Here’s how I did in May…
Check 5 more items off the house updates list. I didn’t do very well with house stuff this month. I did clean up the back patio and put up a shelf in Charlotte’s room, so I’ll give myself credit for 2/5 things.
Give this blog a facelift. Done! If you’re reading this post from an RSS reader, click on over to see the new look. It’s pretty minimal compared to some of my previous blog designs, but I’m happy with it.
And here’s what I’m tackling in June…
30 Days of Creativity. I started this several years ago as part of a larger effort, and in recent years I’ve kept it up as a personal challenge to myself each June. Every day I’ll strive to do something creative — sew, stitch, draw, etc — and post weekly updates. I plan to use this as an opportunity to stretch myself a bit as well into some new things, instead of always defaulting to cross stitch or sewing.
Take the kids to the pool. Our first visit to the “frog slide pool” (aka our neighborhood pool) in early May was so chilly that Emma lasted about 15 minutes and I didn’t bother to take Charlotte in. It’s been a month so the water will be much warmer now and I really want Charlotte to have her first swimming experience! I’ll be shocked if this doesn’t happen sometime (or multiple times) in June, but I’m putting it on the list anyway.
Figure out summer travel plans. Jose and I are going on vacation in August and we need to nail down where and when. Obviously it needs to be somewhere that won’t have 100-degree temperatures so we can get a break from the August heat! And preferably somewhere super relaxing. Rockies? Pacific Northwest? Hmm…
Get a new paper planner. I’ve been using the Get to Work Book for the last year to manage personal projects and tasks (not for work) and it has single-handedly made me fall in love with paper planners again. It had been years since I’d used one, but I really found myself relying on it — and in many ways it was a more effective planning tool for my personal life and goals than Evernote or other digital task list apps. I definitely want to continue with a paper planner of some sort. The Get to Work Book is very close to what I want but it’s pretty bulky and didn’t wear well as the year went on, so I want to look at other options before deciding whether to buy another one.
I bought Whitney English’s paper planner last summer but after a few months I stopped using it because it was so big and clunky. Not functional for me. I have since gone back to a typical moleskine and have adopted a modified bullet journal. Works *so* much better for me and I can tailor how I need to. Worth checking out!
Yeah, I’ve definitely considered moleskine and bullet journal…but I feel like the overhead associated with setting it up might put me off. Hmm.