My 2014-2015 Chevron Teacher Lesson Planner

On my education blog, The Learning Effect, I wrote a post about my 2014-2015 lesson planner.

To see the rest of the pictures and the full post, please visit The Learning Effect!

Countdown to Summer Giveaway - Winner Chooses 3 Prizes!

I'm participating in the Countdown to Summer Giveaway, hosted by Pretty My Party, Mom Spark, Sassy Steals, and a group of awesome bloggers!

Summer is definitely my favorite time of year! The vacations, relaxation, hot weather, swimming...I could go on and on! To celebrate summer, I've teamed up with some awesome bloggers and businesses to bring you the best summer giveaway ever! One winner will get to choose 3 (yes 3!) of the prizes listed above! To see the full list of giveaway sponsors, please visit the Rafflecopter entry form below.

Freebie Finding Mom, Cloudy With A Chance of Wine, Play.Party.Pin, Gimmie Freebies, Where the Green Grass Grows Designs, B.Lovely Events, Trish's Design Studio, Design Dazzle, An Alli Event, Pick Cake Plate, A Delightsome Life, The Nest Effect, NEPA Mom, Punk n Pie Couture, Karina Pires Photography, Bits n Pieces Events

COUNTDOWN TO SUMMER GIVEAWAY!

June 13, 2014 at 12 a.m. EST to June 21, 2014 at 11:59 p.m. EST

Open Worldwide

Prizes: 1 winner will choose 3 prizes: Inflatable Water Park, Canon Digital Camera, iPad Mini, or $500 PayPal cash.

Eligibility and Rules: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. This giveaway is open to individuals 18 and older. The winner will be chosen randomly through the Rafflecopter form. It is the sole responsibility of the winner to adhere to all laws, which includes payments to any governing tax body.

Winner Selection: The winner of the giveaway will be selected in a random drawing through Rafflecopter from among all eligible entries received throughout the promotion period. The random drawing will be conducted within 48 hours of the closing of the giveaway by Pretty My Party or its designated representatives, whose decisions are final. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. Winner will be notified by email at hello@prettymyparty.com. Potential winner must accept the prizes by email as directed by Pretty My Party within 48 hours of notification. Any winner notification not responded to or returned as deliverable may result in prize forfeiture. The potential prize winner may be required to sign and return an affidavit of eligibility and release of liability, and a Publicity Release (collectively “the Prize Claim Documents”).

Rafflecopter Disclaimer: This promotion is powered by Rafflecopter. Metric Feat, LLC (“Rafflecopter”) does not sponsor, administer or endorse this promotion. By entering this giveaway, participants agree to Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy.

Social Media Disclaimer: Entrants should understand that they are providing their information to the sponsors of the giveaway and not to Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram or Google+. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with any of these social media sites.

Disclaimer: This giveaway is blog sponsored and is in no way associated with any of the brands and/or products listed above. If there are any questions, please email hello@prettymyparty.com.

PLEASE USE THE RAFFLECOPTER FORM BELOW TO ENTER

The more entries you complete on the Rafflecopter form, the higher your chances are of winning. If you don’t have time to fill out all of the entries you may come back and complete any entries that you may have missed. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friday Favorite: Next Issue

I love reading magazines but can't stand when I don't have the time for them and they stack up. When the stack gets to be two or more months of magazines high, I usually just throw them out. {Those that I can take to school for projects, I do, as long as they're "clean".} I feel like I'm wasting money throwing them away.

Last year I discovered Next Issue and haven't looked back. Next Issue is a subscription service that gives you unlimited access to over 135 magazines. I love that I can view back issues that I may have missed and I can access my subscription from all of my devices - Android, iPad, and Windows 8.

I currently have 30 magazines that I get the updates for on my app. My favorites are ShopSmart {which I always felt was a very expensive print subscription for only 10 issues}, Better Homes & Gardens, Do It Yourself, HGTV Magazine, Real Simple, Self, & PC World. I have my favorites set up to automatically download new issues. All of the others will download the current issue when I click on it. Any downloaded issues can be accessed offline, so you can read them when you don't have a connection - like on an airplane. What's better than having several of your favorite magazines at your fingertips on a long flight without adding the extra weight to your carry on?

Pricing is $9.99 a month for unlimited basic {127 magazines to choose from - this is the one I subscribe to} or $14.99 a month for unlimited premium {137 magazines to choose from - adds selections like People, Sports Illustrated, Entertainment, Time, & more}.

Interested in trying Next Issue? Sign up and receive a free 60 day trial to decide if Next Issue is for you.

40 Day Summer Challenge: Cleaning the Oven

Last Monday I posted about my 40 Day Summer Cleaning & Organizing Challenge. I've already crossed off 7 items. Today I'm blogging about how I clean my oven without using harsh chemicals. This was the first thing I crossed off the list. I hadn't cleaned my oven since I moved into my apartment last July. It was starting to smell awful when I'd turn it on...like something was burning. Not good.

I used to hate cleaning my oven. The nasty chemicals that you'd have to spray after preheating the oven and blah blah blah...so gross. Then I discovered Shaklee Scour Off. All you have to do is wet a sponge or cloth and wipe the putty all over the areas that need to be cleaned. Let it sit for 10 minutes and wipe off. If you use a scour pad, the tougher gunk comes off with easily with a little bit of scrubbing. Check out my before and after photos below.

Friday Favorite: Graze.com

I was recently introduced to Graze.com by a fellow teacher at my school. I'm so happy I decided to try it out for myself!

Graze is a subscription service {with no commitment} that specializes in healthy, portion controlled snacks. I'm always cautious with subscription services because I don't want to be "locked in" to something that I potentially won't like. Because I signed up through my friend, I received my first box free - no strings attached. I loved it so much that I decided to stay subscribed. It's just $6 a box with free shipping.

Once you're subscribed you can go into your account and customize your box. I'm able to rate the items I receive so they get to know my taste and can send things similar to those that I rate "like" and "love". I just received my second box this week and love everything I've tried so far.

Each nibble and calorie counter box comes with 4 snacks. {I get the nibble box.} You also get to choose how often you want to receive your Graze boxes - every week or every 2 weeks. Also, if you decide you want to cancel, you can easily do so online, but because they prepare boxes in advance, it has to be at least a week before your next shipment.

Interested in trying it Graze? If you sign up with my promo code, you can get your 1st and 5th box free! The code is: QDV7G25RP

If you decide to try Graze, let me know what you think! If you already have tried it, I'd love your feedback, too. :)