My fun package for today

I love getting mail! Whether it is a post card, letter or a package (the packages are my favorite!) I love opening the mailbox and seeing my name on an envelope or box. Today, I got a package!

I am going on a Scrapbook Weekend soon and I ordered an item for that and some pens. Frixion Gel Erasable Pens -multi-color 7 pack. Did I need the pens? No, but then when do any of us planner geeks need more than one pencil and one ink pen? And we certainly don't need 50 rolls of washi tape. Or personalized stickers.

Here they are!

I already started using them in my Passion Planner and in my Arc notebook making notes for my committee meeting I have next week. I even erased with them too. Squuueeeaaallll! That was so cool. I haven't used an erasable pen since high school or college and the results were not this good.

Take a look.

I wrote the wrong the year. How shall I fix it?

Yay! I can erase it!! Look at that!!

So that is my highlight for today. With all the hubub in the country these days, I have no problem with being excited over a new pack of pens that erase. We all need our distractions. Today, these are mine. Plus, the new pens will come in handy for writing letters to my state and national leaders. :)

Take care of yourselves. What is your favorite distraction? What is your favorite pen?

New Planner - What Do I Do Now?

The New Year is so exciting. We have a clean slate of opportunities. We put the past year behind us and we are ready for the wonder and opportunities of the new year.

You bought a new planner for 2017. You have looked on Pinterest for ideas on how to set it up or decorate it and there is a whole world of planner geeks on social media. It can get overwhelming and you may not know where to start. I have a few tips that I have learned.

Some people decorate every inch of their planner and to me it seems very little is written on the pages. That works for some people and good for them. Have at it! If you don't feel you are the creative or artsy type, don't fret! You make your planner fit you.

First thing - breathe. Take a deep breath and relax. I love filling out my planner. It is very relaxing to me because it means I can not think about those tasks 24/7. They are written down and they won't be forgotten, because i will check my planner every day.

Second, use a pencil. Trust me, you'll feel better. Take a pencil and write in all known appointments, work schedules, school schedules, family events, get togethers, holidays, etc. If you know something is coming up, but you don't have a set date yet, like a baby or bridal shower, write a note at the start of the month you think the event will be to look for the invite to come in the mail. This is a great way to get an idea of what time you will have available for vacations or weekend getaways.

Third, how do you want these events to stand out, if at all. If you find yourself constantly marking these out and re-writing you may want to only use pencil in your planner. If you love ink, there are erasable pens. Frixion makes erasable pens that I have heard rave reviews about. I may need to add them to my stash. Do you want to highlight appointments? Would you like to write on stickers or just decorate the page? Some people color code items. Personally, I only color code based on person. For example, appointments or events that are primarily for me, I highlight orange. It doesn't matter if it is a doctor's appointment, volunteer shift or a church meeting. Now some people color code by activity. That could work if the planner is just for you and not for family members. So work may be purple, church may be yellow, housework is green, volunteer work is pink, doctor appointments are red. Some people color code by highlighter or by pen/marker.

For this particular week, appointments/activities are highlighted.

Fourth, do you want to decorate your pages? Or do you just want to decorate birthdays and holidays? Or nothing at all. My suggestion to you is start slowly. If you like the idea of highlighters, then buy a couple of highlighters and use those for a week or even a month. If that works for you, you found your thing! If you feel you need more, then think about holiday/birthday stickers or are do you a favorite animal/icon? Like, do you love owls? There are lots of great owl stickers out there you could get to put your personal touch on the pages. Are you crazy about purple? Well, you could lose your mind with washi tape and stickers in that royal color. Start slow. Try one thing at a time and do not feel pressure to do anything that is not calling your name.

So far in 2017 I have not done much decorating. For this particular weekend, I used some washi tape along the time line and simple weekend banner sticker across Saturday and Sunday.

I can always use some motivation so I like to include motivational stickers or hand written quotes on each week.

Fifth, think about cost. It is so easy to add things to your Etsy cart and your craft store shopping basket and not think about cost. Most planners are not very cheap. My Passion Planner was $30. PP does offer sales throughout the year, so you can subscribe to their newsletter or follow them on social media to find out when items are going on sale. Stickers, tape and pens/markers can get expensive fast. Make a wish list of things you would like to purchase.  Then shop around on Etsy or in craft stores and get an idea of cost. Join their newsletters to get coupons or find out when items are going on sale. Then buy what you really want and what fits your budget. And only purchase what you will use in a reasonable amount of time. I say that as someone who has quite a few rolls of washi tapes and sheets of stickers that are not being used right now.

I hope these tips are helpful. The important thing to remember is to have fun with this. Take your time, enjoy the process and you never know, you just might find you have a creative streak.

Show me what you got!

Going Classic

New Year, new planner. Who am I kidding? I usually change planners half way through the year. Typically I get undated planners or planners that allow for a July/August start. Usually I set up my calendar for August to June since my daughter's school usually starts in August. I decided to go crazy in 2017 and actually start my planner with a January date!

In the past I have used Filofax, Erin Condren Life Planner, Planner Pad and Passion Planner. Recently I was using the compact size of the Passion Planner. For 2017 I decided to go with the classic size (8x11) Passion Planner.

This is my compact size Passion Planner I used for most of 2016. It fit perfectly in almost all of my bags.

This is the undated classic size Passion Planner.

I used number stickers from etsy shop for the daily dates and washi tape for the "Week of."

For the monthly pages, I used stickers from etsy shop to label each month and hand wrote in the dates.

For my my planner has to be useful. I love stickers, highlighters and markers like the next planner geek, but I need to write down my appointments and my daily to dos. If i don't do that, then nothing gets done. So my decorating is minimal, but helpful. I do have a color coding system of sorts - blue for daughter, orange for me and yellow for hubby. Now those colors are for highlighters only. I use different color washi tape for all sorts of things :)

I hand write in my appointments. I write in events days, weeks, months in advance. I have to. I am extremely involved in our church and we have extended family we spend lots of time with and of course our daughter's schedule, I need to have everything written down so I know when we have free time. I used to update my planner once a week, now I look at it every day and will update it as needed.

So far I am liking the larger size of the planner. I think I will be able to write down more of my daily to do tasks in the day as well as in the blocks at the bottom of the page. I am a homemaker and volunteer so there are tasks to manage from multiple sources. I am sure there will be days when I will washi tape the times because they won't be necessary that day and write out in list form what needs to be done.

I belong to a few planner groups on facebook and there are more and more people who feel overwhelmed and intimidated by ornately decorated planner pages. For some people planners are more like journals and scrapbooks and the decorating is their art form. And then people like me need the planner to get stuff done and any decorating is just to add some color to it. Don't feel like you need to invest in a ton of stickers, markers, pens or highlighters.

I'll write more on that in the next post.

So, I'm going classic in 2017. How about you? What planner or calendar system do you use? Paper? Digital? I would love to hear and see what you use. 

I'm having a bad day...what should I do?

One week ago I had my second surgery on my right wrist. I have been dealing with a constant pain and swelling in the wrist for 7 months. Today, 8 days later, I am able to type this post. The only discomfort I have is from my stitches and the wound itself. It feels so good to write again.

The first prompt of the BlogHer challenge for November is When you're having a bad day with your mental health, what do you do to help yourself?

Over a dozen years ago I was diagnosed with depression. Therapy helped a lot in the beginning then a few years later it became apparent I needed medication. I still taking my medicine faithfully every time and attend therapy a couple of times a month. There are quite a few things I do when I feel myself getting into a funk. First, I make sure I got enough sleep the night before. If I need to take a nap and literally reboot myself, I do that and sometimes that is all I need to get back on track again.

On days when a nap isn't enough, I allow myself to feel whatever is I am feeling. Then, I write. Sometimes it is just making a list of things I would like to do or things that need to get done for a specific event, like Thanksgiving. I leave the house. Even if it is just to the grocery store to pick up a few things, I make sure I get out of the house. A year ago I started karate with my daughter and I really enjoy those sessions. Karate requires a lot of concentration so it is a great way to get out of my own head and focus on something else for an hour.

Another way I cope is eating. It's not the best way and I have to limit myself, but I do enjoy a frosted doughnut with sprinkles from the local grocery store. That with a glass of milk...mmmmm good. I used to go shopping when I felt bad, but I found myself buying things that felt good in the moment and sometimes by the time I got home, realized I didn't need or really want that item at all.

One last thing I do which may seem odd to some, but brings me great joy, writing in my planner. I love planners and calendars! I carry a planner with me at all times and when I am feeling low I look at the upcoming week and start listing things that need to be done. And then I break out the stickers and decorate the pages. It is so pretty and it is very relaxing to me. My planner is my life line so any stickers I use can be pretty, but they must be functional as well.

I would love to hear what you do when you are not feeling all that spunky.

Stickers, Stickers, Stickers

When you delve into the planner obsessed world you realize there are a few things that planners consider a necessity: pens, washi tape, stickers. Lots and lots of stickers. Some people use their planners more like scrapbooks. The pages are filled with stickers, washi tape and fancy writing. Me? I need my planner to be functional. Yes, I do have some pens and washi tape I like to use. But I have so many commitments between myself, daughter, husband and family I need as much space as possible to write everything down. If I do not write it down, there is a good chance it won’t get done.

I do use the calendar on my phone. Specifically I use the Google Calendar. That is mostly for when I am out and about.  It is to convenient to check when the next event is happening to help me keep track of time better.

I do put some stickers on my pages. I like some seasonal ones like colored leaves, acorns, pumpkins, and Christmas trees just to dress up the page a bit. I have ordered personalized stickers from Erin Condren and I am just phanatic about a Etsy shop called Planner Penny. They are removable! She designs Monthly sets to match the color schemes of the Erin Condren Life Planner. They are imaginative and useful. I have a new shipment on the way. I cannot wait for them to arrive. I will post pictures soon.

Above is an example of a layout of a week in my planner.

How do you decorate your calendar/planner?

There are three things I really enjoy: Planners, Purses, and Phootball

Planners - Erin Condren Life Planner (www.erincondren.com)

I love planners. Paper, digital, Iove them all. I just had a conversation with my husband on how I needed to update our family calendar in the kitchen. I said I have three calendars going. 3? Why not just use your phone? I need paper. I just can’t go without a paper planner. Well, the past couple of days i decided to try just the phone calendar. I'm not convinced. we’ll see how it goes. but i do love paper planners and this year my favorite is my ECLP. There are interchangeable covers and i can personalize the covers too. So, even if i decide to go with phone calendar for appointments and such i will always have a paper planner for other things. perhaps this blog?

Purses - I love 31 (www.mythirtyone.com)

A few years ago I was introduced to 31 Bags. 31 is a direct sales company - consultants book parties/shows where the host can earn free and discounted products based on sales at their show. My sister hosted a show and about a year later became a consultant. She has a rapidly growing team and I am a number one customer.

I have several favorite items and right now one of my favorites is Everything Crossbody bag. I love it because i can wear it crossbody, over the shoulder and the wrist. Also my ECLP fits perfectly in the main zipper compartment. AAAAHHHHH! The bag is light weight before I add all my stuff to it and it isn’t much heavier with stuff in it.

More on my other favorites bags will be coming...new catalog starts February 1!

Phootball

I live in the Philly area. Born and bred. I am a Philadelphia Eagles fan. My dad used to have season tickets when the Eagles played in Veterans Stadium. We have made it to the playoffs and even the super bowl a few times, but we haven’t won yet. Not once. Sigh. This past season was disappointing in a lot of ways. Our head coach was fired before the last game of the regular season. We weren’t going to the playoffs so it didn’t matter. However, we did win that last game. This week our new head coach was introduced. He’s a former player and former assistant coach. There is much speculation on how he will fare as head coach.i am optimistic. I don’t have much of a choice. More to come on that as well in the future.

So these are the three things that get me excited and I love talking about. Of course since this is a election year, the candidates get me fired up too. of course it isn’t always because i support them. it is more of a reaction to what they say and the attitudes they project. there will be more, lots more, on them as well.

I look forward to hearing what you think about these things as well too.