Warm sun...it's been teasing us!

1447. "Bonus Time" available to use...
thank you S and L!

1448. Pineapples from my Dad ~
Thank you Dad! :)

1449. A phone chat with my sister

1450. Listening to Fraser play
"The Pink Panther" on the piano

1451. Flowers from Calvin...
"just because"...so sweet! :)

1452. Listening to
Diana Waring's History CD's ~
W.O.N.D.E.R.F.U.L.

1453. Learning with the children

1454. Marvelling at God's hand in history
and how it all comes *alive* when taught from
a Biblical standpoint

1455. Frozen meals prepared in advance and
using them when they are most needed

1456. School's Done

1457. Completing another year of homeschool

1458. The change of pace summer brings

My journal sits on my counter.

I list as events unfold.
Sometimes many all at once,
and other times in a trickle.

Would you like to begin?
Just grab a pen and a journal,
set them out on the counter,
and list out your blessings.
Find the joy in the moments ~
As they arrive.

Enjoy the journey!

Many Blessings,
Camille

To Encourage

Simply Scripture.
To encourage.


"The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
the LORD is the strength of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?"
~ Psalm 27:1 ~

"Wait on the LORD:
be of good courage,
and he shall stenghten thine heart:
wait, I say, on the LORD."
~ Psalm 27:14 ~

"Blessed be the LORD,
because he hath heard the
voice of my supplications.
The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusted in him,
and I am helped:
therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;
and with my song will I praise him."
~ Psalm 28:6-7 ~

I'll be taking a little blogging break for
the next few days.

May the LORD bless each
one of you this weekend!
In HIS Love,
Camille

**Photo Credit ~ Emma

CURRENT CHALLENGE SPONSORED BY

We have had a wonderful turn out for our STAR Challenge. I used Ramdon.org to choose the winner and the WINNER IS:

NUMBER 16- MARY G. CONGRATULATION!! Mary, Please email Donna at cardsforman@donnsden.co.uk to clam your prize.

OUR TOP THREE WINNER ARE:

NUMBER 99- CAZZA

NUMBER 76- LIZY

NUMBER 17- THE CRAFTY DEN

CONGRATULATIONS GIRLS! Well done girls, please grab the top 3

badge from the sidebar and add it to your blog.

We want to say thank you to everyone that enter our challenges.

T.W.E.N.T.Y.

It's not REALLY possible
that we have been married for 20 years...
is it??

Time marches on.

We are growing old together.

On our wedding day we sang Steve Green's song
"I Cherish the Treasure of You"
to one another.

Little did we know that in
the midst of our joys and blessings,
there would be trials.
Difficult days.
Heartache and sorrow.

And through it all,
we would grow to love more.
Deeper.
Stronger.

Little did we know.

Oh how FAITHFUL
our Great God is!!

HE is the ONE Who keeps us.
HE is the ONE Who sustains us.
HE is the ONE Who gives us life.

All praise and glory to HIS Great Name!

If I'd known then what I know now,
I would have married my Sweetheart
MUCH sooner.
AND I wouldn't have given him as
much trouble as I did! :)

Psalm 91 is our Life-Psalm together.
It has been a great source of comfort
and blessing over the years.
We are so thankful to belong to the LORD!
HE alone is worthy of all our praise.

Many blessings,
Camille

A Little Local Getaway

We were going to do it all in one day.

Drive up (early) to Whistler (3 hours away) ~
Howie would be busy with work while
I wandered around the village
with the children for the day ~
and then, we would drive back home
(late) that night.

But...

Howie's sister and husband
kindly allow us to use their time-share
when it's available.

And...
It was available! :)

So...
we had a little two night
getaway at the end
of our school year.

We are thankful!

We arrived on the first night
just in time to see the Canucks
(our hockey team)
lose game seven of the
Stanley Cup playoffs to Boston.

A sad day.

**All photos are *clickable* ~
Emma's camera makes smaller images it seems.

Howie worked the next day.
We explored.

The 2010 Olympics were held in Vancouver.
One of the venues for ski events was
Whistler Mountain.
We went to the top and found this bobsled.
A perfect photo opportunity ~ no?

We rode the "Peak 2 Peak" Gondola.
Oh. Dear. Me.
What an experience!

Fear of heights anyone?

The view from up there...
God's magnificent creation!

We discovered the Olympic Rings
at the edge of Whistler Village.

Howie was able to join us
the last day we were there...

We found the torch! :)

The drive provides breathtaking views.
So beautiful!

1426. A couple of nights away as a family ~
joining Howie on a business trip.

1427. Enjoying the outdoors with the children

1428. Canoeing and Kayaking together for an hour

1429. Spotting and eagle ~
Calvin was able to get some great shots
with his zoom lens! :)

1430. The majesty of the mountains ~
I never tire of their beauty

1431. New experiences and sharing them with our children

My journal sits on my counter.

I list as events unfold.
Sometimes many all at once,
and other times in a trickle.

Would you like to begin?
Just grab a pen and a journal,
set them out on the counter,
and list out your blessings.
Find the joy in the moments ~
As they arrive.

Enjoy the journey!

Many Blessings,
Camille

**All photos in this post
courtesy of our newest photographer...
Emma! :)

Challenge 14 - Wild West

Would you believe it, another challenge come and gone.  It'll soon be Christmas as we crafters know, lol.  The theme this time is 'Wild West' which  I think is a fab idea.  It was set by our teamie, Pat, and it suits our sponsors images really well.  Our sponsor this time is Meljens Designs and she has some fab cowboys/cowgirls over in her shop.

Meljen's Designs is a lovely stamp company owned and illustrated by Melissa Jenkins. She illustrates whimsical rubber and digital images inspired by her kids and family. Meljen's Designs has new releases along with a new challenge every Thursday, freebies every Monday and a Guest Designer each month at the Meljen's Designs Blog. Please visit the Meljen's Designs line of stamps at the WHIMSY STAMPS STORE to browse and enjoy Melissa's wonderful images!

The prize is 4 digis of your choice but if you can't wait to see who wins, pop over now and get a few, lol.

Melissa kindly sent us some images to play with and here's what we came up with:

Wenche

Jen

Shirley

Sarah

Alison

(I'm offering this sentiment as a freebie on my blog- if you would like it, just follow the link and snag it!)

Patricia

So, what do you think?  Hopefully they've given you some inspiration.  Now for the rules:

1. Your card must be for a man/boy

2. It must follow the theme/sketch set

3. It must be a new card for our challenge.

The challenge will close at 12 Midnight (BST) on 17rd July 2011. Leave your name and a direct link to your project (not just your blog) in the link tool below. If the link tool is not there for some reason, then please leave details in the comments and we'll add you in before we do the draw.

My Hands Smell Like Rice Krispy Treats...

After spending way too much money at the mall today, I just HAD to pick up these great little "Lunch Box" hand sanitizers at Bath & Body Works!  I am all about keeping those germs away, and I have a feeling my first graders will be more than happy to keep the germs away too--because these miniature hand gels can make their hands smell like delicious treats!  Each day, my two class helpers are responsible for giving everyone in the class a squirt of hand sanitizer right before lining up for lunch and snack!  I've tried scented hand gel before--and I found out that my little friends who would always avoid getting the plain old Germ X would be happy to grab some of the "fancy smelling" kind!  As an added bonus, your room smells good after everyone gets their hand gel!  Today I bought "Marshmallow Treat",  "Juice Box", "PB & J", and "Bag of Grapes"!