Schooooooool's out for SUMMER!!

It's that time of the year again - time to clean out the lunch boxes and backpacks, and pack them away, time to turn the alarm clock off for the next 3 months, and time to reflect on how much the kids have grown and changed over the last 9 months!

A lot of those amazing changes can be credited to their wonderful teachers (don't forget to give yourself a little pat on the back - you're not too shabby either!).

I like to send in a little token of my appreciation for all that the teachers do, and luckily Pinterest is there to inspire my procrastinating butt :)

Seriously, are you on Pinterest yet? If not, do yourself a favor and sign up already!!!
There's a little board that I created called Gift Ideas - I know, such an imaginative and creative title...

Anywho... I knew that over the past year I had pinned a few teacher gift ideas, so I took a look through my pins for some ideas.

At first this crayon monogram jumped out at me - loving the bright colors, great for hanging in the classroom and it's just so darn cute!

photo credit: Chic & Cheap Nursery

But then a teacher friend of mine was tagged in this pic on facebook...

So back to the Gift Ideas board I went...

That's when I came across this, this, and this - I figured that I could marry these ideas together, throw in a gift card (sans the liquor...), a nice little thank you note and call it DONE!

1st & last stop - Target!

Honestly, does it get any better than Target? I think not.

The cute clear paint cans were bought  forever ago, I just knew they would come in handy for something ;)

Each boy picked out a fun summer beverage tumbler in the color of their choice - Pink for Mrs. Geiger and Blue for Mrs. McGraw.

Then I stumbled upon these fun single serve drink mixes - Blackberry Blueberry & Strawberry Dragonfruit were the winning flavors.

Eight single serve packets came in each box, so each teacher got four of each flavor inside her tumbler along with a surprise - a Target gift card (this seemed a little more PC to me than a gift card to the liquor store),

and how cute it that "Thank You" gift card? again, praise Target!

A giant bag, "party size" to be exact, of M&M's filled each paint can (there may, or may not have been a little bit leftover for this mom to snack on...)

The poem was found here, but I actually prefer the wording here, but at 11pm last night I just didn't think it was worth reprinting, although I am kicking myself now because it's not "perfect" - moving on...

Want to see the final product one more time???

No need to scroll back to the top, here it is!

p.s. - the adorable orange gift bag is also brought to you today by the letter T - Target rocks my socks!

p.s.s. - Jack came home yesterday with this sweet gift from his teacher, Mrs. Geiger. She is an extremely special teacher, and we had the great fortune to have her as Matthew's 1st grade teacher two years ago, and as Jack's 1st grade teacher this past year - fingers crossed that Sam will have her in a few years!

Here's what the note on the bag says:

Jackson,

In this bag you will find some things

That hold the key to what your future brings.

It is with great sadness that I watch you depart

Because you have a special place in my heart.

Love,

Mrs. Geiger

And the note inside reads:

A water balloon to remind you to make a splash wherever you go.

A piece of chalk to remind you to leave a good mark in the world.

A pencil to remind you there are still many things to learn.

A penny to remind you to use good sense.

An eraser to remind you it's all right to make mistakes.

Bubbles to remind you to always have fun!

Kisses to remind you that you are loved.

 I think I just got misty eyed all over again...

This week I am linking to: