New Year's Resolutions: 2016

I can't believe 2015 is already over! It's difficult for me to put 2015 into words - it was a weird transition year. I graduated from college in 2014 so 2015 was my first full year out of college, I did not have a full year teaching position, I was still adjusting to balancing friendships and work life, and overall just trying to find my place. 2015 did bring me into this fabulous world of teacher bloggers and entrepreneurs which I am beyond thankful for! Overall I think 2015 was the year of laying the groundwork for an amazing 2016! There are many projects I've started and many goals I have begun working towards and I think I've done some great work to see those things really take off in 2016.

This brings me to this fabulous link-up hosted by Teach.Talk.Inspire and My Day in K. I cannot wait to share my 2016 resolutions with you so I can be held accountable. I would love for you to comment at the end with your own resolutions or link to your own blog post with your resolutions.

1. Find efficiency - I think efficient will be one of my big words in 2016. Like 90% of the world, I've got a lot going on in my life and it's been difficult for me to find the balance between everything. I want to spend 2016 finding ways to work more efficiently in order to maximize my time and allow more time for the amazing people in my life. Whether I need a new planner system, a different set-up for my room, an app to manage my time, or a clearer meal plan system, I'm all about finding ways to be the most productive person I can be this year.

2. Take care of myself - With the time issues I struggle with comes the lack of time that I spend on myself. I want to put forth more effort this year on working out at the gym more regularly, eating better foods (or eating not so great foods more in moderation), drinking more water, and taking time to reflect on a daily basis.

3. Stay in the moment - My mind is constantly going a million miles a minute. I find myself thinking about work and things to do all of the time. This year I want to be in the moment. If I am taking a dance class, nothing else matters besides that class and my movement. If I am with friends, my lesson planning or choreography can wait until later - no matter how great my idea might be. I want to enjoy the space I'm in and the people I'm with using more intention.

4. Connect more - In 2015, I've gotten lazy when it comes to text people back, emailing back in a timely manner, and making plans in general. It's time for that to be done! I want to make sure that I'm showing the people around me that they are important to me and that means dedicating the time to respond and make plans.

What resolutions have you made for the new year? Comment below or post a comment on my Instagram photo!

I'm guessing this will be my last post of the year but I have MANY preplanned posts for 2016! Follow me on Bloglovin' or Instagram (@teachdancedream) to stay connected!

Enjoy the rest of 2015!

Allie

Custom T-Shirt Designs

I don't know about you, but I have a T-shirt for everything! We have school T-shirts, district T-shirts, one for every club and group in high school and college, and for every dance recital I have every participated in. Let's just say they take up more than a drawer in my house. Yikes! Now that I'm working to build my brand and business, I wanted a shirt that would promote my blog concept: Teach.Dance.Dream. I had no design, no colors, nothing. I wanted to make sure that I was being careful with where I was spending my money to start my brand.

Sorry for the wrinkles! My iron was not working today.

In late September, A+ Images had an amazing deal for bloggers to receive a custom designed shirt. You could upload your logo onto a shirt, or use their custom designer to add fonts and images to a shirt of your choosing. The custom designer was one of the easiest T-shirt design tools that I have worked with. While I went through a couple visions of what I wanted, the program was easy to navigate. In all, I decided on a simple shirt that just had my blog name as text so I could use it as a conversation starter. Once I have my blog designed later on, I knew I would be ordering another shirt.

About a month after this promotion, I went to the Midwest Teacher Blogger Meet Up. Our fabulous No Coast = Best Coast shirts were again a product from A+ Images. We all loved them! Look at how great they look. The ability to upload your own image means you can predesign with your own fonts (yay!) and then put your custom vision onto a shirt in just a few easy steps.

I would highly recommend following A+ Images on their social media sites (Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram) or visiting their website (www.aplusimages.com). Here are my top 4 reasons why:

1. Custom T-shirts made using the custom designer!
2. Teacher Apparel. Yes, they have pre-designed teacher apparel for all grades and many specialties.
3. Classroom shirts are available for your whole class or as a great present for a teacher.
4. Promotions! While the prices for their shirts are great, A+ Images has some amazing promotions for teacher bloggers throughout the year too. Be sure to follow them before the 1st of the year so you don't miss any 2016 promotions!

Allie

Currently - December Edition

Hello everyone!

Wow it has been awhile since I've blogged. Here's an update on what's been going on in my world.

Listening: Christmas music definitely takes over my music library during the holiday season. I love holiday music so much that I have 19.5 HOURS of Christmas music on my computer! Everything from Mariah Carey and Jessica Simpson, to 98 degrees and *NSYNC, to the classic singers like Julie Andrews and Burl Ives. I absolutely love it all!

Loving: The holiday season is by far my favorite time of year. Everything feels cozier and while it is freezing or snowing constantly in Minnesota, a warm blanket and fireplace makes it all better. Not to mention my obsession with hot chocolate escalates. Leading into the new year encourages me to spend time reflecting and reevaluating how I feel about all aspects of my life. I think taking time to reflect and appreciate is important. Somehow the craziness of this season helps me slow down a bit and do just that.

Thinking: Big ideas is for sure. Have you ever taken StrengthsFinder? If not I highly suggest it! One of my top 5 strengths is ideation. Boy is it in full effect right now! I've taken some time to look at the organizations I am involved in and the ways I can help push them into more successful and active directions. I cannot wait to share ideas with people in all of these groups. Now if only I had more ideas for products to really get hustling on my TPT store...

Wanting: I am trying my darnedest to get through "Move Your Bus" by Ron Clark for the THM chat this Friday on Blab at 9pm central. The book is excellent, but unfortunately at the end of these long days all I want is sleep. Tomorrow is my day to power through the rest of the book. Fingers crossed that I am able to finish it!

Needing: Part of the reason I haven't posted on here or Instagram (@teachdancedream) lately is feeling overwhelmed with all of the social media accounts I am supposed to be manning. I just haven't been getting posts up. I need to organize and plan where I am going with everything. I have an idea to help myself. If it works, my plan will be on the blog later this month. 

Real or Faux: Since I can remember, our tree has always been a fake tree. I would love to have a real tree at least once for the experience, but this year was not that year. 

I hope each of you can find the time to balance work, family, and all of the other hats you wear during this time of year!

Head over to Oh Boy Fourth Grade to link up with your own post. As always, I would love for you to follow me on Instagram or Bloglovin' for updates.

Allie