Where Have I Been?!?!?!

Hey friends!  Ok, I know you are all thinking...WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!

I have just been SO busy with the end of the school year...plus my husband and I found out that we are having a baby!!!  YES!  Our first one!  So I have been super super super super SUPER tired...like ALL the time.  But now that it is summer and I am starting my 2nd trimester, I am hoping to have more time and energy to make new clip art & finally finish some requests that I have had.

On top of all of that, my husband and I are also buying a new house.  We will be closing in mid July...after being on vacation in Maine for 2 weeks. AND for the upcoming school year, I will no longer be teaching 1st grade!  I will be teaching Kindergarten!  I KNOW!  Blog name change?  Ehhh probably not...I'm too lazy hehehehe....but ayyyy yaaah yaaaah....I am a busy girl!  But what can I say?  God has really blessed us with many amazing opportunities and I am so thankful for everything!

Needless to say...this summer will definitely be busy with moving into our new house, moving into my new classroom, being pregnant, etc...but I am determined to make time to work on my Etsy shop!

Thank you to everyone who has been checking in on me and please let me know of any new requests that you have.  I will try my best to work on them!

Snack Shack Food Clip Art

I had a request to make some food themed clip art for Tanya from A Class Act.  I am very happy with the results!  She had awesome ideas for me to work with!  I hope you all like them as much as she and I did!!!  :)

You can check the set out at my Etsy shop for $5.00!

It includes:  Turkey sandwich, PBJ, grilled cheese, iced tea, bottled water, milk, lemonade, soda, juice box, peanuts, pickle, cookie, bag of pretzels, & bag of chips.

Let me know what you think!!!

Dr. Seuss Clip Art Lawsuit...Yikes!

Well I've been hearing this go around the blogging community and I'm not sure as to what is 100% true or not.  But apparently creation or use of any Dr. Seuss related clip art is illegal and now Scrappin' Doodles is being sued because of it.  To get some more information about this topic, I would recommend reading a post by the 3AM Teacher.

So, for now, I have taken my Dr. Seuss clip art off of my Etsy Shop.  :(


I am really sorry to anyone who bought it.  I had no idea that this would be any sort of issue with the Dr. Seuss franchise.  I would just recommend to be careful with how you use it.  I think it is considered "illegal" to claim it as "Dr. Seuss" related.  So when making any activities or printables in the future, do not associate your OR my work with Dr. Seuss or any of it's characters.

Sorry again!

Wittle Worms Clip Art Set

Here is a new, different styled clip art set!  I tried to make them have a little grain and texture!  :)   But these are just some cute "Wittle" Worms!   Lol...think of a cute kid saying this with some type of lisp.  Hehe!  And of course you've gotta have the worm crawling out of the apple!  YUM!  NOT!  :)  This set is available on my Etsy shop for $2.50!

ABC Phonics & Rhyming Words Clip Art Sets!

I made both of these custom sets for a customer a little while back and now I am happy to announce that they are both available on my Etsy shop!!!

The first set is an ABC Phonics set!  It includes 26 different clip art images ranging from A to Z!  This set costs $6.00 since there are 26 different clip art images included!  But that means that each individual item is less than 25 cents a piece!!!!!  :)  Click the picture below to see it on Etsy.

A--Apple,  B--Ball,  C--Caterpillar,  D--Dinosaur,  E--Easter Egg,  F--Frog,  G--Grapes,  H--Helicopter,  I--Indian,

J--Jellyfish,  K--Key,  L--Ladybug,  M--Monkey,  N--Nest,  O--Octopus,  P--Penguin,  Q--Question Mark,  R--Raccoon,

S--Snowman,  T--Toothpaste,  U--Up,  V--Vegetables,  W--Watermelon,  X--X-ray,  Y--Yarn,  Z--Zipper 

The next set is a Rhyming Word set!  It includes 20 individual clip art images which can be matched together to make 10 pairs!  :)    They range from simple word families like -at and -ig all the way to -ail and -ear.  This set costs $5.00.  Click on the picture below to check it out at my Etsy shop!

UG -- mug & ladybug 
AT -- bat & cat
IG -- wig & pig
EG -- leg & egg
OG -- frog & log
EAR -- pear & bear
OON -- moon & spoon
AIL -- snail & pail
ONE --phone & bone
EE -- tree & bee 

I would HIGHLY recommend buying the Cute Little Letters clip art set & the Polka Dot Borders to go along with the purchase of either of these sets.  That way you can label the pictures & surround them with a cute border!  :)

Thanks so much for checking out this post!  :)   I hope you enjoy the new clip art!!!

Win 3 FREE Sets of Clipart!

Hey friends! Daphne from Playing with Pixie Dust was kind enough to host a giveaway with me!  I am giving away 3 FREE sets of any of my clip art to ONE lucky winner!  To find out how to enter, go to her blog by clicking the picture below!

Sight Word Jenga Game

Hey y'all!  So I never get a chance to post just as a first grade teacher!  I've been so consumed with clip art lately (I definitely don't mind) but I thought I'd at least take a brief second to share a fun idea that I am going to do during our SSR Stations this week!

I got this idea from Teacher Tipster.  If you've never heard of Mr. Smith, you are REALLY missing out!  He is absolutely hilarious.  I am convinced he would be the ideal first grade team-mate!  WOW look at the screenshot for this video you are about to watch...doesn't he just exude awesomeness?!!!!  His kids must adore him!

Anyway!  He had a great idea to turn a fun game into a fun & meaningful sight word game.  He bought the game Jenga (I only choose name brands...bwaahahaha....lol you'll get that joke when you watch the video).  And anyways, on each Jenga block, he wrote a sight word (or Word Wall Word).  The kids then stack up the tower and as they take turns removing a block, they have to read the sight word on it before stacking it on the top!  How fun is that?!  Like...cRaZy Fun, in my opinion!  And yes, they play until the tower knocks over!  Just make sure to set the expectations high before sending them off to play.  You don't want some kids squealing in the corner of the room when the tower tumbles over right in the middle of reading with another group of students.

Here are some pictures of what mine turned out like!  I got my pack from Dollar General for about $4.  It was the generic brand...sorry Mr. Smith...haha!  :)     It came with 42 blocks!

Let me know if you decide to try this activity!  It seems like something my kids will absolutely freak out over!  And definitely go check out Mr. Smith @ Teacher Tipster & subscribe to his Youtube channel.  He has so many awesome videos.  I actually show my kids his videos, even though he is talking to teachers for the most part.  He is just so funny that my kids constantly ask to watch his videos!  Check them out for yourself and you'll see!

More Easter Clip Art & More to Come!

Here are some cute Easter Eggs & Baskets!  The pack comes with both for $4.00!

Just click on the pics below to see them at my Etsy shop!!!

I will also be coming out with a line art version of the Easter Eggs, a basket & some of my Bunnies!  :)

Easter Bunny Clip Art

Here is a new Easter clip art set that is now available at my Etsy Shop!  It is just a few Easter bunnies!  They are bright, pastel colors with polka dots and stripes!  You can get them for $3.00!  Click the picture below to go to my shop!

WINNERS of the Dr. Seuss Giveaway!!!!

Thank you SO much to everyone who entered!!!  :)   I used Random.org to find 3 winners!  There were 22 total comments but 1 person commented twice, so I just did it out of 21 comments but only counted that person as 1 entry.  :)   Here were the numbers generated:

Hooray for making a fact family!  Hahaha I am a nerd.  The winners are........

Delighted -- First Grade Delight

Mrs. Richling -- A Pirate's Life For Me!

Casey -- Second Grade Math Maniac

Congratulations!!!  I emailed the clip art to you already!!!  :)  Thanks again!!!

If you were not a winner, you can still buy the Dr. Seuss clip art on my Etsy shop!  And everything is still BUY 2, GET 1 FREE!  So pick up both sets and get another one for free!  :)

St. Patrick's Day Clip Art & Line Art!

Well, there are pros and cons to staying home from school when you're sick...one of the good things was being able to catch up on some work!  I finally got a chance to make some clip art and line art for St. Patrick's Day!!! Click the images below to see them at my Etsy Shop!

Cute Little Letters Clip Art in COLOR! Much Requested!

Okay after quite a few requests, I made a colored version of the Cute Little Letters Clip Art!! Click below to see it at my Etsy Shop!!!!

Another Premade Blogger Template!

Here is another one!  :)   Click the picture below to check it out!

NEW Premade Blogspot Layouts on Etsy!!!

Here are 2 new Blogspot layouts that are available for purchase at my Etsy shop!!!!!  Feel free to buy one and let me customize it for your blog!!!  :)  I will also install it for FREE!!!!  Click the pictures below to see the full layout!

  

WINNERS of the Valentine's Day Giveaway!!!

Ok!  Hopefully you'll still have time to get some stuff printed & ready to use for tomorrow!  I honestly love making Valentine's Day activities last all throughout the week here and there, haha!

Here were the numbers generated from Random.org!

There were 23 people who entered all together and these were the numbers that came up!  Now I know I said I was only going to do 3 winners BUT y'all won't care if I throw an extra winner in there, right?  I just laughed because Sandra from Sweet Times in First was the winner of my last contest and she was joking about how she couldn't be lucky enough to win another one!  BUT SHE DID!  Hahaha she was number 12!  So I was like well I'll let her win still but I'll add another winner on to help out the rest of the entries!  Haha!

So here are my winners!

Kelly B aka Queen Bee!

Sandra from Sweet Times in First

The Polka Dot Owl

**Katherine from Third Grade Teacher Files

Yay!!!!!

I have emailed you the literacy pack!  Please respond back and let me know one of the Valentine's Day clip art sets you would like!

**KATHERINE!  I need your email address!  I tried to find it on your blog but I didn't see it!  My email is mrslaurenthompson@gmail.com  you can either email me first or just comment below!**

Thanks to EVERYONE who entered!  I will definitely host more giveaways in the future!  Perhaps a Dr. Seuss one (hint hint...I'm working on some clip art for that!) and a St. Patrick's Day giveaway!

I would love to hear any recommendations that you have!  :)

NEW Valentine's Day Math Fun Pack♥

I was so inspired by my friend Meagan after she made the most ADORABLE Valentine's Day Literacy Pack (see the previous post to check out our giveaway!).  So I decided to make a Valentine's Day Math Pack!!!  :)

I think it turned out pretty cute!  I included a WIDE variety of math concepts because not every single teacher out there is covering the same things that we are right now!  We are in the middle of place value, but here is the low-down on what is included:


{1} Place Value Matching Game
{2} Place Value I Have, Who Has? Game
{3} Time to the Hour & Half Hour Matching Game
{4} Subtraction Facts Coloring Page
{5} Heart Addition Sort Game
{6} Bump Addition Game
{7} Number Order Sequence Game
{8} Odd & Even Connect Four Game
{9} Fact Family Card Game
{10} Money Matching Game

Each activity includes a record sheet for students to write their answers on.

Each activity is also included in both COLOR and LINE ART forms to make your printing options easier!

There are 50 pages total!  Phew...I am really glad I'm done working on it.  I was going crazy after looking at so many pink & red hearts, stripes, & polka dots!!!  Ahhh!

Well it's available at my TPT store for $5.50!  Buy it now so you can print it all out on cardstock OR get it ready to laminate on Monday before Valentine's Day!  :)

Thanks friends!

GIVEAWAY!!! Valentine's Day Literacy Pack!

My most amazing friend, Meagan Hawkins, has made the most adorable Valentine's Day Literacy Packet!  It is full of games perfect for your students!!!  AND she used MY CLIP ART for the majority of the pack!!!  Ahh!!! She did such an awesome job on it!  And she is letting me give away a few packs for FREE!!!  This is a 55 page packet full of 9 different games/activities that include both a COLORED version and a BLACK & WHITE version, to make it easier to print if you'd like!!!  :)   The games all come with recording sheets, too!

Click the picture below to go to her Teachers Pay Teachers store to get more details!!!

So for this giveaway, I am giving away the Valentine's Day Literacy Pack AND you have YOUR CHOICE of 1 of my Valentine's Day themed clip art packs below!!!

Here are the RULES for this giveaway!  You MUST follow ALL of these rules to be qualified...and yes, I do check to make sure you did ALL of these things!!!

1.  Follow my blog.
2.  Become an Admirer of my Etsy Shop.
3.  Follow Meagan Hawkins' TeachersPayTeachers store.
4.  Leave a comment on my blog letting me know that you did all of these things!!!

REMEMBER...you have to do ALL 4 things to be entered into this giveaway!

The giveaway will end on Sunday night, February 12th at 11:59 pm EST.  That way the winners have time to receive their items & use them on February 14th!!!  :)

WINNERS of the Groundhog Day Giveaway!!!

Thanks so much for the people who entered this giveaway!  Unfortunately, I only had ONE person who actually followed the rules that I listed in the original post.  Here they are again for those who didn't see them:

You MUST:

1.  Be a follower of The First Grade Diaries blog AND Peace, Love, & Learning blog.
2.  Make a NEW post on your blog that mentions & links to:
              a.  The First Grade Diaries blog & Groundhog Clip Art Set
              b.  Peace, Love, & Learning blog & Groundhog Day Emergent Reader
3.  Leave a comment on THIS post below, letting me know that you've entered the giveaway!

I had done the whole random.org thing and when I got my winners...I went to check to make sure that they had followed the rules...and not one of them did.   :(    I'm kind of sad actually.  Oh well...I hate that I don't get to give away three copies of my clip art & the emergent reader...but rules are rules!

So I only have 1 winner!  Thank you to Sandra from Sweet Times in First for following BOTH blogs AND for posting about my groundhog clip art & the groundhog emergent reader!!!

I will email you with the prizes!!!  :)

Ziggity Zags Digital Paper

Here's another digital paper pack!  This one is 8.5 x 11 inches instead of 12 x 12!  Hopefully that'll work better when you're using it to make games & such!  :)  Click below to see it on my Etsy shop!

New Custom Layouts & Fraction Clip Art

So I have a custom Blogger Layout available at my Etsy shop!  It is VERY bright!  If you love teal, lime green & polka dots, then you NEED this layout!  It will be customized to fit your blog!  :)  AND I can install it for you for FREE if you don't feel confident enough to do it yourself!

I also have some new Fraction clip art available for $3.00!  There is a colored version AND a line art version!  :)

Ok, time to go watch the Super Bowl & eat some yummy food!  GO PATS!!!!

Groundhog Day GIVEAWAY!!!!

So the lovely Donna from Peace, Love, & Learning bought my Groundhog Day clip art set and used it to make the most adorable Emergent reader packet!  It includes a bright, colorful emergent reader for the class to use, individual black/white student booklets for them to color in, AND sequencing cards to help your students RETELL the story!  I absolutely LOVE this packet!

So Donna is allowing me to give away 3 FREE copies to some of my followers!  These people will also receive my Groundhog Day Clip Art AND Line Art sets!!!

I know Groundhog Day is over, but you can either retouch on the topic or use this next year!!!  Here are the rules to entering the giveaway!

You MUST:

1.  Be a follower of The First Grade Diaries blog AND Peace, Love, & Learning blog.
2.  Make a NEW post on your blog that mentions & links to:
              a.  The First Grade Diaries blog & Groundhog Clip Art Set
              b.  Peace, Love, & Learning blog & Groundhog Day Emergent Reader
3.  Leave a comment on THIS post below, letting me know that you've entered the giveaway!

I will choose 3 random winners using Random.org.  This contest will end on Tuesday, February 7th at midnight, EST.  Good luck!!!

Custom Blogspot Layouts & New Clip Art!

I've been working like a fiend making clip art sets, borders, letters, & yes...even BLOGSPOT LAYOUTS!  :)

This first set is for a behavior chart that someone requested.  She works in a classroom where the majority of the students are ESOL...maybe even all of them...?  I'm not sure!  BUT!  She wanted to jazz up her behavior chart with some good visuals for those language learners!  These are all her ideas but created by me.  :)  She also uses some type of money system that correlates with each part of the behavior chart.  It is available for $3 on Etsy!

I also made these Polka Dot borders to go along with the behavior chart above.  But I decided to sell them separately so that you could just purchase one or the other if you'd like!  These 8 Frames are available for $2.00!

Then I decided to make an Alphabet letter set.  These are letters that I use allllll the time in my classroom when I want to make something stand out.  I will make another set of these in the future with polka dots, stripes, etc. inside of the bubbly part!  You can get these for $2.50!

Now this last part is a layout that I made for Laura over at Peace, Love, & First Grade.  She wanted a new layout that went along with her theme and this is what I came up with!  I will be installing it for her at the beginning of this week but this is what it will look like!!!  If you would like a custom layout that is 100% unique for you, let me know!  I would love to make one for you!  This blogspot layout package includes a header, background, post icon, signature/divider icon, button for website, and FREE installation!  All of that for $30!  :)   You can send me an email at mrslaurenthompson@gmail.com if you are interested!

Well, lots of love friends!  I hope you enjoy the new stuff!  I will try to work on some more stuff for y'all this week!  :)

Line Art! Presidents & Groundhog Day!

I had a lot of requests to make line art or digital stamps for these two clip art sets, so here ya go!  :)

ALSO!  I realized that the George I had given out as a freebie was completely transparent...here he is again!  New and improved, George Washington 2.0!  LOL!  If you right click on him and open in a new tab, you can get him at the full picture size!

Groundhog Day Clip Art & Valentines Frames/Tags

I've been a busy busy girl on this rainy rainy weekend!  :)  Here is some Groundhog Day clip art!  There are two versions that come in the set:  1 where he sees his shadow & 1 where he doesn't!  :)  It is only $2.50 on my Etsy shop!

And here are so adorable heart frames and some journal tags with polka dots/stripes!  :)

This set is $2.50 as well!

Hope y'all like them!  :)

Friday Freebies!!!

Better late than never, right?  It's 10:51 eastern standard time...but technically, it is still Friday!  So here ya go!

I updated a rubric that we use in 1st grade for writing & blew it up using our school's new poster maker today. it looks so good at 24" x 32"!!!  Haha!  But you can also print this out at it's normal size and give each student one to keep in their writing folder for reference if you do not have access to a poster maker or Kinkos store!

And I also was fooling around with some of my clip art and made a line art of George Washington!  Click the picture below to grab it for FREE!

American Presidents & Symbols Clip Art

This was requested by Kayla at Primary Junction!  It is a Presidential clip art set!  She was looking for clip art of Barack Obama, his Portuguese Water Dog, Bo, Air Force 1, a top secret folder, George Washington and the Liberty Bell.  I also added a few more things, including:  Abraham Lincoln, the American flag, the White House, and the Statue of Liberty!  :)  This is just in time for your President's Day activities!  Click the picture to go to my Etsy shop!  This set is only $3!

Versatile Blogger & Liebster Award!

Wow this post is long, long, LONG overdue!  Some lovely girls had given me these awards and I kept forgetting to post about them!  Sorry!  :)   But yay I'm glad to finally do it!

The first award was the Versatile Blogger Award.

The rules are to:

1. Thank the person who presented the award to you and link back to them.

Thank you SO much to Erika from The Honey Bunch for giving me this award!  You definitely need to check out her blog if you haven't already!!!

2. Tell seven things about yourself. 

1.  I married my best friend, Joe on June 6, 2009!  :)  We had a beautiful wedding in Downtown Greenville, which is where we first met!  We spent our honeymoon at Couples Swept Away in Negril, Jamaica! (BEST RESORT EVERRRR!)

2.  My husband surprised me with a BEAUTIFUL red/white Siberian Husky who is actually part wolf!!!  Her mother was full blooded husky but her dad was half husky half Timberwolf!  She is definitely unique!  If you think that is crazy...wait til you hear this!  Even though we didn't get her until she was 3 months old, she was actually born on our WEDDING DAY!  June 6, 2009!  So every year when we celebrate our anniversary, we also celebrate her birthday, hahaha!!!

3.  I first went to the University of South Carolina as a biology major.  I wanted to be either a pediatrician or a pathologist, focusing on prenatal/postnatal diseases.  But I changed my major after the first semester to early childhood education, switched colleges, and got my bachelor's in early childhood education from Clemson University in 2010.  GO TIGERS!!!

4.  I have a big sweet tooth.  I could be SO SO full from eating my meal but as soon as someone mentions chocolate cake...there is a secret compartment that opens up and allows me to be hungry all over again!!!

5.  I am pretty good at doing accents/impressions of people!  Haha!  My mother-in-law loves my Paula Dean impression!  And I've also gone to the post office before, totally faking a British accent while mailing something to the UK.  They buy it every time!  People are like "WOW!  Is it really different here than in England?  What was the hardest transition for you?"  HAHAHAHA!  I know it's a white lie...but it is SO SO funny!  I gotta entertain myself somehow!

6.  This year I have had a sudden explosion of a shoe obsession...no seriously, it's bad!  I absolutely love flats, boots, ankle boots....just talking about it makes me want to shop! HA!

7.  I am a Christian & Jesus is my King of Kings!  I would be absolutely nothing without Him.  He died on the cross for my sins and for yours, too!  I was such a different person before I had Jesus and accepted Him into my heart.  I just have a new heart and new desires now!  I don't drink, smoke, cuss, etc.  Those things seem meaningless and pointless to me!  I am more focused on living my life to please Him & to spread the gospel!  If you ever want to talk about Jesus, please let me know!  I would love to share His goodness with you!

3.  Pass this award on to 15 newly discovered blogs and let them know they've received the awards. 

When it says "newly discovered"...what does that mean?  Does that mean it's new to you or new to blogging in general?  Well, I'm going to do a mix!  But mostly these will be blogs that are new to me that I love!!!


This is probably one of my favorite blogs to keep up with!
Jennifer at First Grade Blue Skies is AWESOME!

Ginger Snaps Treats for Teachers is a blog made by my friend Ginger who I taught with during my first year of teaching!  It's too bad that we're at different schools now because this past school year we have really discovered how much we both love to blog & create clip art!!!!

Creating And Teaching

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WOW!  If you've made it all the way to this next award...then you are awesome!  Here's a cookie!

The other award I received was the Liebster award.  I keep spelling it wrong...did anyone else have this problem?  LOL!

 The goal of the award is to spotlight up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers!

Here are the rules!

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog

.
2. Thank the giver and link back to them. 

Thank you to Jennifer from The First Grade Dream!!!  :)  Make sure to check out her adorable blog!

3. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

4. Hope that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers!






Whewwwww...that was the longest post ever...ahhhh...