Project Life 2013: Week One

Week one finally in the books. I used a combination of the Studio Calico Project Life kit and the SeaFoam core kit. Loving the teal/blue, kraft, gray, white color combination…

I decided to keep a Sunday-Satruday layout, to keep this year consistent with last. I like that it begins where last year’s Project Life ended, even though that meant having two days of December in this album…

Right side with insert. 2012 was the year of the Instagram for me. I love that so much of our day-to-day story was captured:

New year, new shoes…new stories to be told:

The deets: if you have kids and have as much “fun” taking them shoe shopping as I once did…trace their feet, cut, and take the cut outs shoe shopping. It’s life changing. And blissful. And you get fun remarks from the peeps in the shoe department. On this particular occasion, I offered to throw myself on the floor, scream, whine, and cry to make it an authentic experience. My humor was not appreciated. I immediately assumed the young guy didn’t have any children…

I love looking at this collage of 2012 pictures. It’s amazing how quickly the boys are growing and how far they’ve come. Jake’s growth is extraordinary: from a binky loving two-year old to super spicy three year…in the blink of an eye.

I have learned from last year’s failed attempt at separate big projects. They don’t get done. I get frustrated. This year, I will incorporate the “One Little Word” idea into my overall project life…

Thank you for visiting!!

Linking up with The Mom Creative this week:

Project Life 2013: Cover Page

Finally put together my 2013 cover page. LOVING the goodies in the Studio Calico and Citrus Twist Project Life kits. I have been unmotivated while I await the arrival of the BH Seafoam kit and am so glad I took the chance on the monthly subscriptions. I am now questioning the need for an actual core kit. The family photo serves as a reminder of how desperately we need new ones. It is a GOAL to have new photos taken this year in order to replace this extraordinarily outdated one:

I wanted to include family goals for 2013 and the Whisker Graphics itty bitty bag was the perfect solution. I included a tag for each member of our family:

Having fun with some of the goodies in the CT kit:

I don’t usually include black and white photos but love how it keeps the overall look very simple and clean. This is another copy of an older photograph. I plan to replace both this year at some point…

Happy 2013!!

Project Life 2013: Organization

One of my big goals this year is balance. The word in and of itself means many different things; however, in terms of my approach to Project Life, it means streamlining my workspace, purging an extraordinary amount of unused or unwanted goods, and keeping only the products and items I will really USE. I went through YEARS of collected papers, embellishments, and items narrowing down the keepers to most of what you see here:

I wanted to make the space pretty as it is very visible. One of the key factors in completing Project Life 2012 was moving my workspace inside from the garage to the dining room. As I sit and craft, I can see the boys right upstairs in the playroom. Embellishments, adhesive, stamps, and goodies:

Wire silverware caddy used for journal/title card storage. I plan to buy the Seafoam kit; however, I tend to use the white grid cards the most and wanted them easily visible and accessible. Ordered THESE cute little berry baskets for my loose paper embellies (to replace plastic ones):

Four little baskets house the remaining PL ingredients. Twine, stamps, mistables, chipboard…

6 x 6 paper pads. I need to completely change the way I shop for scrapbook goods. I just don’t use all the paper in a 12 x 12 pad and donated a huge stack to the boys’ preschool. I plan to be a lot more picky about what I buy as much of it goes unused…

Washi tape:

Alpha stickers and punches:

Four little baskets down from…a LOT more than that:

My little workspace with a view of the boys’ train table in the background. I look forward to spending many hours sitting here…my happy place in the house:

Project Life 2012: Weeks 51 and 52

WEEK 51

One of those weekly layouts I actually had to walk away from…and come back. It wasn’t coming together. I couldn’t make the title card work…and now, it’s one of my favorites. I love the red, blue, silver color combination. It was a crazy week: husband out of town, grading to be done and handed back to my students before the break, and general pre-holiday crazies:

Made sugar scrubs, I am slightly obsessed with them these days, for all the boys’ teachers:

And conquered the rope climb. Three times. Ridiculously proud of myself and LOVE that I am constantly being challenged and pushed. I am grateful for those who pushed me and inspired me to try Crossfit. I love it.

WEEK 52:

Christmas week: so much magic with the boys. The title card is another Whisker Graphics bag and houses the sweet little note Tyson snuck onto Santa’s cookie plate:

I apparently had a lot to say this week, super heavy journaling week…

Christmas Day is a mad rush for us, the majority of which is spent on the road. FOUR Christmas celebrations later, we were all exhausted but thoroughly loved and very grateful for our families. I used the Whisker Graphics bag to house four tags that detail each celebration:

THE DEETS:

I am so happy that I stuck with it and am looking forward to completing 2013. A few lessons learned this year, not much will change for next year.

* staying current with photos really helped me. I often ran about a month behind in terms of journaling and embellishing but was always current with photos.

* I learned to adhere and move on, versus constantly fussing and trying to get things to look perfect.

* I let the photos tell the story in a lot of cases versus journaling, this worked for me and allowed me to still journal a little (or a lot) depending on the situation.

* I love the attention Project Life places on the day to day, everyday moments that are often overlooked or forgotten…they, are in fact, a big part of our story.

Project Life 2012 is officially in the books…

Project Life 2012: Weeks 48, 49, and 50

WEEK 48

Last day at Disney, basketball games…and adjusting back to our daily school/work routine. So hard after a few days off. Thank goodness for a stock pile of crafty sub boxes to keep the boys busy:

I am in between gyms at the moment, which is really hard for me. GYM TIME is me time. And much needed. For now, I have discovered and LOVE the Nike Training Club app on my iPhone. TOUGH workout. All you need are weights and motivation. The app will guide you through a workout of your choice depending upon what you want to work on…LOVE it:

WEEK 49

Getting back into the swing of things after our whirlwind Turkey Day festivities. First step, bust out the holiday decor. The boys helped me decorate the tree, Victor our Elf on the Shelf made his appearance, and we discovered and LOVED our new Kiwi Crate:

Right side and back of insert:

WEEK 50:

More holiday crafty fun with the boys during a super cold and rainy week. Also the week my life was forever changed…by a latte maker. Seriously, LOOOOOOOVE this thing. I haven’t bought fancy coffee in weeks (I am certain my favorite coffee spot thinks I have fallen off the face of the Earth):

Friends of ours hosted their third annual Christmas party where they invite the local Santa to make an appearance, such a magical, fun way to expose the boys to Santa. Finally ordered my Whisker Graphic goodies after winning a Facebook contest, LOVE them. The little lined bag was perfect for capturing 12-12-12:

Annnnnnd I finally bit the bullet and tried Crossfit…holy hard workout. I am in love. Jakey was my cheering section this week and was completely enthralled watching everyone do their thing:

Project Life 2012: Weeks 45, 46, and 47

WEEK 45

Election week. Birthday parties, soccer games, gym time…and the week I discovered kids yoga workouts On Demand. The boys LOVED. And I swooned while watching…a new staple activity in our house.

I actually ran out of photos for this week, shocking, I know. Luckily, I keep a little box of goodies nearby and was able to include a letter from one of the subscription boxes I received. Don’t throw those things away, they help tell a story…

WEEK 46

A super busy week where I struggled to find any semblance of balance. Parent/teacher conferences meant a full-time work week for me, without full-time kid care. The boys and I were exhausted by the end of the week. Add in cold, rainy weather…one of those tough weeks all around. The “Happy Mail” helped for sure, but it was hard to see it sitting on the dining room table and not having the time or energy to open them up…

A double nap Friday afternoon, meant some much needed crafty play time for Mama: I LOVED the “Mason Jar Soap” kit from Amazepack. So much fun. Also love that I was able to squeeze in an impromptu girls night out and hair cut Saturday night…little things:

Right side without insert:

WEEK 47

Thanksgiving Break week…much needed downtime for all of us.

We started the week off with our salt dough ornament making…while they dried, we danced, played, and walked the Rez. Once ready for paint, I put on the Christmas music, made myself a cup of coffee, and the boys went to town painting away:

Love the concentration, the tongue, and his love of helping me in the kitchen. The boys did nearly every step on their own this year:

Our finished product, makes me smile. I love how it reflects how much they’ve grown since last year and incorporates some of their new likes (Star Wars):

And then we did something we’ve NEVER done, a spontaneous, last-minute decision…to drive down to Anaheim and surprise the boys with a day at Disneyland. On the weekend after Thanksgiving. All kinds of crazy. But then we saw those smiles and Disney done up in all it’s holiday glory:

Despite the crowds, we managed to ride just about everything on our list…

A way to keepsake/journal our favorite rides:

I have had these pages FOREVER and have never used them, I kind of love them. A lot. They fit the 4 x 4 Instagrams perfectly and were the perfect sized insert for our Disney fun:

The right side of actual layout:

THE DEETS:

Had to share in case you’ve never heard or tried: for long road trips, especially those at night, running headlamp for the kiddos!! Genius tip from a friend. The boys could read or play their games and the light allowed the other one to sleep if need be…

I am not a Disney hater, but thought the boys weren’t ready yet. I didn’t think they’d handle the wait times and long lines. Wasn’t sure if Jake was tall enough. I assumed we would wait a couple more years…I am so glad we decided to take the chance and go. The boys surprised me and did so well in the lines. Jake was able to ride everything. By far, the most special moments of the trip are those spent alone, one on one, with Ty. We left the two tired boys at the hotel and headed back just the two of us…and stayed until midnight. The holiday decorations, the absolute MAGIC of Disney was extraordinary. Many happy memories were made…and I am an admitted reformed Disney fan.