Amanda Rose blog

my weekend with my Erin Condren LIFE PLANNER

Well...look what landed in my lap Friday evening: my Erin Condren Life Planner.
I told you it would arrive any day.

A bunch of this past weekend was spent getting to know this planner, and testing out all sorts of jottings, pens, recording techniques, figuring out what I liked, didn't...you know the deal.  

Here are some shots from my weekend with my Erin Condren LIFE PLANNER:

top, left: I chose the 2013 life planner - collage cover which customizes the front and back of the planner with pictures you upload.  It looks a lot like my current header, as those are the things most making up my life right now.  I personalized it with my name, and the sentiment I'd most like my future plans to propel me toward: "She believed that she could, so she did."

top, right: I marked my first May week with my planner by printing out instagram shots from those days.  I really like how they look and how it ties the day to an image, so I'll probaly continue that all throughout December.

middle, left: a close-up look of the instagram I took once I had my new planner in my lap, with a little bit of journalling around it

middle, right: a quick weekly BLOG POST sticker I designed to match the month and function as a spot to plan the posts for that week

bottom, left: I love that just two days with this planner has brought my stamp mojo back! Maybe by summer it'll inspire me to whip up some new stamps for the shop! Who knows?!
(Those used above are Amy Tangerine's.)

bottom, right: I don't really like to "attack" my planner in advance.  I like to write/scribble/fuss once the week hits...so I'm big on removable stickies.  I'm already thinking about July (duh!) and labelling my weeks of project life. ;) (Those arrow stickies form Target.)

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I decided that I'm going to experiment with this planner -- no holds barred -- for the rest of May and June -- while school is still in session.  THEN...when the ever-loving SUMMER STARTS on June 27th (last day of school is June 26th) I will have developed some sort of system to make this work for me.

I'll let you know when I know!

Adios, amigos!

WTF, Saturday?!

Yep.

Here I was at work yesterday -- on a  Saturday -- cleaning, making charts, and sorting through MOUNDS of paperwork.  I got dizzy twice and had to sit down.  

The reason is because of a "mock" Quality Review our school has going on Thursday.  "Mock" meaning it isn't real and doesn't count for anything, but the school's atmosphere is still one of tension, nerves, and fear.  Yep, fear. I've heard many teachers 1, 2, 5, and 15+ years in saying they're losing sleep over the amount of work they've had to produce and pressure they feel.

I'm so over it.

I'm going to attack this upcoming Hell Week with a postive attitude, a focus on giving myself time to zone out in center clarity, peace, serenity, and with this song in my head.

Que Sera Sera!

SIDE NOTE:

Whenever I mention that I'm considering leaving the teaching profession

someone never fails to say to me "the grass is always greener..."

AT THIS POINT: I don't care which grass is greener,

as long as I'm not mowing it on the weekend.

PL 2013 |week 19|

Welcome to |week 19| of my project life album. 

The whole left side is rather gray. I think it matches the fog I felt last week.

I wasted no time using the clear plastic heart-centered geotag, and it's donut hole heart cut out that I received in the Studio Calico May Scrapbook kit. OMG. 

Mark my words: lucite is the new wood veneer.

(I do love my wood veneer, though.) ;)

Half-ponytails never fail to be a bitch when I try to remove them ^. Ouch.

The bottom is the birthday card I sent to him with the sentiment: "I miss you million." I really do.

Middle insert is my 'Week in Review'...changed around again and made into a 4x12 divider. 
(I will be make all the different formats of my 'Week in Reviews' available for free download sometime next week.) 

The right side:

I made the right side have color because Friday-Saturday-Sunday did feel less foggy than the start of the week.

robe + rainboots + coffee + Carmen + squirrel feed  = Saturday, May 11th @ 7:38am...

A little inside joke started with my sister: 'car fun'...

Some words I've been living by from 'The Jobs':

...and stapled sequins. :) ...inspired by this recent project life of the fabulous Elisa Blaha Cripe.

The last two inserts of |week 19|'s spread was the most recent classroom garden shot I took,
and a karaoke song-selection shot.  Very routine images for these past months.

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Only 27 more work days left until Summer.

Eye on the prize.

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For more of my past Project Life spreads, go HERE.

For more on Project Life itself, go HERE.

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Thanks for visiting!

Preach, Zooey.

Love this.

...and I braked for a bird yesterday.
Twice. The same bird.

Happy Thursday!

Erin Condren LIFE PLANNER Inspiration

I received an e-mail yesterday informing me that the personalized Erin Condren Life Planner I created for myself at the beginning of the month has been shipped and is on its way to me.

...any day now, any day now...

In the meantime, I've been obsessing over how others around the world have been using theirs. I've been gathering inspiration -- usually right before bed -- and drift to sleep with visions of my new planner and the future plans I'll fill it with dancing in my head.  

I'm a total paper-geek, but it's more than that...

I think I'm excited about what the planner symbolizes.  To me, this planner means thinking ahead and planning how to make the most of my summer...it means zeroing in on what I need to do once this school year is over (YES! 30 more work days)...it means propulsion...it means preparing for design school. EEK!  Not to mention, it's friggin' adorable. The design inspires me. The layout inspires me.  Erin Condren herself inspires me (as a woman, as a designer).

So hurry up, little planner companion!
I'm ready to fill you with future.

P.S. - Spy my current planner in this post. It's over in June. I was so due for an upgrade.

Sooo...I MADE A KIMONO ROBE.

Remember back in April went I set out to MAKE A KIMONO-STYLE ROBE by the end of April?  
You kind of followed my journey when I posted my OUT TO SEWs // 1, 2, and 3.

Well, I finished just this past weekend.

It's kind of sad story.  It was supposed to go on for the four consecutive Saturdays in April, but on the third Saturday, our sewing instructor (who I absolutely adore) got sick.  Class resumed on April 27th, but that would mean the "finishing" of the robe would spill over into May.  Then, that first Saturday of May got cancelled because poor Pat was sick again.  When the class finally got together for our last session this past May 11th Saturday, we found out Pat had a severe asthma attack, was in a coma and on a resperator.  8|  I just can't believe it.  I hope the news on her comes back good soon.  It would be a nice deviation from all the saddness that seems to happen one after the other this past year.

Anyway, that Pat: she taught me everything I currently know about sewing.  Most importantly, she made me feel comfortable sitting in front of my sewing machine.  I now have the confidence I need to embark on other sewing adventures.  ...and my robe?  It's pretty sweet, even with it's many imperfections.  I love it.  

Get well soon, Pat!
I am so very grateful for the sewing skills she taught me, my new spring robe, and how my one little word {MAKE} manifested itself last month.

See March's here and here.
See February's here and here.
See January's here and here.

my DIY flowers in my hair

|| [ MOM ] ||

MOM, left, approx. age 18 || ME, right, taken 2012, age 27

Thank you for your love each and every day.
Because of you, I am me.

Happy Mother's Day, everyone.

Jimmy + John Krasinski | Lip-Sync Off

I might have been there LIVE last Friday, but yesterday's Friday show clearly blew the one I saw out of the water. If I was there live for that one, I would have peed my pants.

Two celebs I ABSOLUTELY ADORE, HAVING A LIP SYNCING CHALLENGE?!?!

Oh, my word.

I couldn't NOT share.
Enjoy. 

what I wore // School Spirit Day

Yesterday, I was in full T.G.I.F. mode, and I'm so happy I'm coming to you the Saturday after, and last week is OVER. Phew! Made it.

DIY FLOWER post

We teachers & student of P.S. 129 were instructed to wear the school colors: navy & white, or the school t-shirt.  I had planned to just throw the t-shirt on over jeans, but serendipitously, this outfit happened instead.  

I was quite comfy & cozy, and complimented by coworkers. I wore just the right garb for a Friday that included a morning walk around the track for our class's walking club, and the last basketball game of the school year.  Our team was down in the last quarter until something came over me to get the crowd of kiddies goin'!  I got up and shouted "LET'S GO WILDCATS!" only for it to be repeated by the sea of 5th graders.  I started up 'the wave' which brought smiles to both my principals and assistant principal's faces. :)  

...and guess what?  We won.
(My class and I were pretty convinced it was our cheering.)

Have a spirited Saturday, readers & peepers!

10 days of MAKING TIME FOR MEDITATION // {olw} for May

It's been 10 days since my intent shifted to MAY's use of my one little word: MAKE TIME FOR MEDITIATION.

So far...it's been HARD. Really really hard.  With this intention, I wanted to spend some time everyday living the Oprah Winfrey quote above.  However, I've been heartbroken from missing him & it being his birthday this week, stressed from several consecutive days in a row of Tasmanian devil teacher-tornadoes, and plain ol' EXHAUSTED.

Every time I try to sit up and focus on my breathing, focus on calming, teacher work enters my brain, what happened with the kids in class that day enters my brain, where are the cats, will my sister come home and interrupt me, I'm cold, I'm hot, is that a bug...

You get the point.

Then, on some occassions these past 10 days, my body called for me to lay down:

...and each and every time I've fallen asleep.

[Deep sigh.]

Also, to be honest, I haven't meditated the last couple of days.  Stress and work has been too much (but that's probably the time I need to meditate!)...soooo, in the next 10 days, I will try to be better. I will try to be consistent with at least 5 minutes spent meditating. 

This is more a challenge for me than I thought.

Do you meditate at all?
What are some of your tricks/approaches to it?

T.G.I.F.