June Project Life

Monday, January 30, 2017


Yup, that's June 2016 I'm speaking of... Recently I mentioned that I lost interest in Project Life last year. I'm going to use the PL App to do the rest of 2016, but I had already printed out some beach pictures.

My "Good Times" layout is on the left of the album, and this pocket page is on the right. I used it to document the rest of June (other than our Isle of Palms trip). We had breakfast at Tupelo Honey Cafe, I wore some LuLaRoe, hubby cleaned up my car for me, I helped a friend run her yoga booth at a local festival, and I got the cutest $2 dish towel from Walmart!


For the beach trip I used the back of the pocket page and created a 6x12 pocket page on the right side. I just cut up a Design A pocket page. Despite a bad experience at our hotel and having to find another one that night, we had an awesome trip! We ate at local places, relaxed, watched the sunrises, and hung out at the beach.


I used the back of my 6x12 pocket page to document our morning in Charleston and it faces my "Beach Vibes" 12x12 layout on the right.


I will get caught up on 2016 PL! I will get caught up on 2016 PL! I will get caught up on 2016 PL!

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Beach Vibes

Thursday, January 26, 2017


I wish I was at the beach right now... it's currently cold and rainy here at home! Part of my crafty goals for 2017 is to complete 1 or 2 challenges from the Paper Issues blog. I'm part of their Facebook group and they're always posting lots of inspiration!

I used this challenge to create a page for our beach trip to Isle of Palms last June. I used Project Life pages to document the rest of the trip and I'll show them to you on Monday.


Here's the original sketch:


I've been hoarding this little candy embellishment for a while!


This 3x4 card is from a cut apart 12x12 page. Love it!


And you know I love a pretty gold pack of Thickers ;)


Do you participate in scrapbook challenges? If so, where?

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November and December Reads

Monday, January 23, 2017


I read several good books in November and December!



The Two-Family House by Lynda Cohen Loigman was really good! I love reading multigenerational novels. This one has a twist, though!

I read through When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi very quickly while we were on a weekend trip away. This memoir is about a neurosurgeon that is diagnosed with stage IV cancer. He has just a short time to live and has to figure out what really matters in those final weeks. Quick read.

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly was AMAZING. I've read a few historical fiction books about World War 2 in the past year or so and I can't get enough. This book focuses on 3 girls - a volunteer/socialite in New York, a Polish teenager, and a German doctor that gets hired at a Nazi concentration camp. Of course their lives intertwine (and you know that's my favorite!).

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi is a book that covers seven generations of a family. There's a lot of unfamiliar names to keep up with but I was able to pretty well. This book has won a TON of awards.

The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain is about a family that lives a lie until one of the kids starts digging for answers. I did figure out part of it, but some of it was a surprise. Good read.

I got News of the World by Paulette Jiles for just $2.99 (gotta love those daily Kindle deals!) and couldn't put it down!!

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2017 Crafty Goals

Monday, January 16, 2017


So I kind of lost interest in Project Life last summer... and I haven't finished anything past May. The problem is, I absolutely LOVE the finished product of Project Life. I love looking back through all the fun little things we do. I feel like those little moments are lost when I don't do Project Life.

So what's a girl to do?


Right now I think I'm going to use the Project Life app to finish monthly layouts for 2016. I'll have them printed as 12x12's (maybe from Persnickety Prints? I'm open to suggestions!) and then add them to my scrapbook album. I may embellish them when I get the prints... since I haven't tried this before, I don't know how that will look and if it's possible. I'm really liking this idea because I could also do some 12x12's and have more freedom to place them anywhere in the album.

If I like the app, I may do a page for each week in 2017 (1 page usually, but possibly a double page layout if needed). Again, the freedom to be able to add in 12x12's wherever I want is very appealing.

I want to keep the daily aspect of my scrapbooking pretty simple and have more time to work on some project albums. I want to get going on some Disney pages, camping mini album, and more 12x12s. I want to do some monthly challenges at Paper Issues and use more sketches from Simple Scrapper.

I'd like to make more cards next year and use my stamps and inks more. I recently channeled my inner Jennifer McGuire and organized my stamps (LOVE!!!)


I'd also like to knit or crochet something (maybe I'll finish that blanket that's been sitting beside the couch for 5 years - oops!)

What are your crafty goals for 2017?

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One Little Word

Thursday, January 12, 2017


I've been thinking about my One Little Word (OLW) for a couple of weeks and am going with (re)focus. Without going into too many details, I feel like I need to refocus on some things I've let slide. I need to focus my energy on my days off and be productive. I need to focus on what I actually want to accomplish instead of wasting time online. I need to focus on healthy habits for myself.


I'm not taking Ali Edwards' class because I never seem to keep up with it. I don't feel the need to make an album about my OLW but want to keep it visible. I printed out this picture and put it in my Happy Planner so I'll see it every day.

What's your One Little Word this year? How do you keep it in mind throughout the year?

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How to Get More Reading Done

Thursday, January 5, 2017


So I actually surpassed my reading goal of 30 in 2016! For 2017 I've set a goal of 48 (4 per month). I think it's doable, but it will stretch me a little bit and force me to be more consistent. I read all the time when I was younger but quit reading for pleasure sometime in pharmacy school. I had enough to read during school! It's taken me years to get back into a reading routine and I'm so glad I finally got back into it.



I thought it might be helpful if I shared how I've made reading a part of my life and where I get all these books!

How to get more reading done:


1. read on your lunch break *this one is huge for me - and it stops the endless Facebook/Instagram scroll that I would normally do*
2. read before bed *I don't always do this, but I'm always glad when I do*
3. read while drinking coffee/tea in the morning
4. read when you're in the carpool line/Starbucks line/whatever line
5. keep a list of books you want to read so you aren't scrambling to find your next book *I use Goodreads for this*
6. give yourself permission to quit reading a book if you don't like it
7. keep your Kindle/current paperback in your purse so you always have it with you
8. be part of a reading community (Goodreads, a Facebook group, neighborhood Book Club)
9. audiobooks on your commute or while crafting, cleaning, exercising
10. ask friends for book recommendations


Where do I find all of these books?

I'm a big fan of Anne Bogel, aka Modern Mrs. Darcy. This year she put together 2 fun reading challenge lists, she has a podcast called What Should I Read Next? where she interviews people and performed literary matchmaking, and she has a daily Kindle deals email. I'll be honest y'all - this daily email is dangerous. Best selling books for $2 and $3?! If it's a great deal, I sometimes buy the book. Other times, I search for it as a library eBook (see below!)

My favorite way to get books is for free! I downloaded the Overdrive app and signed in with my local library card. I can borrow Kindle books for 2-3 weeks (it's set by the publisher/library). You can put a hold on a book and it will email you when it's ready for you to check out. I've found 2 downsides to this method - (1) you can't always get the book you want when you want it (2) the book won't be readable anymore after the expiration date... so if you won't be done in time, you have to put your kindle on airplane mode. I didn't realize the date was coming up (even though I got an email reminding me!!) and only got through 80% of a book. I immediately put another hold on it, but had to wait 2 months to read the other 20%!!

I pin things to my board called The Library on Pinterest too! I have book lists and more pinned there.

This year, I tried audiobooks for the first time. You can get an Audible subscription (and there are several membership plans from which to choose) or borrow them from Overdrive. I've found that I prefer non-fiction books on audio, but many people like fiction as well. I get annoyed by the reader's voice when they try to speak as different characters. I know, I'm weird.

I did a reading challenge in 2015 where I chose my own books from a list of prompts. It was fun and got me to read books I might not have chosen otherwise. It definitely helped me get back into reading on a regular basis. If reading isn't a big part of your life currently, you might want to start with a challenge. I found this "master list" of reading challenges that might be helpful!

If you want to track your books, consider Goodreads. You can connect with friends, rate/review your books, keep a running "to be read" list so you don't forget good titles, and join groups. Friend me if you're on Goodreads!

Any tips you'd like to share?

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December Daily Days 28 - 31

Monday, January 2, 2017


My first DD is completed and I love it!

Day 28 - I went to visit Tommy one more time before he headed back to Indiana.


Day 29 - One of my high school friends passed away in November, so a few of us got together after the holidays to reminisce and hang out.


Day 30 - pajamas all day, coffee, planning, reading, relaxing, AHHH.


Day 30 - New Year's Eve!




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