Favorites Friday: 5 Favorite Pins

Another week closer to Spring Break!!! *cue angels singing, release the doves, turn up the weekend jams...* Here's my weekly roundup of Favorite Links - this week, my 5 favorite pins that got me through the week - teacher, inspirational, foodie, fashion, and a DIY surprise for your weekend. Enjoy!

* Favorite Teacher Pin
From MiddleWeb, this infograpic on 10 ways to sabotage your classroom was hilarious, and informational.

*Favorite Inspirational Pin
In times of self-doubt, this motivational printable will definitely come in handy!

*Favorite Foodie Pin

Not sure about the low-cal properties of this bad boy, but chicken parmesan meatloaf "muffins" sounds like a great make-ahead weeknight dinner idea to me!

*Favorite Beauty Pin

Every time I see an article titled "beauty hacks that will change your life," I'll admit that I fall for the tagline without fail. Every time! POP SUGAR is a site I unabashedly love, so their New York Fashion Week beauty hacks article was one I couldn't miss!

*Favorite DIY Pin

From Lemonade Makin' Mama, this arrow jewelry holder is so cute and perfect for the trendiest rooms - class it up or make it for your hipster haven, this DIY jewelry holder is one I know I'll be making soon!

Have a great pin-spired weekend! One week closer to a week of relaxation and adventure...or maybe just a little more sleep. Let's set realistic goals.

Fitness Five for Friday

I'm spending the day slaving away in my classroom, trying to clean up the spiderwebs and lizard poop (gross) before my students return on MONDAY! Taking a little lunch break to post this week's Fitness Five for Friday!

Please, for the love of all that is holy and hilarious, check out POPSUGAR's accurate summary of the Emotional Roller-Coaster Ride of a January Detox if it is the only non-work related (but 2015 resolution related…?) thing you do all day.

Hungry all the time? No? Just me? Well, in case you are, here's 8 lower calorie snack ideas to help with weight loss and those hungry (or hangry) moments!

Craving pizza but want something a little lower-calorie (but still just as yummy)? Try out this low-carb and low-calorie cauliflower crust pizza recipe!

Does working out turn you into a ravenous monster? No? Well if you're like me, then this article is written for people like us.

Miss any of my other fitness or goal related posts? Don't worry! Here's my tips on making a plan and sticking to it, complete with an awesome freebie! Stay tuned for more goal motivation, fitness inspiration, quirky life posts and updates from the classroom of Ms. Burkett!

Finals Week Freedom

Yes, you all read that right.
It is I, Pili, contacting all of you wonderful readers from the land of she-who-never-blogs.

I'M SORRY I know I said I would blog more but that was before student teaching and TFA and dance team literally took over my life. But it is officially finals week, which means the first semester of my last year of college is almost over! What?!

To kick off this week of celebration (senior education majors don't have finals), I made a delicious batch of banana muffins that I'm sure all of you would enjoy as these months get colder. A little baked treat never hurt anyone!

It makes a small loaf, or 12 muffins. Or more, if you're frugal with your muffin batter.

You need:
A bowl
A fork/masher/mixing utensil
Greased muffin/cupcake pan
1/2 stick (4-5 tablespoons) butter, softened
2 eggs
2 or 3 very ripe bananas
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/3 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/4 cup milk

In bowl one, mix the first 4 ingredients. Mash the bananas to your desire. I don't really like chunks of bananas in my muffins, so I mashed the bananas until they were basically soup. Then throw the rest of ingredients into the soupy banana-eggs-sugar-butter mixture. Then spoon the dough into your greased muffin tins, pop them in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, and you're good to go! Go have a cup of hot chocolate or something.  

My oven is extremely hot, so I put mine on for 20 minutes and just checked up on them, poked them with toothpicks, you know the drill. You don't want the muffins to be too brown on top, but you don't want them to be mushy in the center either. 

Pull the muffin pan out of the oven, let those babies cool for about 5 minutes (or 3 if you're impatient like I am), and enjoy!

Hope everyone is staying warm and safe out there! Happy Holidays!

xo,

Flabbergasted

"Whether we're ready or not, the kids are coming on Monday morning!"

Famous last words, courtesy of the principal of the school that I'm student teaching at this year, as my fellow student teachers and I walked out of the school this evening on the last day of our inservice week.

I'm flabbergasted. Completely caught off guard, had the rug pulled out from under me, any other way of saying that this whole student teaching gig snuck up on me. I'm so so so nervous, but I'm really truly excited. My supervising teacher is amazing, and so are the other 3rd grade teachers, and I can't wait to learn all that I can this semester from them. 

I'm also flabbergasted that it's already Friday, and I've officially completed two weeks of my last year of college. How did the time go by so quickly...

ONE

I'm not a huge fan of cobbler. Pie? YES. Cobbler isn't really a huge dessert in Hawaii, but my housemate convinced me that it would be good. So we went to the farmer's market, bought a bunch of berries, and made the BEST double-decker berry cobbler in the world. I'm not exaggerating.

I LOVE FRUIT

The masterpiece

TWO
Welcome to Room 6! My supervising teacher and I were scrambling to set up our class today, and it is sure to be filled with super student artwork before our open house this Thursday! 

33 students, yippee!

THREE
My mom emailed me my third grade school picture with the caption "Don't forget that you were once in their tiny shoes. Be the best you that you can be." It's so easy to forget that we were their age at one point in time, and that is definitely something I am going to work on this year; patience. 

FOUR

For my work sample this semester, I'm focusing on writing. So here's my weekend homework: reading the complete writing curriculum for PPS, with added emphasis on setting up the writer's workshop and the first unit of writing: narratives! If you veteran teachers out there have ANY words of wisdom to give this complete newbie, I'm all ears...err...eyes.

FIVE

I was having an awful week. I'm really tired (prepping for dance team tryouts and the first week of school is tough), homework sucks, and I'm just getting more stressed out by the second. On top of all that jazz, KDog has been super busy, so time to talk and catch up with each other has been extremely limited. Being in a long-distance relationship sucks, but coming home to a vase of roses from the sweetest human in the world made my week take a complete turn from the seventh circle of hell straight on up to cloud nine.  

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend! I'll be indoors, teaching 60+ college girls how to dance all weekend......can someone say advil and water?

xo,

Five for Friday and Saturday Snapshots!

Where is the time going? I feel like it was only yesterday that I was packing up to leave the chilly Portland spring for the blissfully hot Hawaii summer I had in store. But here I am, less than 2 weeks away from returning to Portland for my last year of college. 

I repeat, where is the time going?! And why is it in such a rush?

Yay for linky parties!!! I really enjoy these linky parties because in the hustle and bustle of the week's activities, I forget to slow down and enjoy all that has been going on! These give me the opportunity (as sad as that may sound) to take a step back and be like, "oh yeah! That totally happened and it was really fun!" So without further ado...

ONE

I made my 17 year old, vegetable-intollerant brother eat broccoli. Approximately 2 cups of broccoli. How? By making broccoli cheese patties and a "cajun ketchup" to dip them in. Cheating? Perhaps. Did it work? He asked for more...

I also made a statement necklace! Yay crafts (and pink)!!

TWO

To celebrate the waning days of summer, KDog and I drove out to Keiki's beach on the North Shore, dove for shells, swam a bit in the chilly and crystal-clear water, and of course stopped for shave ice from Matsumoto's on the way home. The perfect summer day, in my book.

THREE

Look at me and my first legal drink! Yippee! My 21st birthday was on Tuesday, and I celebrated with my family with a nice beach morning and kayak with my brother, dinner at the Top of Waikiki restaurant, and a show in Waikiki just as the sun set over the westside of Oahu. 

I will definitely miss these Hawaiian sunsets in a few weeks.

FOUR

The incredibly kayak adventure began at Kailua beach, and ended at Flat Island, a bird sanctuary not too far out to sea. It was nice sibling bonding time with my brother, who has been paddling for the Waikiki Surf Club and for sport during the school year for the past few years. Needless to say he was far more skilled than I, but we had some good laughs, mostly him laughing at my wimpy upper body strength.  

On Flat Island, with the Mokulua in the background!

 

FIVE

Today, my brother starts his first last day of high school at Kamehameha as an amazing Senior. Although he's pretty twerpy at times, he means the world to me and I cannot imagine my life without him. He puts up with me, shares music with me, and makes me feel not so old and irrelevant. I love him to death, and I can't wait to see what life has in store for him.

11 days left in the beautiful Aloha State. Then it's back to school, teaching, and not getting enough sleep.

Senior year, I'm ready for you.

xo,

Monday Made It: Food Edition

I have been meaning to link up with Tara at 4th Grade Frolics and post this recipe for Monday Made It for oh, about 3 weeks now (oops). Better late than never!

The cultural diversity in Hawaii is reflected by both the population and the amazing ethnic foods, so I wanted to share one of my family's favorite recipes! This recipe is for a kalbi marinade, which can be used on chicken, beef, or even vegetables. Kalbi is a Korean dish that is very popular and super easy to make! I make this a lot for parties, and in advance of a busy week so I can freeze the leftovers and have ready-made meals, prefect for a girl on the go.

Ingredients:

4 cloves of garlic (or more, if you're a garlic lover like me!)

3 stalks of green onion (more or less to your liking)

1 1/2 cups of soy sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar (white sugar also works, but I like the flavor that brown sugar gives to the marinade)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup sesame oil

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

4 pounds of your preferred meat/vegetables

Salt and pepper to taste (the marinade has enough salt as is, so I usually just add a 1/4 teaspoon of pepper if anything)

   

   

Marinade/Prep:

In a food processor, chop up the cloves of garlic. You could use a knife or a garlic press, but I think that you keep more of the garlic flavor by using the processor. Finely chop the green onion, and combine your garlic and green onion in a bowl. Add in the remaining marinade ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put your meat/vegetables in a container/tupperware and pour the marinade over the meat/vegetables until covered evenly. Put the container of marinating food into the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours. ** I leave the meat in the fridge overnight to soak up more flavor!

   

Cooking:

Heat grill to medium-high (medium if you're cooking vegetables since they will take a shorter amount of time to cook). Take your meat/veggies out of the marinade and drain the excess marinade. If you want, you can save the marinade to coat the meat while you're grilling it. Grill meat until it is lightly charred and tender and cooked to your desired level of "doneness". 

Serve with hot rice and your choice of korean vegetables (my favorites are cucumber kim chee and bean sprouts) and enjoy!

xo,