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.)

---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---

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!

photo-a-day January 2013 compilation party!

January 2013 is OVER. Boom. Done. Good.

I can't believe I got through it with not one bubble bath.  

It feels like ages ago that I ate those tiny Frozen Taro Yogurt cups the night before heading back to school after Christmas YAYcation. Tons and tons and tons of karaoke was sung, and saved my soul, actually.  Cats, ZUMBA on wii, ice cream cones, LOTS and LOTS of tea and coffee and tea was my January.

...and I fell in looove with the new Studio Calico Project Life kit! 

I was dreaming of spring dresses and summer colors, survived a rough couple of weeks as a teacher, and am going to focus on these two things...

More coffee, junkfood, and karaoke. The usual teacher-craziness, and my classroom's cow portrait (that I'm going to save, frame, and decorate my home with). Sleeping; gorgeous morning colors, snow, Grandma's birthday weekend, and a morning-after mimosa.

The final four above are from this week so far.  Just quick snaps I try to fit into the prompt.

- - - - - - - -

The 'look' of this month was made with the PFX 15 filter on the app Picfx, then the Bloom filter on the app Afterglow, and the words were put on top with the font app Over.  The font is Mensch.

- - - - - - -

I don't know yet if I'll continue with this look for February's list, or if I'll change it up.

You'll have to follow me on Instagram to find out.

 

Have a happy last day of JAN!

For last year's collection
of Photo-a-Days,
click HERE.

For my thoughts on
Photo-a-Day,
click HERE.

Goodbye, 2012!

One photo a day, for the whole year of 2012. Did it. Done, and done.

Elsie from A Beautiful Mess posted about trying a 365 project the other day, and without even realizing it, this was mine.  I started last January on a whim, and it stuck like honey.

I owe Chantelle from FAT MUM SLIM a great deal of appreciation for creating and sharing the prompts for each day.

I owe myself a pat on the back, too.  I still can't believe I did it...each and every day, even if some photos were a day or four late, I kept each prompt in my mind, and made sure I posted (at some point).

What have these monthly challenges meant to me?  Well, they've meant a daily dose of creative distraction focus.  They've meant happy iPhone play.  They've meant a welcomed amount of practice on my photography skills.  They've meant a great deal to my experimental design-eye.

These monthly challenges have meant movement.  Movement through time, through upsetting and hard months, through the happy and breezy months, through feelings, through different snapshots of expression.   

It's been real.  It's been fun.  It's been life.

Yeah, sure, I'm up for another go'round in 2013.  Here's January's list.  Will you be joining?  
There's a pretty big paypoff come December 31st.  Let me tell ya. ;)

With that, my lovie munchkins, I will depart you for the day.

Thank you as always for visiting and reading, and
I wish you and yours a HAPPY, HAPPY NEW YEAR!

See you in 2013!

December #FMSphotoaday compilation post

December, you are just enough winter for me,
and then I want my summer to be here.

However, here you came and went,
through the lens of
Fat Mum Slim's photo-a-day challenge
-- my twelfth month in a row,
-- my last month for the year,

...you were truly sentimental. 

Day 1: I be DEEP IN CRAFT at 8 AM. What you be doing?
Day 2: Peace while watching The Walking Dead
Day 3: I held my new iPhone5
Day 4: ...like an ol'school picture

Day 5: get me to Christmas YAYcation
Day 6: Queens, oh Queens, so near Manhattan
Day 7: on my December Daily album
Day 8: I love my cuzzie-pie, Claudia

,

Day 9: out + about was a hard prompt; I was so 'in + borin' in Decemb
Day 10: boo girl under a stool
Day 11: sweetest couple ever
Day 12: Elfey and his pointy red hat hanging in my classroom

Day 13: posted a day late...candle lit in membrance of the Newtown victims
Day 14: green washi
Day 15: outdoorswith my sis and prancer, dancer, comet, and cupid
Day 16: a graham cracker gingerbread house

Day 17: a kitty boop in Christmas pajays
Day 18: those silly red cups
Day 19: sick soup
Day 20: what does my frosty car window tell you?

Day 21: our classroom tree
Day 22: decoration at the mall for last-minute shopping
Day 23: joy is leaving your buddy's present on the doorstep and imagining her opening it
Day 24: my Christmas Eve tradition, 7th year in a row ♥ ♥ ♥

Day 25: Christmas morning brunch at Uncle Matt's never fails to impress
Day 26: a mess made with glitter and sequins: not really a mess ;)
Day 27: I relax with my computer on my lap, teaching myself iMovie
Day 28: I miss the days when I could take the boops out without my uggs + northface ;(

Day 29: time to get HOT with Zumba Fitness CORE on wii
Day 30: I smiled with each and every stamp order I packed

-  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -

See my past months of photo-play:

 January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November

Or, come back later today for a 'farewell to this year' post that
includes all 366 pics taken in 2012.

I'll talk about what this project has meant to me,
and what I think about doing it another year.

See ya later!

November #FMSphotoADay compilation post

“November comes
And November goes,
With the last red berries
And the first white snows.

With night coming early,
And dawn coming late,
And ice in the bucket
And frost by the gate.

The fires burn
And the kettles sing,
And earth sinks to rest
Until next spring."

                -- Clyde Watson

Hi, everybody.

This is the eleventh Fat Mum Slim photo-a-day for 2012 compilation party here on Amanda Rose blog, and it's okay...you could be excited.  I haven't yet finished the last four days of it, but I plan to before today's end.  I'll come back and post 'em here, and if you're reading this for the first time years from now, all this text will seem like rambling. :)

On the the party...

Day 1: so much leftover Halloween candy because Sandy swept Halloween away from us this year
Day 2: the red color of my cup told me Starbs is as excited for Christmastime as I am (...was?)
Day 3: coffee and crafts was my early breakfast that day
Day 4: T-Dog and Lori bit the dust on The Walking Dead :'(

Day 5: first 'real' day back since Sandy hit, and I was all like, "What am I teaching these kids?"
Day 6: sitting at the table with my closest, safe from the nor'easter, laughing and eating ♥
Day 7: clean and comfy reflection
Day 8: lay with these boops and get loved by them

Day 9: Happy Birthday to me! the small sentiments written in these cards made a BIG impact
Day 10: can't live without gas in my car...waited on lines to get some...odd or even plate?
Day 11: Sunday nights are for The Walking Dead...duh!
Day 12: hot tea for me on this Monday

Day 13: I slept under my floral IKEA painting over my bed
Day 14: my aMANda-made bulletin board was a hit at parent-teacher conferences
Day 15: wallet, keys, To-Do list, chapstick (not pictured), and iPhone (not pictured)
Day 16: the view of NYC from my classroom window makes me wanna fly there

Day 17: this New Year's dress...now all I need is New Year's plans
Day 18: an autumn walk in the park
Day 19: the typewriter-adoption of Dora
Day 20: workin' on Project Life / playin' with washi tape

Day 21: wore cement-color booties
Day 22: Thanksgiving came and went, but my favorite part was Claudia filling my wine glass up
Day 23: we went in to Christmas-decorating mega mode on Black Friday
Day 24: I started #mileaday and heard my feet walking through fallen leaves

Day 25: early evening November sky
Day 26: plenty of spices in my cupboard...hee hee...I said 'cupboard'...:P

Day 27: our tree -- a kitty's view
Day 28: commute on a Wednesday morning...ick and ick
Day 29: My, grandma, what big eyes you have!
Day 30: on the wall/beam of the subway station

Adios, Novemb!

--------------

#FMSphotoaday is ending in a bang (snap!) with
December's list!
It begins tomorrow.
Make sure you tweet/instagram your images with
the hashtag #FMSphotoaday.

Will you be taking the challenge?

Follow me on Instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back December 31st
to have another compilation party here with me.

See my past months of photo-play:

 January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October

Thanks for stopping by!

sci-fi October #FMSPhotoADay compilation post

Trick or Treat!
Smell my feet!
Costume time!
Sci-fi slime! 

Hi, readers and peepers!  I'm here with my 10th...yes, tenth...photo-a-day compilation for the year twenty.twleve.  Wowsers!

This month was wild, I must say...dressing up my iPhone photos in fire and lightning and planets and swishes and swooshes.  I used AlienSky and SpacePaint for most of it. I liked how 'October' they felt and I love how they all look together.  I also love that it's over. Ha! Pretty challenging.

Here's the compilation party to celebrate:

1 - I stood in my backyard, with my kitty slippers, and jeans + white long sleeve UNiFORM
2 - I was that mosquito's lunch for lunchtime
3 - tea + pumpkin pie
4 - I looked down and read my sweet friendhsip bracelet from my bish, Elisa 

5 - shadow of me & my chubby kitty cat phone
6 - I'm thankful for the sweet salon spot in Flushing that tames for mane for a mere $10 + tip
7 - little boo girl layin' in the light
8 - Monday OFF teacher work from a high angle 

9 - read laser beam *pew*pew*pew*
10 - emotional time-portal flashback to 1992 when sis & I walked past our grammar school
11 - 'A' for Amanda
12 - my cuzzie Claude had her elbows on our table visiting us that weekend *woot*woot* 

13 - my boyfriend's picture of his fishing landscape (closest I was going to get to outdoors) :/
14 - this crazy boo and his sister make me laugh on the reg
15 - homemade chicken soup at dinner...I could feel the sick coming on...
16 - I wrote that 68lbs. down card, and digitally on the photo of it 

17 - avocados are an out-of-this-world fruit, so tasty and delish
18 - 'Something About December' made me smile that day, and ever since
19 - Letters I bought from Michael's ...I MUST STOP...
20 - sis and I walking to the spot for our Fall Photoshoot at 4 o'clock

21 - I kept the sinus pressure calm with Alka-Seltzer at the bottom of my glass all week
22 - Artichokes were in town, and we cleaned 'em, stuffed 'em, steamed 'em, and ate 'em
23 - Manhattan view from my classroom window
24 - weather was grey and boring, yet comforting

25 - my two girl students are SO 'MY PEOPLE' ...two sweet souls (at the school Halloween party)
26 - Listening to trees rustling
27 - dozen doughnuts in my house that morning :P
28 - Looking back on my project life title page from January sets my brain on fire with new ideas

29 - That was not the real moon showing during Hurricane Sandy, but it was out there like WTF?!
30 -  These are the clothes I was suppose to wear today for Halloween, but SCHOOLS CLOSED! :(

...and 31 - I'm pleasing these two nuggets on a daily basis ...food, drink, shelter, love...

----------------

November photo-a-day begins tomorrow, and
make sure you tweet/instagram your images with
the hashtag #FMSphotoaday.

Will you be taking the challenge?

Follow me on Instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back November 30th
to have another compilation party here with me.

See my past months of photo-play:

 January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September

 

Thanks for stopping by!

September #FMSPhotoADay compilation post

This has been the ninth month of Fat Mum Slim's Photo-A-Day challenge.
Nine months, ya'll! 

On the 1st of every month, I come up with a 'look' that the month with have,
and I goal to fulfill each day's prompt while sticking to the 'look'.

The 'look' for September was created using the fisheye lens of my olloclip.
Then, the shot was filtered by Snapster, cropped to circle by Diptic, washi-taped by Labelbox, and texted by Phonto.

I think so far, it's been my favorite.

Check it out:

Day 1 - Me, now was fresh from Summer, ready to bike, and head to a friend's BBQ
Day 2 - Father Time pushes us along, doesn't he...I took that same shot at the start of August 
Day 3 - So far away from summer bliss waiting on line at the teacher store :(
Day 4 - In my classroom mailbox, waiting for the kiddies to come 

Day 5 - Bright paint samples for the shades of meaning wall in our classroom
Day 6 - I will be coming here everyday -- physically or mentally for the next 9 months
Day 7 - If you act nayural, the devil sadness won't take notice, and pass you on by
Day 8 - Where he ends up at night: taking up my whole pillow

Day 9 - Most weekends, I'm drowning in teacher work
Day 10 - My favorite forms of black&white are Alejandro and his sister
Day 11 - The heroes of 9.11 will always live in our hearts and minds
Day 12 - These two together and their kitty love save my soul sometimes

Day 13 - At the table for a dinner out at Bareburger in Astoria
Day 14 - My favorite time of the week: early Friday evening
Day 15 - My swimming pool cup o'coffee in my mug is one of the first things I see every morning
Day 16 - It felt strange having those shorter layers cut by my face

Day 17 - New ShockTop Pumpkin Wheat beer was put in my fridge that day
Day 18 - The price of good nail polish is too damn high
Day 19 - I wish I was still underneath those covers
Day 20 - SYNONYM ROLLS - aMANda made, filled out by the kids, idea from Pinterest

Day 21 - Sometimes I wish time stood still so summer plants and other things wouldn't die
Day 22 - Up in the sky over the horse races 
Day 23 - Before bedtime, I drink a gallon or two of water
Day 24 - 3 words to describe me: searching, wondering, and inquisitive

Day 25 - Look out the window frame and decide how you'll spend your day off
Day 26 - So near the end of September...yay
Day 27 - I have a Love/Hate relationship with the stationery aisle...love it all, but makes me broke
Day 28 - The warmth of the fireplace on a cold September morning is a good thing

Day 29 - Picking pumpkins is a favored Fall errand
Day 30 - Me, then seems to be searching, wondering, and inquisitive 

-----------------------

September brought me lots of happy surprises.
I tried the awesomeness of Red Mango for the first time.
I had a relatively smooth first month of my second year teaching, and got through it calmly.
 I was granted lots of alone time to be with myself and my thoughts.
 ...and it's readied me for October, I think.

September, you set me up nice, I suppose.

-----------------------

October photo-a-day begins tomorrow, and
make sure you tweet/instagram your images with
the hashtag #FMSphotoaday.

Will you be taking the challenge?

Follow me on Instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back October 31st
to have another compilation party here with me.

See my past months of photo-play:

 January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August

Happy Sunday-Last-Day-of-Sept!

#photoADayAug compilation

This was my eighth month in a row
doing FatMumSlim's photo-a-day challenge.

On the 1st of every month, I come up with a 'look' that the month with have,
and I goal to fulfill each day's prompt while sticking to the 'look'.

August's 'look' was polaroid-themed (because 'Roid Week was in town) but was
really taken with Hipstamatic, framed with PictureShow, and given text with Phonto.

Here it was:

Day 1 - outside with Alejandro
Day 2 - this '1' was in my craftroom waiting to be decorated for THiS
Day 3 - those coins are doodled on my cute carry-'round purse
Day 4 - that seat in my craftroom is called my 'thinking chair' 

Day 5 - the logo to my STAMP SHOP is pretty sweet :*)
Day 6 - the day my Summer mood changed
Day 7 - was watching Paranormal Activity 3 at 8'clock that night
Day 8 - electric blue aviators 

Day 9 - messy dry-erase board needed to be redone ...did it!
Day 10 -  this Aerobie Pro frisbee ring is super fun
Day 11 - this purple? Nah...went teal
Day 12 - spoon from Jamba Juice after a Central Park bike ride 

Day 13 - a simple duck tape DIY
Day 14 - stamped a few arrows and was done with it
Day 15 - readying my planner for another school year
Day 16 - ate food for dinner with Tomas & Claudia...can you guess which type? 

Day 17 - some of the faces celebrating a birthday at dinner that night
Day 18 - up at the ceiling inside
Day 19 - stuffing my pie-hole with homemade pizza
Day 20 - THAT DAY 

 

Day 21 - I still feel cool when I walk into the P.O. with a handful of STAMP orders
Day 22 - home with this boop girl and her brother all day
Day 23 - my new favorite pair o'sunnies discovered in a junk drawer
Day 24 - on my path...physically and metaphorically 

Day 25 - fresh Fairway peach
Day 26 - dreaming that it was June
Day 27 - "...tap the bottle, and..."
Day 28 - got the clock set up in my classroom for successful time-telling 

Day 29 - down at the boops (took this same picture for Day 21 back in May, but it was her that looked up)
Day 30 - this card is my favorite to give to fellow-teachers for their birthday (I have multiple copies)

Day 31 can be found in my IG feed. ;)

-----------------------

September Photo-a-Day starts tomorrow with the *new* hashtag #FMSphotoaday.

Will you be taking on the challenge?

Don't think you'll FAiL at it either.
Here's a post on that.

Follow me on Instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back September 30th
to have another compilation party here with me.

See my past months of photo-play:

 January
February
March
April
May
June
July

Alright! Tootle loo!
Off to Day 5 of classroom preparation!

(Is it really September tomorrow?)

xOxO,

#PhotoADayJuly compilation

When the compliation post came at the end of each past month of 2012:
January
February
March
April
May
June
I was more than happy to celebrate the end of the month
and move on to the next one...that got me closer to...
Yep.
My July. 

This past month has belonged to me in a way that no month has in many years.
I've either worked or schooled or worked&schooled during the summer for the past...what...
ten years?

This past month was my complete and utter break from anything teacher-related
(cause we all know how smooth my first year went...Bwaahaa!)
and my time to have my own thoughts, make my own executive descisions for me,
and have a little fun. ;)

Peek it all here:

Day 1 -- [high bun & bow in my hair]
Day 2 -- [busy e'ry morn on my computer with work, not play]
Day 3 -- [that early morning time when everyone is still sleeping excpet me & the kitties]
Day 4 -- [Happy 4th fun time playing with my BAMBOO tablet] 

Day 5 -- [train tracks were found on the floor during a bike ride]
Day 6 -- [July = that teal green lawn chair]
Day 7 -- [a garden of not-ready-yet tomatoes]
Day 8 -- [that day for lunch I had Filipino fried chicken & kare kare over white rice] 

Day 9 -- [a BIG trip to those BIG yellow letters to make some BIG purchases]
Day 10 -- [my favorite colors that day were the mint of my watch, and the tan of my skin]
Day 11 -- [an 'A' in the sand during a glorious beach day]
Day 12 -- [fringe-y texture of bedroom blanket...a pic taken on a break from hanging shelves] 

Day 13 -- [open toed shoes]
Day 14 -- [building my little biz with moo cards]
Day 15 -- [one finger - the pinky - got painted that day]
Day 16 -- [a hearty 'SALE' sign; I got a new dress & a iPhone case this day] 

Day 17 -- [my addiction: taking photos of everything, using some in Project Life, and scrapping]
Day 18 -- [plate of avo toast...what else?]
Day 19 -- [one of my two animals that want to be human babies...to me they are]
Day 20 -- [this was the day ♥ my stamps ♥ debuted...yippee skippee] 

Day 21 -- [some stamp orders were delivered by 9 o'clock]
Day 22 -- [wine tasting had me a blast]
Day 23 -- [in the mirror with more fun packages to be post-officed]
Day 24 -- [stranger waiting with me for the Post Office to open its doors] 

Day 25 -- [my white heart sunnies were broke out]
Day 26 -- [the sun-setting sunshine in Ocean City, MD]
Day 27 -- [this day was spent on the road, looking just like that and this]
Day 28 -- [my cup of Waffle House coffee] 

Day 29 -- [I bought his+hers DQ treats]
Day 30 -- [sippin' on spiked ginger-ale while waiting for them to call 'my number' at BINGO]
Day 31 -- [c'mon little toothbrush...we're going back on the road again]

I'm soaking-in-tears sad to see July go.
It was like having 31 sensational Saturdays in a row, but...

...To Everything (Turn, Turn, Turn)
There is a season (Turn, Turn, Turn)

August, go easy on me, because you mean 'almost September.'

xOxO,

#PhotoADayAugust will not start for me until I get back from my road trip in the next few days (because I have something up my sleeve - that I left at home - planned for it).

Follow me on instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back August 31st to have another compilation party here with me. :)

#PhotoADayJune compilation

This is my sixth photo-a-day challenge from FatMumSlim and I have mixed feelings about what you will be viewing below.

First off, I knew I'd be doing a colorless month.
I wanted to since January, and figured on June 1st, eh, why not this month?

However, it was a [challenge upon challenge] to not
only scavenge for the prompts, but to also make sure they would
work with the gray filter.

Some did more than others:

I think the grey takes a lot away from the photos and from how happy June made me, but I commited to a look and stuck with it.

Despite their dreary first impression, I look back at these images and it makes me over the moon to know June was made up of sleepy sleepy mornings, sugar, sun, hope, calm, dreaming, new music, planning, teacher bonding, the world's greatest pastrami, quality time with dad, meeting Kelly Purkey, creating my very first art journal, learning how to emboss, lots of kitty-time, the end of the school year, bright clothes, time with loved ones, major sun-basking at the beach, and an upcoming reveal (hint: sneak peak in Day 30's photo).

June was glorious.  

My favorite month begins tomorrow. :)

I will be #PhotoADayJuly-ing. Will you?
Its look is going to be the complete opposite of June's.
I hope it takes forever and a day to get to its compilation post.
I want July to last decades.

xOxO,

Past Photo-A-Days:
May
April
March
February
January

Follow me on Instagram to see my 'playing along' daily,
or come back July 31st to have another compilation party here with me. :)