Liebster Award

I am so excited to be nominated for the Liebster Award!  Thank you to Sandy at Kinder-Gardening  and Liz at 2 Preschool Pals for the nominations. To accept the nomination I must:

1. Link back to the blog that nominated me
2. Nominate 5-11 blogs with fewer than 200 followers
3. Answer the questions posted for me by my nominator
4. Share 11 random facts about myself
5. Create 11 questions for my nominees
6. Contact my nominees and let them know I nominated them

I am nominating the following blogs I discovered through Linky parties and follow on Bloglovin':

Teacher Inspired
Glitter and Gradebooks
Teaching in Organized Chaos
Kreative in Kindergarten
Dare to be Different... Teach!!

Questions from Kinder-Gardening:
1. Name your 3 favorite movies
Cinderella, Legally Blonde, Sweet Home Alabama
2. What's you favorite Ben and Jerry's ice cream?
I don't have a favorite- I've never had Ben and Jerry's!  I'm not a big ice cream eater, but when I do eat it, I go for vanilla.
3. Did you have a childhood nickname?
My younger sisters called me Rahrey (pronounced: rah-ree)  because they couldn't say Sarah. To embarrass me while I was dating my husband in high school, they called me Rahrey in front of him.  He still calls me that every once in a while now! 
4. First car you ever owned
I bought a Grand Am when I was 19.
5. What's your favorite flower?
I love Stargazer Lilies!
6. Best present you've ever given?
I love giving presents and making people happy. The present I was very excited to give was the first publication of a novel my sister wrote.  She wanted me to read a Word document of hundreds of pages and I used Blurb to make it into a hard copy.
7. Happiest moment of your life?
Getting married to my best friend and high school sweetheart, John.
8. Vacation spot furthest from your home?
Disneyland
9. Most you've ever payed for a meal?
I didn't pay, but the biggest bill I have seen at my table was $216 for three people! 
10. Worst class in college?
Physics. Online.
11. Wine. White or red?
Red

Questions from 2 Preschool Pals
1.  How long have you been teaching?
I have been teaching for 1 1/2 years-- one year in my own classroom, and a semester as a long term maternity leave sub.
2.  Where did you go to college?
I went to college at Purdue North Central, part of Purdue University that is closer to home.
3.  Is there anything in your life you would do over or change?
I am really happy with my life, but if I could change anything, it would be getting into running earlier.  I enjoy it so much! I don't know why I never gave it a chance sooner!
4.  What is your favorite book?
I love to read, so this is very hard. My favorite book to read aloud has to be Skippy Jon Jones!
5.  Who are your favorite children's authors?
I really like Lester Laminack, and I met him too! He is a great author and public speaker! 
6.  Where is your favorite spot in the house?
My favorite spot in my house is the family room. I spend a lot of time in that room with my husband and two daughters playing and reading.
7.  When did you first know you wanted to teach?
I always wanted to teach. I spent countless hours in the basement playing school with my younger sisters.  I was always the teacher and even made assignments for them!  In high school I wanted to be a home economics teacher until I student taught in 6th grade cooking. I changed my mind (maybe 6th graders at the end of the day and cooking weren't the best first experience of teaching for someone who didn't know how to cook!) and went to beauty school. I worked in a salon and even became an Aveda In-Salon Coach, teaching my coworkers Aveda's latest trends in cutting. After I was married, I decided to go back to school for elementary education. I am so happy in the classroom! (But I still do hair and work at the salon the first Saturday of each month!)
8.  How did you first hear of blogging?
Pinterest opened my eyes to the world of teacher blogs. My mom and sisters (both of them!)  have blogs, too.  I love being a part of the blogging community!
9.  What is your best classroom management trick?
With 28 five and six year olds, I have a lot of classroom management tricks up my sleeve.  The one they liked the best was playing Simon Says. I would play that with them for transitions. It gave them a chance to have fun while doing what I needed them to do! 
10.  How do you organize your library in your classroom?
I have bins with books on shelves and the counter.  I would go crazy trying to have some sort of organizational system other than putting the books away with the covers facing forward.  I'm happy if the books are put away neatly.
11.  Do you like teaching in small groups or whole group learning best?  
My school maxes out at 28 students per class. As of kindergarten roundup in May, I was up to 26 kids. I really like small groups the best because I can differentiate and meet the needs of individual students. With 28 in the class, whole group instruction is difficult because so much of my attention is on behavior issues!

11 Random Facts About Me:
1. I showed a llama in 4-H.
2. In addition to teaching, I also work at a salon as a hair stylist.
3. Pink is my favorite color.
4. I like to crochet.
5. I am going a year without soda and fried food.
6. I have been a vegetarian for over five years.
7. I went to the same elementary school that my mom did, and our girls will go to the same elementary school. (Three generations at the same school!)
8. I love cupcakes- that is the theme of my classroom, but I don't like frosting!
9. I volunteer with 4-H. I am an adult leader and project superintendent.
10. I LOVE cotton candy!
11. I play the violin and the viola.

11 Questions for my Nominees:
1. What is your favorite dessert?
2. If you could be a Disney Princess, who would you be?
3. What is your dream car?
4. What is your favorite TV show?
5. What is the last song you listened to?
6. What is your favorite animal?
7. Which holiday is your favorite?
8. What is your favorite fruit?
9. What was the last thing you ate?
10. If you could meet a character from a picture book, who would it be?
11. Where would you vacation if money was no object?


Thank you to all my followers!  Thank you to Sandy for the nomination! :)