What Happens in Vegas... Ends Up on My Blog!

This year's TpT Conference theme, Come Together Go Further, is an understatement of the feelings that happened throughout the week!  I didn't think this year's conference in Las Vegas could top last years, but I was wrong for sure!

I'd like to spread out my trip over a couple of posts so I can truly give those of you reading the same enchanting time I had while in Vegas.  So today, I'd just like to share with you some of the wonderful teachers I met while there during the conference itself and just out and about in the hotel!  Some I wasn't able to capture on camera, but the memories are there just the same.

 These are two lovely ladies I met for the first time...

Stephanie Stewart & Hadar Maor (Miss Kindergarten Love).  Both of them were gracious enough to take the time to take a picture with little ol' me!

You never really see this artist's face much... But this is Kimberly Geswein from KG Fonts!  Love, love, love her fonts!  Kimberly has to be one of the funniest people I've met.  She has a wonderful personality and had me smiling with all her jokes.

 For some strange reason I feel a connection with this teacher author... Hee, Hee.  This is Cara Carroll and she is just the cutest little things ever!  She was also very nice and gracious.

Love her name by the way!

 One of the things I love most about this lovely lady is that she is so REAL and down to earth.  Not to mention her southern "twang" makes me smile.  This is Jennifer White from First Grade Blue Skies.

Last but not least, is Deanna Jump.  This woman is just amazing!  I don't have all the words to describe her, but she is very, very sweet AND humble.  She is and has been a great friend to me for a few years now.  I really look up to her for how she's stayed true to herself even though she's literally a star to many of us.  She's also down to earth and has a beautiful personality.

This picture was HER idea, not mine!

I also had the chance to meet a great supporter of mine, Cheryl from Southern California.  She always gives me the sweetest feedback on my TpT products and I was grateful to meet her as well.

As you can see, I had the opportunity to meet some very talented and sweet ladies.  More later about all I learned from the conference!

If you went to Vegas, who was the person you enjoyed meeting the most?  Or if you didn't go, who would you love to meet?  I'd love to hear in the comments!

Love You Friends,

4 Do-Nows So Vegas is Ready for YOU! Plus a Giveaway!

Hey Y'all!  I've always wanted to say that...   I'm from Michigan, so y'all isn't even in our vocabulary, but it just sounds so stinkin' cute when I hear other people say it.  Especially, when it's all twangy sounding!  Any hoo, Cara here, ready to share with you

All teachers across the nation are either down to day zero or on the countdown to the all important day.  Don't get me wrong, I'll miss the kiddos too, but saying goodbye to them means saying HELLO to...Vegas!

I apologize for any reader out there that isn't associated with TpT; I'm not sure how any educator couldn't have come across Teachers pay Teachers some time or another!  But, I'm apologizing to those that aren't Sellers that are attending this year's conference in Las Vegas, July 9 & 10!  

Please, please, please, squeeze all the turnips you have around the house to scrounge up the funds to make it there this year.  I know we only earn a teacher's salary, but this is one trip you won't regret.  TRUST ME!

I had the opportunity to attend last year's conference in Vegas and have some oh-so-valuable information to pass along to those that are on the countdown to the conference also.  I have 4 "Do-Nows" that you can help you prepare for your trip, so let's get this party started!

1.  Make sure your camera's working!

Due to the magnitude of Vegas and its awesomeness, you just might come across the Man of Your Dreams.  As you can see from the photo above, if my camera wasn't ready at this VERY moment, I wouldn't have been able to snap this pic when I did.  Even though, he was made of wax and probably not going anywhere, I know his heart was melting in the Vegas heat when I showed up.  Or, was it the other way around?  He It was pretty hot that day!

2.  Purchase some business cards for yourself to network!

Because I had my cards with me at that special moment above, I was able to give my "Man" my card with all my info.  He's still calling me to this day; all because I had my cards on me!  But seriously, you'll be meeting all kinds of new friends and colleagues at the conference.  So you'll want to be able to reconnect if need be.  

This year, I wanted to find something different that the regular business cards that everyone has.  So I searched around and found a company called moo.  Yes, moo!  Not sure what it means, but their products and service are AWESOME!  

If you look closely at my cards above, they are square!  The beauty of this company is that they do have a 50 card minimum, which is very low for most.  But you can have all your cards be different if you want, at no extra cost!  Because their prices were so cheap AND I could design my own, I splurged and got a special kind of paper that is more like a very, very heavy cardstock, like cardboard almost.  The edges of the cards are so thick, you can choose any color EDGE you want!  Isn't that cool? 

They have all kinds of other business cards to choose from, along with holders to carry your cards in.  If you want to check them out, their site is us.moo.com .  I have a special referral code you can use should you plan to purchase any cards or whatever:  http://www.moo.com/share/n9qspr that would be awesome if you wouldn't mind using!

3.  Get your feet ready (not by taking a picture of them!)

You'll most likely be doing all kinds of walking when you're in Vegas; if you've never been there, cars aren't really something you need to have fun!  You're feet can get you almost anywhere, so prepare them ahead of time...  I just got these two new pairs of shoes yesterday so I wanted to "break" them in before I actually got to Vegas.  Last year, I wanted to save all my new clothes and such for when I actually got there, and my toesies were regretting my decision to do so.  So put on those new shoes and start walking today!

and last but not least...

4.  Start your planning now!

This might seem like a no-brainer, but there will for sure be things you didn't think of that you should have done ahead of time!  Like having spare ones for tipping, putting your networking cards in each of your purses, you get the idea.  

WELL...  I just got done making the perfect planner-slash-memory-book that you will just love to have before, during and after your trip!  It comes with two editable pages (cover and All About Me page) and 35 or so other pages!  Mine is at the printer as we speak, so I'm sure you'll love one for yourself too;)

Here's a glimpse at all of the pages included:

Inside you'll find two pages that I wish I would have had right on hand with me last year...  Your Flight Info and Hotel Information right in one place!  This way you don't have to keep checking the time of this or that, or where you need to be when!  It's all right there!

I included an 4-day Agenda that you can keep down-to-the-minute track of where/what/who you need to be and when!  There are also extra pages in case you need to change/add/edit any of your plans.

There are pages for you to keep notes of each session you attend, along with a Summary page.  Just copy the number of pages you'll need for each session you'll be attending.  There is also a page you can write down new contacts you'll be meeting while there!

The remainder of pages you see above include a variety of must-haves like an expense tracker, new web sites and projects you want to start and what to remember to do for next year's conference.  

This year, I'll have my planner ready on the Autograph page, when I meet up with my boyfriend from the first picture!  He'll be so happy to know I'm coming back, his hand won't even be able to sign his name when I get there.  Hee, Hee.

There are also some pages for you to insert any photos you may take while on the trip.  If you'd like to check out the planner, it's on sale right now for only $2.50!  But only for one more day!  You can see all the information in my TpT Store here.

I'd love to give away two of my planners for special winners!  Just enter the giveaway below and good luck my friends!

a Rafflecopter giveaway




Thanks for visiting today and I can't wait to see you in Vegas!

Woo, hoo! We made it to Friday!

Woo, hoo!  We made it to Friday, y'all!  

Today I'm linking up with Doodle Bug's Five for Friday linky party which is where teachers link up 5 things from the past week that struck them as important to tell the world about. 

So here we go with number one...

Last week and this past weekend we were in the fantabulous Las Vegas for the TpT Seller's Conference!  If you missed my previous post, please check it out here.

One of the beautiful things we did was visit the "zoo in Las Vegas you didn't know about", the Lion Habitat Ranch, which is the home of the lions previously at the MGM Hotel.  We were lucky enough to have our own tour guide from our Family Fun Tour and we learned many new things from the interesting Mr. Steve.  Don't get me wrong, Mr. Steve was a wealth of information, but he kept INSISTING we use a darn umbrella because the "Las Vegas heat will burn you a new forehead."  There's nothing like being singled out in a crowd as a tourist because you have a huge, black umbrella with tubes of lipstick and sunglasses on it, in a sea of people that don't have one.  Finally, my Mom just walked away from Mr. Steve and his insistent, must-have-an-umbrella self, and left me to deal with him.  Now how did I get off topic from lions to umbrellas?

They also had an ostrich family there at the ranch.  Apparently, there's more of them on the way as you can see from the pictures above.  I had no idea their eggs were so big, like the size of a football!

 Love this picture I took of Mrs. Ostrich!  I think she's trying to tell me something...

 This is what all the lions eat each day...10 lbs of horse meat.  Mr. Steve assured me that it was horses that were already dead? TMI for me to visualize!

The ranch is a must-see for anyone visiting Vegas!

Stay away from this machine.  It's addicting.

 My Mom unfortunately passed down to me the love of jewelry.  While in Vegas we found this awesome jewelry store in our hotel that allowed you to literally make your own pearl jewelry!  The (1) step is to choose your oyster that are flown in from Hawaii.  Then (2) the woman shucks? them for you with a special knife.  The inside (3) is nothing like I've seen before.  Some of you may be familiar with the inside of an oyster, but it's not in my food groups.  It's really yucky inside actually.  I don't know how people can eat that mess.  (4)(5) If you feel around inside you finally find the pearl, and they can be one of four colors:  white, pink, cream, and blue. The blue are one in a thousand of a find.  Then she puts some salt on the pearl and you rub it in your hands to polish it. (6) There's your clean pearl ready for you to put into some kind of jewelry setting!  I'm a ring kinda gal (7) and got my pearl set into a ring with two small diamonds on the sides.  You get another pick at an oyster with each jewelry purchase!  I'll just say that we ended up pulling 6 oysters and got a pair of gold earrings, two pendants for a necklace, a ring, and a tie tack for Garyn's first prom.  I warned you my Mom and I love jewelry!

Other stops we made while in Vegas were Fremont Street to see the worlds largest slot machine, we rode the gondolas (which was just beautiful by the way) and we stopped by the famous pawn shop from the show Pawn Stars.  It was packed in there, but my Mom just loves that show so we went.  I was instantly attracted to a Picasso print that was priced at $3,500.  That's the artist in me.  My Mom left with a diamond studded t-shirt.  Us and our bling... and finally

I finished my newest product, First Grade...Here I Come!  It's a packet of almost 90! No-Prep printables, that are all aligned to First Grade Common Core Standards.  Perfect for the beginning of the year, especially during those times when you need to have the kids busy while you're taking attendance or talking with the line of parents at the door.  You know those times!  It's on sale for 50% off for the next 48 hours, so grab it at this wonderful price quick!

Included are math, literacy, writing, getting-to-know you printables, awards, and much, much more.  Everything you need to get the year started with a bang!  You can check it out here.

Thanks for hanging with me friends and don't forget to check back later today to hear the winners of my huge Back-to-School Giveaway!  Click the link below to read more great Five for Friday posts!

Happy Day to You and Yours,

Vegas...Cara Style! TpT's 1st Conference was Amazing!

It's so hard to believe that as I'm typing this, I'm wearing a hoodie in the middle of July; our Summer here in Michigan has been a disappointing one at that.  What's even more harder to believe is that just yesterday, I was walking around in Vegas where it was a sweltering 112 degrees!  For the past four days, I've been blessed with the opportunity to spend some awesome family time with my Son, Garyn and my Mom.  I also got to hang with some of my TpT girlfriends at the first ever TpT Seller's Conference, which was just amazing!

  CAUTION:  Continue reading at your own risk...This post is loaded with photos!  Just a forewarning!  I was able to capture many special moments on film and I'd be delighted if you'd stay to share them with me. :)

To help describe my Vegas experience, I decided to write an acrostic poem for you called:

My Mom, Son and I traveled on our first "official" family vacation since my step-father passed away a few months ago.  It was a well needed time of rest and relaxation for us all.  Garyn had never flown on a plan before, but he did better than I expected!  He slept with G-ma most of the way there...

The Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas has to be the most beautiful hotel ever!  It is much different than other hotels on the strip in that it is very well lit and bright, as compared to most of the dark hotels you find in Vegas.  The atmosphere is very classy, which helps to make for a wonderful stay.

The main reason for our travels to Vegas was to attend the first annual TpT Seller's Conference.  It was a day packed with presentations from some wonderful and knowledgeable Sellers.  I learned some new "tips & tricks" about being a better blogger (from Miss Kindergarten) and how to make my clip art more personable (from Melonheadz).  

I also got a chance to meet Paul, the Founder of TpT!  He is also a very humble and energetic person, whom I admire.  To hear the story of TpT is quite amazing; Paul also told us about how well TpT is growing and continuing to reach milestone earnings.  Amy and John also spoke to us with genuine feelings of admiration for us Sellers.  If you are a Seller for TpT, give yourself a pat on the back for being so awesome, in so many ways.  That was both of their general messages.  Lastly, Deanna Jump spoke and had many in tears from her heartfelt story from going from nothing to something and her efforts to helping others, like her disabled brother.  When talking with her, I noticed she too is also very humble and personable.  Deanna's someone you'd for sure want for a best friend!

I had my moment of stardom when my picture was shown on the big screen at the Keynote Event!  See me...up there...Yes, that's me!  I didn't even notice it actually; my TpT friend Lisa saw my picture and said, "There you are!"  I was so giddy; I actually felt famous.

OMGosh...You guys, I actually got to meet Nikki from Melonheadz!  And I brought back a picture to prove it like I promised.  She is even more admirable in person and very humble.  Her story is amazing; she went from having practically nothing to becoming an overnight, graphic artist sensation!  She accomplished this by hard work, commitment, and dedication to her talent of drawing.  She is definitely one of my TpT role models and I learned a lot from hearing her speak.  Meeting Nikki was the highlight of my TpT Conference experience hands down!

You'll also notice above that I got to finally meet my TpT friend Regina Davis!  We've been email buddies for a while and it was so, so nice to see her in person.  Regina is so bubbly and full of life...it's almost contagious!  Then I also got to meet my other TpT idols, Victoria and Tricia from 2 Super Teachers.  I just adore their clip art and use it all the time in my products.  It was wonderful to be able to meet all my email girlfriends in person; it was like a dream come true!

Garyn is really into music and drums especially, so I was super excited for him to see the Blue Man Group.  If you've never heard of them, they are a group of three men, that literally are "blue" and they play awesome percussion music.  Their music is unique because of the items they play their music on...pvc pipes, metal tubing, you name  it.  I had never seen them either, so I was super-duper excited as well.  
But the most awesome part was when we got there, the ticket guy was like, "Wow, pretty good seats."  I just looked at him and smiled because I really didn't know what he was talking about.  I paid a little bit more to have some better seats so Garyn could see, but that was all I knew about the tickets.  The usher then took us down to where we were sitting and he kept going further, and further, until he stopped in the FRONT row.  I really didn't believe it... I felt like all of this was meant to be just for Garyn and his special Vegas trip.  I did get nervous though when I saw all the members of the front row wearing plastic?  I stopped dead in my tracks and asked a guy, "Um, why are you wearing plastic?  Do I need to have some?  Do you have extra?"  I was freaked out to tell you the truth.  We were already sitting in the dark waiting for the show to begin, I didn't want to be plastered with some unknown substance too!  
Well it turned out there we didn't get that messy, but the show was so awesome.  I don't want to spoil it for you, but I'll tell you there were floating eyeballs, marshmallows, and lots of neon paint.  And Garyn did get chosen as a special audience member to do a "stunt" with the Blue Man Group!  The funny part was that when Garyn was done, one of the group gave him a marshmallow to keep.  You know what Garyn did with it right?  Yup, right in his mouth. :) 

And lastly in my poem is the best letter, S.

We went to the wax museum and all the stars were just waiting to see me.  They were all so happy to know that I had arrived, that they all wanted to take pictures with me. Hee, hee.

 And then I saw him...The man of my dreams was just waiting there for me.  Oh, how I wish he wasn't made of wax.  If he would have fit in my pocket, I would have tucked him in there, like something fierce.

As you can tell, we had an awesome time in Vegas and I would for sure recommend it for anyone and their family as a vacation spot.  Thanks so much for sitting with me and listening to my poem.  Where was your families best vacation spot?  I'd love to hear where you recommend I take Garyn next.  Leave a message in the comments about where the best place to take kids is!

Have a wonderful day friends,

Make sure to check out more Vegas highlights by clicking on the link above!