Celebrating my Cherubs

cher·ub: a beautiful or innocent person, especially a child. Tonight my cherubs will walk across a stage and celebrate the fact that they are done with fifth grade, done with elementary school, and done with me. Not done with me in a bad way, but in a sense, they are 6.5 days away from no longer being mine. I would be 100% lying if I said I haven't shed a tear about this. These are my babies. My first group. My cherubs. This first year of teaching has been so much more than I could have imagined. It was fun, sad, happy, annoying, tiring, exhausting, exciting, and memorable. The babies will be in my heart and mind forever. They have grown (literally!) mentally, physically, emotionally, and educationally. They have been with me day in and day out and I see them more than I see my husband. They are my world. I quote the things they say, I brag about them to everyone I know, I talk about them non-stop. I can't get them out of my head! I know I will cry next Friday when I send them out the door for the last time. Heck, I'm crying now just thinking about it! What will they become? Will they remember me? Have I prepared them for 6th grade? For life? Will they forget me? All these questions run through my mind. Will I ever see them again? Gosh, I hope so. I know everyone says the first year of teaching is your hardest. I get it, it was hard, but those people also haven't worked for a CPA firm and survived a tax season (ha!). Needless to say this is the hardest job I have ever had, yet I couldn't imagine my life without all my babies. They are what I wake up for, they are a reflection of me to an extent, they have been my everything (besides my hubby) for the last 10 months, and now it will be like a parent watching their baby go to college...I just have to watch them walk out that door and hope my little heart out for the best.  To my babies, my cherubs: I doubt you will ever see this, but if you do I want you to know that you have made me the proudest teacher in the world. Forget the tests and the things we are required to do. Forget the grades you made, the papers you wished you did better on, and the friends that hurt your feelings. Forget all of that and know that this last year you have made me happier than I have ever been. In my life I have been blessed with a wonderful husband, a wonderful family, a wonderful home and life, and now I can say I have been blessed with a wonderful job. And it is because of you that this job makes my heart so full. I love and adore all of you more than you'll ever know and I hope and pray you never forget your 5th grade teacher because she sure as heck won't ever forget you. Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker Pinterest - SarahTuckerUp

PS: Don't forget to link up your outfit posts here!

WIWW: Little White Dress + Link Up

As I mentioned yesterday, we went to a wedding last weekend in the Hill Country. Since it had been raining most of the day, I opted not to wear my nude wedges and instead wear my cowboy boots! Up here in Dallas I don't get much use out of these things, so any chance I get to wear them, I will! It was muddy and there were puddles everywhere, so I was happy to be able to slosh through the mud without worrying about my shoes.

The last time I wore this dress was at my wedding. It was the dress I put on right before we left our reception. I need to wear it more often because I forgot how much I loved it!

Since I bought this dress over two years ago, there is obviously no source, but HERE is a link to other dresses by this brand. The brand is lush and I think I have four dresses made by them because they fit so well and are so comfortable!

And, just because, look how handsome my husband is? I secretly love 'testing the lighting' because I get shots like this.

Now for the link up!
- All I ask is you link back to my blog and link to a specific post. 
- Write about something fashion related :)
And if you're feeling up to it, you can follow me:
Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker Pinterest - SarahTuckerUp

Happy Wednesday! 

Thank you for linking up!

To see other WIWW posts, click {here}

Linking up with Because Shanna Said So, Get Your Pretty On, The Pleated Poppy. 

An InLinkz Link-up

Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend we headed down to the Hill Country to visit my family. We love going down there to escape the craziness of Dallas. It is always so good to be able to veg-out without a care in the world!

The dogs did good in Chris's new truck. We had every inch of the back seat covered in sheets or towels. They slept the majority of the four hour trip until we got to Austin...then Wrigley was awake and ready to play!

We made a pit stop in Austin to see my Granddad and his new lady-friend, Paula. She is just adorable and makes him so happy. He has been pretty down ever since my Meme passed away (as expected) and Paula seems to bring life back to him!

Saturday we went to a wedding for one of my friends that I have grown up with. It was at this venue out in the country about five minutes from my parent's house, which was awesome. 

The wedding was like a giant reunion for me. Coming from a town of about 1,500, you grow up knowing everyone. We only have one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school, so many of the people at the wedding I have known almost my entire life. It was good to see some teachers and friends I hadn't seen in years!

Sunday morning Chris made (with my Mom's assistance) homemade biscuits and gravy. They were to die for! And you can tell what one of the delicious ingredients was...butter! The rest of the day we literally laid around all day. I took a nap and finally changed out of my pajamas around 2:00pm.

Monday it was time to come back to reality. Wrigley was totally over being in the car about 30 minutes in. He cracks me up!
How was your weekend?! Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Pinterest Recipes: Hits and Misses

1. Hit - like a major hit. I cook these for any gathering we are having and they are the first thing gone. I made them yesterday for a retirement party at school and they were delicious! I mean, anything wrapped in bacon is delicious, right?

Recipe here.

2. Hit - well my version was. There is no source, but I adapted based on the picture. I might or might not have used string cheese as the filling...

You can read my modified version of this recipe here.

3. Miss - I think I a) messed up the butternut squash somehow by adding too much olive oil, b) wasn't patient enough, and c) just don't care for the taste. Real noodles it is for the Tucker household. 

Recipe here.

4. Miss - once again, I don't think I was patient enough. I cooked the potato for the recommended time and they were still hard as a rock. Fail.

Recipe here. 

PS: I obviously did not write the comment on that pin.

5. Hit hit hit - SO good! Baked corn dogs with turkey dogs. I could eat them all day long!

Recipe here.

6. Hit, but also a MAJOR miss - after scarfing half the batch of these babies I found out I was highly allergic to flax seed. That was quite the adventure of hives and a swollen throat! If you are not allergic to anything in this recipe, then these are a must make!

Recipe here.

7. Hit - I made this fish last night and it was mouth-watering. Chris's parents gave us some fresh fish they caught this weekend and I remembered I had just pinned this pin, so we tried it out. So good, and so easy...and fast!

Recipe here.

8. Hit - my most used and favorite Pinterest recipe yet are these yellow cake cookies. You can use the same ingredients with any type of cake mix and I have yet to meet a cookie made this way that I didn't like.

Recipe here.

9. Miss - When I tried to roll up my corn tortillas, they just kept cracking. It was a huge fail and so I just tore up all the tortillas and threw it all in a Pyrex dish and baked it. It was gross. Definite miss. And to be honest, I even deleted the pin so I had to go back and find it.

Recipe here.

10. Miss - unless you eat them before you freeze them...then they are a win! I just didn't like the texture of the frozen banana, but not frozen, they were delicious. Obviously though, right?

Recipe here.

Well, there you have it, ten of my Pinterest recipe hits and misses.

If you're feeling up to it, you can follow me:

Pinterest: SarahTuckerUp

Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker

Happy Thursday!
And don't forget to link up with yesterday's WIWW post!

WIWW: Palazzo Pants + Link Up

I found these pants at Ross a couple weeks ago for $11. I wore them last week to school and a kindergartner asked me why I was wearing my pajamas to school. Touche, little one, touche. Not only are they are comfy as pj's, but they are are cool enough to wear in these hot summer spring months. 
The only random I have for today is that there are 12.5 days of school left and I couldn't be more ready! Now for the link up! - All I ask is you link back to my blog and link to a specific post. 
- Write about something fashion related :)
PS: Thanks to everyone who has been linking up! After all this state re-testing/end of the year activities are done, I will get my life back and be able to read all my blogs again! Sorry for the lack in replies to posts and comments!
And if you're feeling up to it, you can follow me:
Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker

Happy Wednesday! 

Thank you for linking up!

To see other WIWW posts, click {here}

Linking up with Because Shanna Said So, Get Your Pretty On, The Pleated Poppy. 

An InLinkz Link-up

San Francisco Recommendations

In a little less than a month Chris and I are headed to lovely California for a week long vacation. While we are there, I want to enjoy all the city has to offer, but I also want to hit up a lot of local spots as well. I love going to the tourist spots, but I love eating at the local restaurants where the lines are not a mile long. This girl loves to eat, but she does not want to wait for her food!
We are spending a day in Napa and plan on visiting Alcatraz also. So please, any suggestions are welcome!

A Blate and a New Vehicle

This was a big weekend in the Tucker house. A big, big weekend.
Blogging is so weird. Never did I imagine meeting girls who I truly call real-life friends. It is the craziest thing how you start this little website and then you meet people who will be in your life forever.
Take Ashley for example. Somehow I found her blog last year (or she found me...can't remember) and over the course of a year we have become real life friends. The only weird thing was that we had never actually met in person; until Friday!
Ashley was in town for some photo-shoots (she is an awesome photographer!) and I offered up my house for her to stay! This is how my conversation with Chris went:
Me: So can my friend from Houston stay with us Friday night? Chris: Sure! Me: Okay! Chris: Have you ever met this "so called friend" in person? Or is this one of those blogger things? Me: (Giant smile...)
Ashley, Chris, and I, and another couple, met at a Mexican food place right by our house. It was like we had known each other forever and when our friends found out we were just meeting for the first time they couldn't believe it! We just said, "It's a blog thing!" Ha!
Saturday morning we woke up and I took Ashley to the square in McKinney. If you've ever been, you know how amazing it is, and I think it almost convinced her to move here :)
Saturday afternoon Chris's company was having their 25th anniversary picnic (a huge freaking extravaganza) and so Ashley went to Ikea while we went to the picnic.

The picnic was like a miniature state fair. It was amazing!

This is when the weekend gets even more exciting! After meeting up with Ashley one last time, we decide to go test drive trucks. Chris had a 2002 Tahoe that we knew wasn't going to last forever and we really wanted to get a truck and pay it off before kiddos come.

And then the test driving turned into talking about buying and the talking led to more test driving and then that all led to seven hours of being in the dealership and that led to buying our first car as adults! Both of our cars were bought/given to us by our parents (so thankful for that, parents!), so we have not had a car payment for two years. And now we Chris is happy to say we are the proud owners of a new truck! Chris is so deserving and works so hard for our family and I am so glad we are blessed to be able to give him his dream truck.
Sunday we went to church where I finally met Jenn (hi Jenn!) and then ran some eraands. Chris ran into work and I mowed the lawn. Blah.
Now it is Monday...only two more Monday's and then it is summer vacation!! Woo hoo!
And if you're feeling up to it, you can follow me:
Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker
Linking up with Leeann & Kimberlee!

I confess..

- This picture. Oh my word!

- This picture caught my eye because I obviously fell in love with a baseball player, but the fact that he is throwing with the wrong foot totally ruins it for me. 

- I devoured an entire medium pizza by myself last night while Chris was having a guy's night. - I am in survival mode these last couple weeks before summer. - I am a great blogger the first half of the week and the last half, I struggle. - This sign at our CiCi's cracked Chris and I up! - Wrigley has been in a mood lately. I think he is hitting his teenage years! - I looked up on care.com to see if I wanted to nanny this summer. After about two minutes I woke up from that terrible idea! What do you confess?!

And if you're feeling up to it, you can follow me:
Instagram @SarahTuckerUp Twitter @MrsSarahTucker
PS: Don't forget to link up with me for WIWW right here!