DIY Christmas Bell.

Yay! Today we FINALLY completed our Christmas Bell ornaments for our parents! I think that they turned out super cute and I love them so much! They were super easy to make and I think that this might be a Christmas project that I am going to make with my DollGirl this year when we are on break.

I spray painted the clay pots red and green and then I allowed the children to "paint" the pot with metallic/glitter glue. Then I gave them various things that they could glue on as well-buttons, winter sequins, pompom balls, and glitter. I did give it a quick spray of sealing varnish and wrote their names inside the bell and also attached a bell inside. And I also added a tag with one of my favorite quotes on it. I think they turned out amazing...and I hope that the parents will love them!

Now I just have to get the Children to finish decorating their gift bags so that I can wrap/bag these babies up! :)

Getting festive!

This makes me so happy! So my TA bought me a mini Christmas tree so that I can have a tree in my little studio! I had mentioned to her that I missed having a Christmas tree in my house, but my place is way too small to have a tree...and so she went out and got me a small..mini...Christmas tree, and I was able to hang up some of my Christmas ornaments that I had saved over the years! :) I love it...it's only 2 feet high and it is perfect! I am looking at it as I am sitting here, typing this post! :) Yay, to the Holidays! :)

My little corner.

Today marks the day where one month ago I moved into "my little corner" of this vast world. A place to call my own. A haven. A secret hide-a-way...well, it's that big of a secret...but I will say that if you don't know where to look, you will most definitely just past by it without even knowing that you missed it. 

Since my [former] housemate is planning to get married [to my BROTHER, no less!]...I had to quickly find another place to live. I have to admit that I was a bit stressed out trying to look for the right place. I knew that I wanted to stay in this area because I liked being close to work, I didn't want to live in "town", and I have grown to love this part of O'ahu. With the help of my sister and her husband [MY amazing brother-in-law!], I looked, inquired, and finally found the place where I felt like I could feel safe at. I haven't lived on my own for a couple years now...and I knew that the degree of my FEELING of safety would play a HUGE role in whether or not I liked the place.

As we all know, teachers don't make the highest or anywhere near the highest paying job...in short. We struggle. Especially if you are single with no second income. So, it's as good thing that I have two jobs. But I love my job, and I'm finding it hard to imagine anything taking me away from this amazing teaching job that I have. That being said, I just wish that they would pay us so that we can actually survive and have fun from time to time! *laughs* Well, no one said that I HAD to live here in Hawai'i and it's ridiculous high cost of living. But I have grown to love it here, so I really wanted to try and make it.

The windward side of O'ahu isn't the easiest place to find a home with the amount of money we make [as a teacher]...however, I was blessed to find this gem of a place. Well, my sister found the place, and when I went to go check it out, I knew that THIS was the place where I wanted to be.

My "little corner" is a tiny 245 sq. ft. studio located near the beautiful, beautiful beach of Lanikai. No, seriously, when I say "near" I mean NEAR. I-can-hear-the-ocean-waves-crashing-on-the-shore kind of near. I love it. At first I thought the "silence" of this place was going to bother me. I hate silence. But its not as silent as I thought! Between the waves crashing in the distance and the ever present trade winds brushing against the trees that surround me it is the perfect nature sound of relaxation. Oh, and guess what wakes me up in the morning! Birds singing. And the sun...I have plenty natural light and I can look out my window EVERY DAY and see the wonderful masterpieces that God creates in the sky. Like I said, I love it.

Originally, I was concerned about how tiny the place was! I have NEVER lived in a place that was SOO tiny! It didn't have a kitchen, but a refrigerator. And when you walk in my front door...let me just show you...come on in! :)

Yes, that is the bathroom! I didn't think that I would like the fact that you walk into the bathroom right when you step into my house! I still don't like it, but it's not as bad. I do love the fact that my sister was able to find a welcome mat that matched my shower curtain! :) Before I share with you the rest of my place...my place is still a work in progress. I am more on point in keeping everything clean! I hate when I see anything out of place...or if my floor is littered with my hair! *laughs* But I still need to decorate and add shelves and what not...but for the most part...I love how my "little corner" has turned out!

I like things nice and organized. And I have to say that I have The Best sister ever! I think she realized that I was overwhelmed with the move and trying to organize everything so she stepped in and while I was at work, she came to my "corner" and organized and fixed everything up! It was a mixed collaboration among my sister, brother-in-law, and I in creating my tiny space. I did research on tiny living and put my input and my sister did the finishing touch on the plans and with the help of my Bro-in-law, made it into a reality!

When you turn left from the front door into another door to enter in the main living place this is what you would see. Downsizing was VERY hard...but it was also very therapeutic since it was cleaning out everything that I knew that I didn't really need. The two things that I wish I could have taken with me was my punching bag and my piano. I was able to bring all my books though! And my fishtank. I actually had a longer fishtank and it worked it great because my friend was looking for a longer tank since she has a saltwater tank with an eel in it. My tank was a 30 gallon tank...this one is a 35 gallon tank...but I love how it was more vertical rather than horizontal. So, we switched tanks...and it worked out perfectly so that my armchair could fit there.

I was able to bring my TV with me...and I use it as my "radio"...and when I'm not, it's always playing music or sometihng. :) My mom made my curtains! I love them! My sister made me my mermaid signs and my brother-in-law made almost everything else you see in this picture. :)

I was so glad that my twin sized loft was able to fit in this little alcove. I all the loft my "bedroom." My brotherIL did make it fore me! And my sister had a surprise for me! She added glitter to the paint...more like a shimmer. I live shiny things and so I was SO glad that she added that! I even have my very own "dungeon"...basically what I call my storage rooms where ever I live [think Phantom of the Opera! *laughs*].

Here is a better view of the kitchenette that my BrotherIL made for me! I adore that magnetic strip for my knives and other stuff! And get this, my BrotherIL even made my counter tops with REAL granite that he cut and shaped himself! I love him! :)

Here's a better view of how that looks. I love how everything works together. My BrotherIL did an amazing job! :)

This is my little study corner. Where I am right now typing out this post. :)

This is the view outside my window. It faces the ocean...and I love it! That is the roof of the garage outside my window and I have take an towel and blanket and just laid down on there and just looked up. It's so relaxing to go cloud watching out there...and the stars. Oh wow! The stars are amazingly bright. What you can't see but on the right there is a pretty big front yard with a nice green lawn, mango trees, herb gardens, flower gardens, a water fountain, and open space where I take my towel to lay down and just read a book out in nature. Well, that's if I'm to lazy to walk down to the beach. *laughs*

Well, that is my little corner...a place where I have grown to love in the short time that I've been here. I hope I am able to stay here even longer. I still have to show you may mini patio/balcony that I am fixing up! :) I love my space. I feel safe here. And I feel closer to nature. I love it. :)

Classroom Talk.

During nap-time for my "darlings" today, my boss asked me to go through different school catalogs and make one wish list for each 5 classrooms in our school. She told me to never mind the price, but just make an estimated guess on the "wish" classroom if we were to start from scratch. I am SO proud of my keikis and their parents-current and former, causerie we have been doing so well with our fundraisers that we have a good amount tucked away ready to be used. So my boss and I have decided that we will work to beautify our school.

It warms my heart when I hear parents talk about our school with such positive words. It always gets back to me about how wonderful our teachers are! And I couldn't agree more! I am SO blessed to be working where I am I think that its extremely hard to find a place where EVERYONE gets along and EVERYONE is always willing to go the extra mile...and this is the first time where I've worked in a place where everyone genuinely LOVE what they do. It shows through their work, through the keikis, through their parents and it's such a pleasant place to work at. There is SO much respect here and I cna 100% honestly say that they can feel the benefits of us teachers who love their job and its a place where I really do feel taken care of.

That being said, one of the first things that I noticed about our school is that it looks a bit runned down. This is a very good school...and so I am excited to start this make-over for my school.We are trying to get the school board "on board" with this new change that we want. We are also trying to open another classroom for the older kids. So I was given the job to remake every classroom and write a wishlist for them all.

We are trying to have the new classroom ready for the coming up school year in August...so we are really push it as much as we can. And I really am excited for all the change. I really feel blessed that I was able to land such an amazing job. :)

Before I end this post, I'll share a few snapshots that I have of my classroom. My classroom is always a work in progress. I like an organized room that is welcome. I also like color and my favorite "decor" for my room are the own artwork of the children. Yes, I love "showing off" the arts & crafts the children do. :)

The keiki themselves asked me if I can put the planets up. Oh, our subject for this month is the Solar System....and I love how interested they are in the vast amazingness that lays in the outskirts of our planet! But I have a book that shows the plants and different things you can find in the great Solar System. I don't usually do bulletin boards because I like to put the kids artwork up...but since they really wanted the planets up, I went to the store and bought this amazing bulletin set of the Solar System. My "darlings" love it...and they can name all the planets! I'm so proud of them!

Here are the suns that we made the other day. They loved this activity! I like keeping track of the art projects that we do that they like, that way I can make sure we do it more than once. My keikis are into color mixing at the moment. They say that its magic. :)

I like sitting on the ground with my keikis when I do my circle time. I have been in preschool classes where the teacher is on a chair, and that is fine. I tried it, but I didn't quite like it. My keikis LOVE doing the calender each day! They get a kick out of turning the number around...and like guessing what the design of the number is going to be. A few of them are starting to get that it's a pattern! *laughs*

This is one DIY thing that I did for myself...and I love how it turned out! So, when I started working at this job there was this old spice rack that nobody was using. The spices that were in each container barely smelled any longer to be useful...so with the spices and herbs that still had a slight smell to them, I used it for various artworks and activities, the rest I just tossed it. I then washed out the little bottles...laminated and super glued tops decorative tops on the caps and just placed miscellaneous things in the jars that I use. PomPom balls, googly eyes, sequins, mini star stickers, paperclips, staples, push pins, ects...it's very useful. Very easy to make, very accessible when I need to grab something...and yes. I like it. :)

Lavender.

I have not been feeling well this week. At all. I am not enjoying this part of working in a new preschool environment. I had tried to prepare myself for this. I already knew that whenever I work in a new environment, much less a new preschool setting, I know that I will be getting sick the first couple of weeks. I did take my vitamin C and I did drink a lot of water and washed my has and just tried to prevent any sickness. The first week I started, I got sick. And now here I am in the middle of the second week and I am still sick. Not a fun thing...and I can't wait until I get better.

One think that i have been struggling with for some time is how I can't see to be able to sleep. I will not diagnose myself and say that I am an insomniac...but I will say that I have been having trouble sleeping...for a couple months now, but right now I'm really feeling the effects now. Not really horribly, but I do know that it is extremely unhealthy to be lack of sleep for a long period of time...and so I have been trying to find remedies of how to go to sleep.

That sounded wrong.

I know how to "fall asleep"...but my body just does not want to sleep. I can lay there forever and not go to sleep and that is extremely annoying. I actually just got out of the shower...because I just got home less than an hour ago. I just got back from work from Passion Roots. I love working there. It is a very relaxing environment amongst the stressful situation of having to finish a wedding prep...but I love flowers and I love working with flowers...except I hate wiring orchids, and that's what I had to do tonight...but it's all good because I was able to finish what I needed to finish. :)

When I got home, this is what I found. I know that I probably have a developing addiction of online buying...and Amazon is my favorite place. *laughs* But that aside, I was pleasantly surprised to see this waiting for me on the stairs going down to my room. Mandy had brought it in for me, and left it where I could see it...

...and I was kind of excited because I knew that what I got was something that I've read about and I wanted to try it out. Not only have I read about it, but people I trust have told me about it...and so I hope that it can work!

I have been really into these Himalayan Salt lamps. Even though I bought one a few weeks ago...(or was that just days ago?!), it does make a very calming light in my room at night...and it is the perfect nightlight ever. It's not too bright and it's very calming...and I can't really say if I feel less stress around it...but I have been less stress overall because my new job is amazing and it's not as stressful. 

I also bought one for my friend, Jackie (she would be a former co-worker)...it is said that this helps with allergies and I know that it was her birthday recently and so I got one for her as a present and so she can have one. I hope that it works for her at least.

So, I had bought a new Lamp with a oil diffuser on the top. I have heard that lavender can help you de-stress and promote sleep. I couldn't see how it can hurt to try it out...so I got this bugger to see if it would work. I do know that if it doesn't work, then I can always buy smelling oils and diffuse the the oil in this lamp and have my room smell yummy. :)

As you can see my new one is a lot smaller than the one that I previously have. I really like this lamp and I am thinking of either bring the bigger one into my classroom, or putting it in my living room. 

So, the reason why I did buy this one was so that I can put the essential oils in that little cup on top of the lamp. The heat from the light will be the one that diffuses the lavender or whatever oil that I put in it. I really hope that it works...I really would like to sleep. 

I did read though that the lavender that came with the lamp is not the best...so I decided to look up a little bit more expensive lavender with better reviews and so I ended up also getting...

...100% pure oil Lavender by Woolzies. I did read a lot of good reviews about this one, and so since I didn't want to go broke...I thought as a starter this would be a good one. But I wanted to at least use up the lavender that it came with...

Here is the lamp when I have turned it on. It's beautiful, right?! I love how there is dimmer...and when it is at the brightest, it brightens up my room enough that I don't need to turn on my overhead light or my bedside lamp...I wouldn't read with it, because it would strain my eyes a lot...but I have written in my journal with no problem. I have compared the brightness with this one to the other bigger one that I had...it was nearly just as bright...I love these lamps, whether they work the way they say that they would or not...but it is a great, great nightlight; I would definitely recommend it.

I was not very happy with the lavender that it came with because when I opened the tiny bottle, I guess part of the cover broke inside the bottle. I could not take the piece out no matter what I tried...so I what I ended up doing is just pushing the piece all the way into the bottle and so it is just in there floating because I could not take it out...

So, it is in my room right now on and even though I am not feeling well and I know that my nose is stuffy...I can smell lavender. I have to say that it is not my most favorite scent or anything...but if it helps...then that is a good thing. I hope that it will help with my sleep problems though.

Fun stuff.

When I came home for a moment, I saw that I got a package in the mail. I love when I get something in the mail...even if I was the one who bought it. I love getting something in the mail...because it's like a surprise...and I so needed a pick-me-up after yesterday...and even though I'm not home at the moment to enjoy my new nightlight...I am still excited about my new nightlight.

So I did some light research and came up with this:

And since I have been needing a new nightlight, well I don't really NEED a new one, but I had wanted to move my other nightlight to a different place...so I needed another one in my room. So, look what I got myself.

So I have not been able to set it up yet, but when I get home I'll be able to set it up. If I really like it, I might get another one.

Well, next week...guess who is playing a game against the Dallas Cowboys?! Yep! And so I got myself some cute earrings for myself.

I really like them and I can't wait until I can wear them...! GOOOOO NINERRRS! :)

Mermaid Kisses.

I have been behind in my home decorating. I know that I told myself that I would update my decorating monthly...but it has been hard to find the time to do so. But today I had this overwhelming desire to do something about it! As you know, I have this fascination with Mermaids...so I found this quote, "Mermaid kisses & Starfish wishes." Well, I can't really say that it's a quote per say, but it's something that caught my eye.

After I did my chalk board creation thingy, I like to do a mock up of the display that I do...

 

...but, I felt that it was lacking something...I really didn't like how something was missing. So I thought and thought and so I came up with it was missing a cute little...

...SEAHORSE! Don't you think that that little guy made the piece?! I think it does and I love it! :)

Well, here is the final verdict! I love it! I used several pieces of my coral collection, and blue Christmas balls, a faux pearl chain, and I drew some bubbles on smaller pieces of chalk board canvas to complete my display...and so now when I walk into the front door...this is what greets me. Makes me smile. :)

"Give, but don't allow yourself to be used. Love, but don't allow your heart to be used. Trust, but don't be naive. Listen to other, but don't lose your own voice."-anonymous

Elephant Pillows.

So here I am studying the night away when I hear the front door open...then I hear my brother and Amanda come down stairs and tell me..."We got you something!" I love presents! *laughs* And as impatient as I may see...I also love surprises! I might hackle you until kingdom come to find out what it is...but I love happy surprises...:) So, this was a happy surprise as well as a welcome break from my continuous studying. :)

My brother's company supported a local fundraiser for the Maryknoll school in honor of this one lady who has given a lot to the community. I think that is what he was telling me. So basically, the lady that they were honoring, her sister is my brother's co-worker and so my brother's company supported the employee for the sister. If that made any sense...but yeah, I think that that was really nice of them.

Amanda said that it was a really nice affair and her looked really nice to...so totally dressed up and looked smashing. :) My brother is one lucky guy...she is an amazing person...hope she can be my sister soon! *laughs*

Well, anyways, they said that there was this silent auction...and they bid on some things...but they said that when they saw the elephant pillows, they KNEW that I would LOVE it...so they placed their bid...and guess what?! They got it...and they are absolutely right! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the pillows!

They came home rather late...so I had a hard time keeping it down...coz yes, I do squeal...and I am also known to scream if I am excited or something makes me happy...and this definitely made me happy. I know that my neighbors were sleeping already and I didn't want to wake them up...but look at the them! They are SOOO cute!

As the little sign says they are hand printed by one of the clubs at the school. I think that that is a genius idea...make the kids make things to auction off. Because I really think I love them even more knowing that they were made...and I have the only of cute pillows like this in the whole entire world! *laughs* And I am all for handmade presents and arts&crafts. So I totally approve...and absolutely LOVE! :)

Aren't they SO cute?! I think so. I love them. And they are so soft feeling too! They are a bit small, but that's okay...because I still love them. :)

I think that they make an excellent addition to the pillows that I have already on my couch. So, many thanks to my awesome brother and his amazing girlfriend who got me these CUTE CUTE CUTE pillows. All for a good cause to. :)

"If you have the power to make someone happy, do it. The world needs more of that."-anonymous

Decor sale.

It seemed that this day lasted longer then normal...not complaining of anything, just seems like there was so much going on, when in reality not much was going on...just whatever WAS going on took a long time. If that made any sense. :)

Early this morning Shilhi texted me to tell me that she was in Starbucks...and would I like something. Shoots! Yes! Just coffee...black, please. Well, when she texted me I was already on my way to the studio because today was our decor garage sale. I didn't even realize that we were going to have it today until I saw this on instagram:

What?! We are having a decor garage sale?! And then after I saw this, I get a call saying that guess what?! We are going to have a decor garage sale?! Oh really?! I didn't know that. :) Well, feel free to follow us on instagram...you can see our name...up there. :) Well, I ended up going to the studio on Saturday to help set up the place and let me tell you, I was so tempted to buy everything! I wanted everything! I just love decorating/designing things! And I can always use stuff to dress up the place where I call home! :) Today started early...but look what I found...

...a nearly perfect plumeria bloom AND in my favorite color. :) Well, I went to the studio, and I think that it went well! We sold a lot of our things that we weren't using or weren't needed. And I personally think a lot of people scored big time! We are always happy to help out with designing and decorating...whether it be an event or your home! :)

I personally think that we had a good turn out. We had some wedding venders come and buy some of our stuff...and we even had past clients come and buy some things for their homes! It was wonderful seeing them again! We had a lot of friends, family, and church family stop by and look at everything...it was a long day, but I think that it was a very productive day.

We want new things for our studio and rental equipment and so we all decided as a group to sell the things that we weren't using as much anymore...and I think that everyone scored big...and it was good. What started out a gloomy day turned out to be a hot, beautiful day. In ever sense.

After we closed up, Paula, Shilhi and I went to Teddy's Burgers and had a late lunch before Paula and I dropped Shilhi off back at the studio to meet with a client. I drove back home, took a short nap and started cleaning that house...but look at the things that I scored from the garage sale! I'm pretty excited about the things that I got...! :)

I was looking for trays so that I can bring my tea and dinner downstairs to work...and so Shilhi gave me those two trays on the top. I adore the floral print...and they are a pretty sturdy and perfect for my needs. The bottom tray, I think that I am going to use a project...we will see. :)

I absolutely fell in-love with the vintage glass tea set! I can so see myself using them with my glass teapot...and I love how it comes with it's own glass tray. They are super heavy too! They won't be breaking anytime soon! I scored 3 sets...so tea anyone?! :) I also got two mini ivory glass milk jars for cream/milk for when I have tea. I think they are so adorable! And it was SO hard to resist the chic vintage stool/foot rest.

The two black, circular throw pillows as super soft...and I needed some pillows  for my couch...so they were perfect...and I got this fabric and I was thinking to make new curtains for my room. I love the print...so happy. :)

I got these additions for my backyard. I am trying to fix it up nice...and it's getting there! The wooden podium, I was thinking to put my mosquito repellent candle on it. I adore those lanterns! There were 8 of them...but there was 3 after the sale was all done and so I bought them. I remember hoping that no one would buy them. I didn't get anything until  everyone looked at everything...so there was things that I missed out on...but I don't think that I did so bad. :) I love the tall vase and I am going to look for a tall LED candle to put inside so that I can place it outside as well.

There was actually a set of these gorgeous, pink, mercury votives...but the person who bought them only wanted 4...and so this was the lonesome one...so I bought it. I was thinking of putting my pens and such in it on my desk. It's so cute. :)

And I couldn't help myself but grab these two wedding magazines to look through because I tear out my favorite pictures...:)

As I was cleaning my house, my sister called me to tell me that she was on my side of town and if it was okay if her and her fambam came over...of course I said yes! I am always happy to see family! I got to play with DollGirl for awhile. She is my favorite...and I love her unconditionally. She is getting so big...and I love how she says and calls my name now! I love her so much!

I wish I had a Costco membership...but I don't. My sister does so she doesn't mind getting me things that I need...in this case she brought me my frozen Acai and coconut water Zico...which I totally recommend both to EVERYONE! :) And look! They brought me a present! :)

What's this?! They brought me Victoria's Secret?! Say what?! When I looked inside...look what I found?!

Sand and coral from Lana'i! They had gone there this past week...and so they brought me goodies to add to my collection! I am going to try to collect sand from all the Hawai'ian islands. :) It looks like black sand to me and I like! I think tomorrow, I am going to Ben Franklin's to buy some containers to put the sand in. :) And coral...wow, I LOVE coral...super picky about my coral though. This may sound crazy...but I have to connect to the coral...and seriously, I don't connect to just any coral...in this case...K.Neal always does a good job with finding me the perfect coral that I would love! I will add them to my coral collection. :)

And here is something random that was in my Victoria Secret's bag. A gift card to Lanikai Juice. It's random because it's to me from my hanai family...my sister said that she found it in the Victoria Secret's bag...I never put it there. Random....well, at least I have a gift card to there. I LOVE their Acaai bowls! :)

...and the last thing that I found in the bag was two Cinnamon rolls that my sister made for me. I have the best sister ever! I love her! I love my family...and yes...

...I ate one already. :)

"Never run back to whatever broke you."-anonymous