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The First TPT Conference!
Where do I even begin to describe our conference experience?!?!
The day started off with a fabulous keynote by Amy from tpt (whom we absolutely love!), the absolutely precious Deanna Jump, John the CEO, and Paul the founder of tpt! Yes, he does exist! haha Throughout the keynote, we were reminded of our mission as educators and how tpt has changed our lives. The keynote also made me feel extremely honored to be a part of a community of educators that supports one another and shares the same passion for education. Paul talked about how he only wanted tpt to consist of good people. Let me just say, my cousins and I were in a ballroom filled with good people! We laughed, cried, and cheered with these incredible individuals.
We LOVE LOVE LOVE Deanna Jump! Our sweet friend Ashley from Schroeder Shenanigans in 2nd has created an adorable freebie that states Deanna's powerful keynote message. Click the image below to grab this freebie in Ashley's tpt store.
Afterwards, it was time to break out into sessions. The sessions were phenomenal! Spending the day with Deanna Jump, DeeDee Wills, Amanda from One Extra Degree, Jenn from tpt, Nikki from Melonheadz, Erica Bohrer, Cara Carroll, Jennifer from First Grade Blue Skies, and Mel D was an absolute treat! They are simply the best!
Nikki from Melonheadz is amazing! She is one of the most kind, humble, inspiring people I've ever met. My cousins and I felt honored to be present while she shared her story and insight with us. We all three just had to go up afterwards and give her a big hug. :)
Work hard! Play hard!
Tpt generously provided a happy hour after the sessions where we met more wonderful people.
Another pic with our sweet friend Rachelle from What the teacher wants. LOVE HER!
Kimberly Geswein from KG Fonts!
Maria from Kindercraze!
Another pic with Hope King because we love her and she is absolutely precious!!!
Our sweet Red Raider friend Marcy from Saddle up for second grade! Guns up!
We even had our picture taken with Paul (the FOUNDER of TPT!!!)
All in all, the tpt conference was a unique experience that we were fortunate to be a part of. Both I Teach K and TPT conferences are definitely penciled in our planners for summer 2015!
- Lisa
From Amy and Lisa's Point of View
So, Monday through Thursday we attended our conference. Ok, so we might have done a few things that might not be considered sessions. But they were educational, right?
Last year, we went to the conference. So, we knew we were headed back to see a few of our very favorite teachers from all over the country.
We hoped Laura would love the conference. After all, she was in full-court press Mom mode trying to get her oldest off to college soon.
We went to see these amazing teachers at work. And, boy howdy, do they work hard!
Believe it or not, they do not all say y'all? But we didn't discriminate.
Recognize these awesome teachers? We bet you do.
We got up at 5 in the morning to see the ever-so-charming and talented Marc Brown. Our favorite quote from him, "If I ran the zoo, all teachers would make more money than movie stars because what they do is so much more important." Marc is the creator of Arthur. But you already knew that.
What we learned:
Teachers excited about learning and teaching!
We wish we could be in the classes of Rachelle, Hope, Mr. Greg and so many others!
We never get tired of hugs.
We like Sprinkles cupcakes. Which doesn't surprise us because we love glitter.
Laura and Amy are too old for this many days and nights in Vegas.
We like to chat it up with the waiter at Rao to find out the celebrity scoop.
Oh, we are getting off track…….again.
What we missed:
Sonic Happy Hour
Celine Di-OFF
Our own beds
Elevator-free days
Most of all, our sweet families back in the Lone Star State.
Last year, we went to the conference. So, we knew we were headed back to see a few of our very favorite teachers from all over the country.
We hoped Laura would love the conference. After all, she was in full-court press Mom mode trying to get her oldest off to college soon.
We went to see these amazing teachers at work. And, boy howdy, do they work hard!
Believe it or not, they do not all say y'all? But we didn't discriminate.
Rachelle from What the Teacher Wants
Hope from Second Grade Shenanigans
Kathleen from Growing Kinders
Cara from The First Grade Parade
Erica from Erica's Ed-Ventures
Deanna from Mrs. Jump's Class
Mr. Greg and The Mister from Kindergarten Smorgasbord
Celine Dion
Celine Di-OFF
We got up at 5 in the morning to see the ever-so-charming and talented Marc Brown. Our favorite quote from him, "If I ran the zoo, all teachers would make more money than movie stars because what they do is so much more important." Marc is the creator of Arthur. But you already knew that.
What we learned:
Teachers excited about learning and teaching!
We wish we could be in the classes of Rachelle, Hope, Mr. Greg and so many others!
We never get tired of hugs.
We like Sprinkles cupcakes. Which doesn't surprise us because we love glitter.
Laura and Amy are too old for this many days and nights in Vegas.
Oh, we are getting off track…….again.
What we missed:
Sonic Happy Hour
Celine Di-OFF
Our own beds
Elevator-free days
Most of all, our sweet families back in the Lone Star State.
Laura, Paul, Amy and Lisa
From Laura's Point of View:
The name All Y'all Need came about from playing with our first initials - Amy, Laura, and Lisa. All. Amy and Laura are sisters, and Lisa is their cousin. Amy is a librarian, Laura is a speech path, and Lisa teaches Kg. Lisa's mom, Billie, also went to Vegas. So sometimes we were BALL. And when Amy and Lisa were together, it was AL. Laura and Lisa were LL. And when we met Paul….well, it was ALL with Paul. We are from Texas, so we must always say y'all.
We all got to Vegas on July 4 along with 329,196 other visitors. The Venetian is wonderful! I wish Disney would have hotel rooms this big for their prices!
We headed out to the old-school Flamingo to see Olivia Newton-John! Lisa was NOT AT ALL excited. But, ONJ was a class act - humble, gracious, talented, pretty… We had forgotten some of the country songs she sang. Please Mr. Please, anyone?
The Strip was a blur of people and fireworks. Inside a construction tunnel, Billie unintentionally broke up a fight because she reminded the guys of their mothers.
We slept in on Saturday because we are old. Except for Lisa.
And, this was Celine Dion night! Celine was the whole reason Billie came along. We got dressed up, went to Caesar's Palace, and wondered why the doors weren't open. Red flag, anyone?
Meanwhile, Amy and Lisa were connecting with Kindergarten Smorgasboard through Insta. Pretty much forgetting about Celine totally. Just before showtime, the ushers - followed by security guards - came out to announce the show was canceled. We do not believe Celine was really sick. We say she pulled a diva move. She is now and forever Celine Di-OFF!
The fun thing that happened was that Mr. Greg and The Mister wanted to ride The High Roller, and invited us to tag along. So, tag we did. The High Roller is a must-do!
Sunday morning Lisa was talking to Mrs. Balius through Insta. We set off to meet Mrs. Balius at The Bellagio. It was my favorite hotel with the flowers and glass art.
Sunday night's show was "Love" - The Beatles, Cirque du Soleil… Billie loved the show. I like it in retrospect, but I felt like it was overwhelming - stuff and people coming from everywhere. My favorite scene was "Something".
Afterwards, we went to The Cosmopolitan and walked around (fancy schmancy). When we left, there was a girl outside in a headdress, pasties, a thong, and heels. So sad. I thought about the Colin Raye song "I Think About You" often.
Next up - the SDE conferences and more fangirl sightings!
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