New Year...new planner/ Part 2

Welcome to "Part 2" of my post on my Erin Condren life planner! I'm just continuing on with more details.....
There is always a heavy laminated pocket at the back of the planner- great for stuffing invitations, bills, anything "extra" you may have. You also get this perpetual calendar & contacts booklet which I use to write down birthdays and dates we celebrate every year- this can be transferred to your next planner (which I always say I'm going to jot down ALL the birthdays from my old planner to new when I get it and it never seems to happen!) But having this makes it easy to store them in always.

Another awesome feature is this removeable bookmark/ruler! I use in front of the monthly calendar we are in for a quick way to open right to where I need to be....very handy, and durable- just pulls right out and attaches where you want it to go.

You will also see that you can purchase all kinds of accessories to go with your planner....it's like being in the checkout aisle of the grocery store and the CANDY sitting there tempting you. This is the first year I've opted to try one and I chose the mini sticky notes shown below...very happy with these- they clip right into the planner so I can just grab one and stick it on when needed!

I hope I have given you some planner inspiration! I love the size of these planners too, easily fit into a medium sized shoulder bag, and stays together. I made this tray for my desk as a little "happy" spot for me to see each morning...the paper and pencils are Rifle Paper Co...which I love everything they make- always have gorgeous paper products. And the quotation booklet is from Sugarboo Designs, which I've shred before, I just tear a sheet off each day to one of their inspiring quotes :)

***Erin Condren is currently offering 20% several styles of life planners on their website!

Worth checking them out! ****

   If you have any other questions about the planner please leave them in the comments below!

New year...new planner/ Part 1

  So of course this post topic was meant to be shared with you all shortly after New Year's....however, it did not make it then, but it definitely had to be shared because I have such a LOVE for these planners. For those of you unfamiliar with Erin Condren life planners I hope to give you enough info today that you'll be inspired to check out her website or YouTube videos to learn more.

First and foremost, I am a "visual", as well as a "paper & pencil" type girl. A few of my girlfriends solely use tech to log all their appointments/kids' activities/ etc. I've never been able to rely on my phone like that. I like to see the entire month at a time and fill in the "blocks" of days. So if you are a techie- I get it, but if you're the one who needs to physically write it down in a planner, you must check Erin Condren planners out!

There are a plethora of design covers to choose from in the Life Planners!!! You can even choose to personalize your cover with a family photo or your name/monogram.  Last year I chose the metallic cover in the mint & gold combo, this year she introduced rose gold to the metallic collection and there was no passing that option up!!!

I'll try not to post too many pictures in this post, however I do want you all to have a good idea of what one looks like :)

 I love the spiral binding, and details throughout. She always uses a pretty vellum overlay at the front of her planners, which just makes it feel very luxurious & pretty. As you can see there is a place to put your name inside in case you were to lose it.

There's always a monthly layout of the entire year following that page...which is nice to be able to see it all at one glance. I'm not quite sure you can tell from my top picture, but there are coated tabs for each month, as well as a "notes" section. This makes it easy to flip around if needed.

You'll get a few different options when designing your Erin Condren planner. You will always get the full month view, and then you can choose if you want your weeks layed out in horizontal form, like you see in mine above, or vertical form.  This is just personal preference. Again, I tend to use the "whole month calendar" the most, please excuse this next pic below for being cropped somewhat- planners have personal things in them obviously and wanted to share my favorite part of the planner which is the stickers that come in each. There are labeled stickers that say "birthday", "dentist", etc as well as blank stickers that you can write your own appointments on- I LOVE this accessory! So I wanted you to see what they look like in my own planner..

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Sharing some "sweets" in these pics today...I made it a goal of mine this past week to make and decorate Valentine cookies with my son. We all know after their daily sports, homework, dinner and whatever else may be thrown in, it can be a fete to even think about "let's make cookies and decorate them! And- on a school night too!" Well we did it, and it's pretty sweet that he loves to take part in the whole process :)

This precious kitchen towel is from Anthropologie, as always could take one of just about everything from their home collection. Nothing. but. LOVE.

And thanks to my very talented mother, who's become a pro when it comes to cookie decorating, I had these sweet cookies to share as well.

 THIS photo shares some of my son's true creative masterpieces mixed in with mine and mom's...hmm can you tell which one's he did?? Hint- the one with the turquoise on it he calls "the rainbow cookie" and his personal favorite is the one with his name on it :)

This is what it's all about. Creating the memories.

Enjoy this sweet day with your loved ones!

Valentine's Day Inspiration...

Valentine's Day is 5 days away and those of you who know me well know I am a SUCKER for all things holiday! It takes some serious "restraint" for me to not want to throw every seasonal/holiday item I see in Target's little dollar section in the front of their store right into my shopping cart! As I mentioned during Christmas, I know I get these holiday "fuzzies" from my own childhood memories. I remember my mom would always have some little surprise waiting for my brothers and I when we came home from school....it would usually be something chocolate and some years we'd have a small toy sitting right next to our Valentine chocolate :) Now THAT was exciting.

My personal opinion now that I am a mother to a 6 year old son is that this isn't supposed to be Christmas! This is a sweet day to recognize and think about the people you love. Maybe baking cookies for your neighbor, or having your children draw and decorate their own Valentine's for family members or teachers.

Today's post shares a set of 3 heart shaped sticky notepads from one of my favorite lines- Sugarboo Designs. For those of you who aren't familiar with Sugarboo you simply MUST explore their website here.  A mom from Roswell, GA  named Rebecca Puig, is the creator of all the whimsical art you'll see. They offer everything from art prints in 12 X 12 sizes all they way to huge poster-sizes, paper products such as the notepads I'm sharing today, blankets, ceramics, and even sweet melamine plates for your kids to eat from!

For everyone local, they just opened a huge brick & mortar store at the Summit shopping center in Birmingham!!! When I walked through the doors there for the first time I wanted one of every single thing they had. Definitely check it out next time your in Birmingham :)

I've written a few notes to my son on the smallest heart and put them in his lunchbox over the past few weeks- just to give him a little surprise when he was having lunch- and I love how the medium and large pads are lined...very helpful for to- do & grocery lists. The notepad set is $18.

Hope this gets you thinking about your own Valentine's this week!

Hello...and Happy New Year!

 So, it's been a little over 2 months since my last post... I had so many more ideas I wanted to share with you in December, it just became super hectic. I also ended up with strep after a swift four day stint at my son's school running the Santa's Workshop (just a few germs there) and that put me down for about a week- tis the season!

I want you to know that my purpose in this blog is to share with you the things that I love so much and inspire me. I also want you to be able to walk away after reading my posts with something that inspires you or helps you in some way. I will be working hard to try and stay more consistent with my posts, and not leave you hanging quite so long!

So here's to 2016, there's something about starting a new year that gives us all a sense of a fresh start to everything. New goals, new routines, something different.

I myself am trying to nail down some type of workout routine, as well as determine how on earth I can be a part of the retail world now that I am out of my own shop.

This week I will be sharing some fun ideas for the upcoming Valentine's holiday this weekend....stay tuned!

Gift Ideas for Teachers this holiday season...

 



I snapped this photo of a very special angel ornament of mine because it is what I think best represents the teachers I've known and worked with, as well as the ones I've gotten to know at my son's school the past two years.  Having taught myself for 5 years, I've had the chance to be in their shoes, and it is quite a job to do! After all, they have our children for 7 hours of the day, 5 days a week for 10 months out of the year.

 

So from this experience I can tell you that when Christmas came around each year it was very exciting and special to receive a gift from one of my students. Some gifts I still have -like a waffle knit robe with my intials on it- others were tangible, like a Starbucks gift card, (which were immediately used because I am the person who considers coffee a food group of its own), or a gift certificate for a manicure.

 

It was never expected... to receive gifts during the holidays, teachers are teachers because they truly love to teach, but it was greatly appreciated to know that my students and their families cared enough to take the time to think of me.

 

With all that said, let's get on with the fun stuff! What do they love? What are their favorites? With help from several teacher friends I'm excited to share these gift ideas with you and hope it helps you cross off one more thing on that to-do list this holiday season!

 

- manicure and pedicure gift certificates

 

-gift cards to their favorite restaurant or store

 

-tote bags ( can never have enough totes to haul all those lesson plans & papers back & forth!)

 Check out the Scout brand totes here! 

 

-warm fuzzy blanket or throw with hot cocoa mix

 For locals stop by All About Her on Gunter Ave. for super cute Vera Bradley fuzzy throws!!

 

-gift certificates to spa, or for massage

 

-personalized stationary or note cards

 Check out Expressionery for super cute personalized notepads and cards

 Swoozies is also a GREAT shop for gift ideas (located at The Summit in Birmingham or online here.

 

-special ornament (you could put your child's name /year on it to personalize for them)

 

 And if you're on a budget, or have several teachers to give to, a homemade card with a candy cane or chocolate bar is a super sweet gift!

 

One last note, in my talks with friends it came up that sometimes parents don't think about the older grade teachers in middle or high school....they are teachers too who take care of our kids everyday just like the elementary ones!! They love to be acknowledged as well :)

 

Hope this helps! I would love to hear any other suggestions that you've done in the past for  teachers!

 

Happy gifting!

 

 

 

 

Hello December! ...sharing a tradition today

There aren't enough words to use to tell you how much I truly love this month! There is something about the days in December that make me feel like I have a "skip to my walk" if you will. I think a lot of this comes from memories in my childhood. My mom was always playing Christmas music, from Gene Autry & Bing Crosby to Tony Bennett and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The music was always playing, and she and I would be making cookies for friends and neighbors. (mom's gift to everyone at Christmas was a plate of homemade decorated cookies) If music wasn't playing, the musical White Christmas was on the T.V. I've seen that musical over 100 times by now and I can still watch it endlessly each December.

So now as a mom myself, I too have carried on the love of the Christmas music and baking, and while my son isn't quite to caring about the White Christmas movie, he is a  loyal lover of A Charlie Brown Christmas, Frosty, and The Grinch (maybe he'll get White Christmas one day- I won't hold my breath though!)

I've also looked for new traditions to have with my own family, and that is what I'm sharing with you today. This Christmas tree advent calendar has been with us since the first year in my children's shop. I had grown up with the paper advent calendars that you opened the perforated door and got the waxy chocolate out of for a treat- this advent calendar ups the ante for sure!

This is made of solid wood, with doors that open for each day....and there is some pretty decent room inside for stuffers. I know what some of you are thinking...one more thing for me to do each night before bed! And I confess, I hear ya ladies, but it's worth it to see how excited my son gets when he sees me pull out the advent calendar box each year, then he carries it to the spot he wants it "displayed" for the month, and is beyond excited to see what's been left each morning.

I've become quite the "advent calendar stuffer" professional -now that we've been doing this tradition for 3 years! I'm always seeking out the good "tiny stuff" to have ready to put inside. You can get as elaborate as you wish, or keep it simple. I usually do a mix of both. I'll put a Hot Wheel car in one day, a small chocolate the next, Silly Putty, stickers, bird whistle, and on and on! Learning Express has an entire wall of cube shelves filled with tiny stuffers, Walgreens & CVS always have good things too!

The brand is called Traditions by Byer's Choice Ltd. -  there are several styles...it was hard to pick! And there's even a place on the back to write who it's to and from....GREAT gift for grandparents to give grandchildren, or to just surprise your children with!

What traditions do you do in your family? I'd love to hear!