Mid-Term Break



Can anyone tell me where my four-day weekend disappeared to? It actually seems like about five minutes ago that I finished school on Wednesday afternoon, with lots of plans for work and relaxation during the mid-term break (which is the Irish equivalent of half-term, only shorter!).  And now it’s Monday again...how did that happen?! Last week was super busy (even though it was only three days), what with Pancake Tuesday and Ash Wednesday, along with the usual day-to-day lessons. On Tuesday, I actually made pancakes with my class, which was SO messy but a great laugh – lots of chocolaty faces and some hilarious photos!

So I was definitely ready for a rest during the mid-term break. I did get some nice sleep-ins (sweet!), did a spot of shopping, had coffee shop dates with my Mum, sister and friend, did some lesson planning and resource making...and I scrapped!! It was the first time I had scrapped a 12x12 in ages, but Miss Smith’s inspiration was just too much to resist :D

So this is the resulting layout, which I’ve titled ‘Mona Lisa Smile’. It features a photo I took when I visited the Louvre in Paris last summer. Of course, the main attraction and most well-known piece in the magnificent and extensive gallery is Da Vinci’s famous lady with her mesmerising eyes. I wanted to document the absolute mayhem and throngs of people muscling in around the painting, and how difficult it was to get a decent photo. Though it might be hard to make out from my photograph of the layout, the picture is of another tourist’s camera angled towards the Mona Lisa. I liked the idea of framing the painting in the camera’s viewfinder, and it was by far the most interesting picture I captured in that part of the gallery! The page design is a little different from my usual, and was inspired by the first Telling Tales prompt, which focused on blocking out the design in boxes, and then moving them around until aesthetically pleasing :D It’s definitely an idea I would use again, possibly over a double page spread with more photos.  

 

Hope you have a lovely week...with no more disappearing days!

 

Sinéad

xxx

 

P.S. My photos are either too big or too small! Any ideas about how I can get a size between 'large' and 'x-large'?!

Here and Now

So I think you could safely say I'm struggling a bit to fit blogging in around a VERY hectic day-to-day life...well, I did warn you that the posts were going to be sporadic! Since I last posted, I've been up to my eyes with schoolwork, lesson planning and preparation and the like. Fun times! I adore the classroom side of teaching, it's just the paperwork can be a bit of a pain at times. I've also been following along Miss Smith's online scrapbooking class 'Telling Tales'. While I haven't really been doing much of the crafty stuff (yet!), I'm really enjoying the mix of scrapbook, photo and journalling prompts arriving daily in my inbox. One of the journalling prompts was about documenting the here and now, the little daily things, with a series of simple questions. I think that this aspect of scrapbooking, emphasising the mundane and the trivial, is so important. We'll all remember the birthdays and festivities and big events, but it is the everyday detail that can get lost and forgotten. So I said I'd give it a go...

What are you working on?
Day to day lesson planning, ideas for my ‘Journeys Far and Near’ theme, classroom decorations, trying to think of ways to build this spanking new blog

What music are you singing along to in your head?
Country Roads, having done it in school this week: 'Almost heaven, West Virginia, Blue Ridge Mountains.....aarrggh, going to be singing it all night now - and more than likely aloud rather than in my head!)

If you had a day off to yourself tomorrow, what would you do?
Have a lie in (a.k.a., anything past 7.30am!), bake something from scratch for breakfast, scrapbook, go shopping with my sister and visit numerous coffee shops with friends, cook a Jamie Oliver 15 minute meal in the evening (seriously, the flavours he can fit in are amazing!) and curl up by the fire

What have you learned this week?
When somebody dies, it is impossible to know what to say to the bereaved person – there simply are no words to express grief and pain

What was the last thing that made you laugh?
The children in my class repeatedly asking me if their good behaviour is ‘brownie-worthy’! They get 'brownie points' for whole class positive behaviour, and they are literally OBSESSED with my brownie tray display :D

What are you enjoying on TV?
Grey’s Anatomy, old episodes of Friends, whatever I happen to tune into at the weekend as I am TV-less from Monday to Friday (sadface)

What are you reading?
J.K. Rowling’s ‘The Casual Vacancy’ (and I’m really enjoying it, despite all the criticism and bad press it has received)

What was the last really yummy thing you cooked?
Well, it doesn’t really count as cooking per se since it only involves melting, mixing and chilling, but I made chocolate biscuit cake for my class yesterday as a treat – they were delighted :D

What is inspiring you?
Reading blogs, new friendships, Pinterest, Miss Smith’s ‘Telling Tales’ scrapbooking class

What are you worrying about?
Getting everything I need to do done on time, my very first set of parent teacher meetings next week (help!)

I really enjoyed doing this, and might make it into a regular thing. I think it could be really interesting to compare how my answers might vary also...something to think about!

Thank you so much if you're still reading :D

Sinéad xxx

Post the Second...Ode to My Camera

So...I'm slowly getting my head around blogging, I think! And thanks to Abi, I now know how to add photos, because I don't know about you, but if a blog post has no photos, I just can't warm to it. I need the visual element as well as the written word to grab my attention and keep me interested - but maybe that's just me! Plus, I love photography so a pretty picture is always a winner in my eyes :D

Anyone for Scrabble?!

Which brings me to the topic of this post, namely my 50mm lens. Maybe I should backtrack a little though, and tell you the whole story... I got my first DSLR camera last July, a Canon 1100D. Now, I had been craving a DSLR for a VERY long time. I looked longingly at other people's cameras, and oohed and aahed over the stunning photographs posted on various blogs and photo-sharing websites that originated from the lens of a DSLR. So I researched and read countless articles online and watched YouTube videos, and eventually decided to take the plunge and treat myself with the money I had earned from my summer job (working in a butcher's shop...I know, not what you'd expect and certainly not the most glamorous of jobs, but hey, work=money!). And so my Baby came into my life. I don't use that capital letter lightly...my new camera really was like a baby to me :D So much so that at the end of a wonderful three-day trip to Paris only a week after I bought it, my friend that I travelled with was also calling it Baby!

Christmas baking 50mm style!

So the love affair continued, and many, many photos later, I am completely thrilled I took the plunge. I love the creative control that a DSLR offers, the beautifully vibrant or delicately soft images it can produce and even just the feel of it in my hands. (Is that weird?!) But as the saying goes, much wants more, and after a few days with my cousin's 50mm f/1.8 lens, I was seriously tempted to invest in a new lens to upgrade Baby. It was the shallow depth of field that won me over, that dreamy softness that results from having the lens wide open to suck in as much light as possible. And so, with my first pay cheque from my first 'real' (a.k.a. non-butchering) job, I treated myself to the 50mm lens before Christmas, egged on by my Mum and a very persuasive salesman! It has been SO worth it :D I absolutely adore the images this lens can produce...gorgeous portraits, detailed still lifes and amazing pictures in low light, even without editing. I still have so much practice to do, and tons to learn, but suffice to say that this lens was worth every cent of the €139 I paid for it - an investment!

Mulled wine...love how the steam is captured!

Thank you if you've managed to read this far and haven't gotten bored yet! I even included some pictures taken with my beloved 50mm to keep you interested :D

Sinéad
xxx

P.S. Anybody else participating in Miss Smith's class Telling Tales? I got the first prompt this evening and love it so far! Though my participation will depend on school workload...anyone want to correct some copies for me?!

Just Testing...

Hello world...

After deliberating and wondering and procrastinating about jumping onboard the blogging bandwagon, I have finally taken the plunge! Scary times!
So...a little bit about me! I'm Sinéad, I'm a twenty year old primary school teacher from County Clare in the west of Ireland. I just qualified last May and I started my first job in late November, and am loving it so far (though it is super hectic as I teach in a multi-class setting!). I love scrapbooking, photography, crochet, cooking, baking, music, teaching, crafts, reading and about seven million other things :D
I'm not sure if anyone will be interested in the random (and possibly sporadic depending on my kinda insane schedule!) posts, but for now, let's just see how this thing goes :D

Sinéad
xxx

P.S. This blogging lark is totally alien to me (including adding photos...Blogger doesn't seem to like my pictures, sadtimes!)...so any help/advice would be gratefully appreciated!
P.P.S. This blog would never have happened if it weren't for the encouragement (and gentle nagging!) of Miss Smith and Abi so thanks a million :D