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My Teacher Heart is Full – I love my teacher friends

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Sigh.  My poor blog has been so neglected.  
My TPT store has been so neglected. 
My teacher slash blogger slash instagram’er slash TPT’er heart have been SO neglected.
Until this week.
Fact: I’ve been MIA . . .
{thank you for your sweet well wishes as I’ve made my way back! xoxo}
 . . .but I’ve fancied up my store front this week thanks to a great tutorial by Christi at Ms. Fultz’s Corner!!
Fact: I’m back, I swear. . .
{. . . and NERD ALERT: Adjectives and Adverbs are on their way!!}
Fact: I’m {officially} going to Vegas this summer with hundreds of my teacher friends.
click HERE for a recap of my AMAZING week on cloud ten in Vegas last year!
I can NOT flippin WAIT for another week surrounded by my “people” who love and appreciate and are passionate about everything that I love and appreciate and am passionate about!!
Fact: Together – we are ALL better.  
No matter if it’s in your personal life, in your classroom, on your blogging journey, in good times or in bad. . . find a hand to hold, and let someone hold yours, because, TOGETHER WE ARE BETTER.
I knew that.  But a sweet, dear, RIDICULOUSLY supportive {in the I’m going to drag your booty off of the couch and guide you right back into the thick of all things you LOVE while holding you afloat kind of way} friend of mine reminded me of that this week loudly and clearly. 
I cannot begin to tell you how thankful I am for the amazing friends and family that I have in my life – but past that, I cannot begin to tell you how forever grateful that this little ol’ blog of mine – that I started originally to just put my crazy thoughts and ideas in one place because I love to write and share about what I’m passionate – that this little blog has brought so many AMAZING opportunities and PEOPLE into my life.  
Enter Angie Olson.  
Fact: I love my #bloggybestie, Angie Olson.
Y’all.  I can’t say enough about what an AMAZING person this beautiful and TALENTED girl is!   She’s the best bloggy pal with whom you’d ever want to collaborate.  She’s the hardest worker {and OMG most talented teacher author everrrrr} you will EVER meet.  She’s the most REAL and most GENUINE person who guarantees your heart a hug – no matter the distance between the two of you.  And – {enter sappy tears here} she’s the best friend you could EVER wish to have in your life.  Lucky for me – my blog and my TPT’ing journey have led me right to her.  I could NOT be more thankful to have a forever FRIEND {and so much more than that} in my life.    
#sorrynotsorry for the sappy.  just being real <3 
Moving past the sappy. . . 
Part of my coming back to life my blogging/TPT/creating journey this week includes BIG PLANS that Angie and I have been planning this week as we have BOTH reached 3,000 followers in our TPT stores! WHAT?!?! We are both ridiculously thankful for ALL of you – and without stepping on our own toes – I’m going to leave it at that.  This week we will be bringing you more and more details about what we have in store just for YOU!! <3 Angie and I cannot WAIT to share our big plans with all of you!
Additionally, this week, my teacher heart could not WAIT to get to see, chat with, and MEET some of my favorite Northeastern Ohio bloggy friends! 
{below image credit to Tami!!}
My sweet friend Tami, from OH-So-Blessed planned an absolutely fantastic meet-up for us all to get together and chat all things teaching, blogging, TPT, and even a bit of style, too!   It was just what my teacher heart batteries needed to continue re-charging! We had so so much fun!
I actually put on makeup – took longer than 5 minutes to get dressed – and actually felt pretty good, too! <3

We met at a DELICIOUS {omg – how did I forget to take a picture of my food} Italian restaurant called Leo’s Ristorante in Warren, OH.  There were bloggers from ALL over OH that made the drive!

Tami had it planned to a T! Check out our adorable name tags! I was so thankful for the IG pictures to help recognize all of the loves who I follow and whose business and pictures I love to {like} every day!

Here’s the party planner herself!! Tami is the sweetest, most ORGANIZED gal you’ll ever meet and her sweet and SO super positive energy is SO contagious! I LOVE that we got to hang out again yesterday and {WOOT WOOT!} she’s going to Vegas, too!!

 Look how perfect our little place settings were! Complete with number 2 pencil cupcakes that were made by a 4th grader!! She even has her own little cupcake business! Amazing!

One of my most FAVORITE highlights of the day was getting to meet someone about whose TEACHING AMAZINGNESS I have heard for YEARS.   . . . My forever teaching teamie, Emily – from Polka Dots Please – has told me for years and years and years and years and years about her AMAZING co-op teacher that taught her {and then Emily shared with me} SO SO much about teaching.    Y’all.  Diane is AMAZING.  She’s hilarious.  She’s BEAUTIFUL.  She’s a BRILLIANT educator.  And she has the most amazing enthusiasm and passion for our field.  I am THRILLED that we finally got to meet!!  ANNNND I’m excited that she is going to be starting her own blog to pair up with her own TPT store, too, SO super soon!! <3

{SOOO glad that we got to meet, Romo!! – Em, you were ridiculously missed!!}

It was SUCH a perfect day for a NEOhio meet-up with my Ohio loves – don’t worry, I was collectively referred to as a buckeye once during dinner, but the Nittany Lion clarified immediately hehe.  But I DO love the networks and FRIENDS that I have made in Ohio <3 I will forever be thankful for each and every one of them!!

 And now, with a full teacher heart, my teaching slash blogging slash TPT’ing batteries are recharged and ready to GO!   This journey has brought so much love into my life.  This journey continues to be my passion.  I can never find enough {or the perfect} words to tell you how much each and every step of the way has meant to me.  I am thankful for all that I’ve learned – for the relationships that I’ve made – for the fact that I am a better TEACHER now than every before – and that this network of teacher authors provides such a CONSTANT and never-ending support system that is just a click, post, or text away –  NO MATTER WHAT.

Thank you all for sticking with me and for listening to me pour out my heart about more that I LOVE and cherish about this blogging journey.  YOU ALL  – my readers and followers – ALSO play such a huge part in filling and recharging my teacher heart and I THANK you from the bottom of it.
Happy Sunday, my friends.  🙂

Comments

  1. 1

    Tami says

    WHAT AN AMAZING DAY IT WAS!!! I am so glad you were able to come again!! I am also glad that we could play a part in helping to recharge your batteries! We all need that support and love from one another and it is just another reason I am so thankful for this community we are in! I can't wait to do it all over again IN VEGAS!! and I can't wait to meet the amazing Angie too! You two are a powerhouse! I am anxiously awaiting the reveal for your big plans – I just know it is going to be FAB!!
    Have a fabulous day, my dear! <3

  5. 5

    One Giggle At A Time says

    Ashley, you are too kind! I am overwhelmed (typing through tears here) by your beautiful words! It truly was an amazing day and I am so thankful to have found friends who share the same passion as I do for taking little minds and hearts and connecting with them for a lifetime! xxoo I cannot wait to share this new portion of my journey with you. (And my Emily of course!)

  6. 6

    Emily Yerty says

    I love that I can tell you were actually smiling when you wrote this! Now I just have to see it in person 🙂 So excited for a reunion with you and Romo, my teaching loves! xxoo

  7. 7

    Angie Olson says

    Tears. Seriously tears. I think I have read this post three times now today. I am so incredibly thankful that our paths have crossed and that you have been put in my life. To find another teacher who shares the same amount of passion and excitement as yourself is priceless! I can't wait for Vegas and I am really looking forward to our collaborative work we get to do together this week! Love ya #bloggybestie #cloudten #isitjulyyet

  8. 8

    C Hath says

    Love this!! You are an amazing person Ashley!! I am so glad that you're back, and that your batteries are recharged! I can't wait to see the amazing things that you have planned for this week. So glad that you were able to meet up with some amazing teachers too!! #isitjulyyet <3