Keeping it creative

goal setting, intentional living, lifestyle, Mindfulness, nature, wellbeing, wellness

Easy and fun ways to make the most of your summer

Posted on Jun 25, 2026Jun 26, 2026 by Laura

For the last week or so, it’s felt like summer has finally arrived in the North East of England with better weather, more sunshine, warm breezes and the chance to wear some of my new seasonal outfits whilst sitting out in the garden. Although I struggle when (if!) it gets really hot due to my very fair skin burning super easily, I love it when it gets up to around 22 degrees C (around 72 degrees Fahrenheit) especially on days when I can just sit and relax outdoors.

Every season, I create a personal bucket list full of activities, including things I always enjoy at that time of year, and new things I’d like to try (harnessing the power of firsts as advised by Meik Wiking in his book The Art of Making Memories). This year, I’m also taking part in the monthly bingo challenges being run by Kelseyleigh over at My Abiding Journal, which is currently providing even more ideas for making the most of my summer.

So, today, I thought I’d share this year’s summer bucket list and also some further suggestions to help you make the most of the summer months whether you want adventures, experiences, opportunities to relax and recharge or a combination of all three. I hope my post gives you some new ideas or provides helpful reminders about maximising your days throughout the season. I would love to hear about your plans for the summer in the comments and if you’re excited about trying something new in 2026 feel free to share so others can take inspiration from you.

Summer 2026 Bucket List

I like to start planning my summer towards the end of spring by creating a bucket list in my bullet journal. For me, the season begins on June 1st so you’ll see I have a few items ticked off already. The cupcakes I made were vegan strawberry ones and although I think I would slightly modify the recipe if I made them again, I had such fun with my afternoon of baking and the cupcakes tasted great too.

It’s not too late to create your own summer bucket list for 2026 and you don’t have to make it super decorative like I have. Just a plain piece of paper or a page in a journal will do. You don’t have to get everything on your list ticked off but it helps to have something to work towards and provide inspiration.

Photo credit: Laura Jones for Keeping it Creative

I’ve just signed my husband and I up for strawberry picking on Sunday and I’m excited to try this for the first time at a farm in Northumberland where we enjoyed visiting a pumpkin patch a few years ago. I’m going to take my DSLR camera with me to record our time there.

Bingo boards

There are loads of seasonal bingo boards available online which you could use, or you could have a go at making your own. I found this lovely example, which is good for spotting various signs of the season, and most of the items can be observed in the UK. It was created by Haley Post at MyMoonstoneKitchen, whose content I really enjoy on YouTube. Her printable can be found on Patreon as a free download if you sign up as a (free) member.

The monthly bingo boards I’m having fun with are available if you become a paid member of My Abiding Journal on Patreon and you can see glimpses of them on Kelseyleigh’s Monthly Journalling livestreams too. I stick mine in my monthly highlights journal and add photos or a description to say how I’ve completed the items I have checked off. Although some of the activities are perhaps more aimed at people in the USA with the creator being based there, it still offers plenty of food for thought and you can always tweak a few of the ideas if they don’t suit.

A Summer Reading Challenge

This summer, I thought it would be fun to set myself a little reading challenge to help me try to diversify my reading and choose some books that I wouldn’t ordinarily pick. I generally go for psychological thrillers and police procedural crime novels, but I wanted to push myself to opt for something different during the summer months. So, having explored various 2026 summer reading bingo boards and reading challenges I found online for ideas, these are my chosen categories:

A book originally published in another country
A historical fiction book to be listened to on Audible
A children’s classic that I’ve never read before
A modern classic
A book published this year by an author whose work I’ve never read before
A memoir
A collection of poetry

I decided on 7 books for the challenge and I’m already on my second book which is Land by Maggie O’Farrell. Set in Ireland, it’s a historical novel which spans the years directly before and after the great hunger. I’m enjoying it so far and I’m glad I chose it as my audio book as the narrator is Irish actor Dane Whyte O’Hara which adds to the atmospheric and lyrical prose and enhances the reading experience wonderfully.

The first book was the children’s classic The Velveteen Rabbit and I found it available for free as an audio edition read by Richard Armitage. It was such a sweet little story and I listened to it to wind down after a busy day.

Seasonal eating

One of my favourite foods is in season in the UK in the summertime, and that’s strawberries which I like to enjoy in salads, with ice cream or yogurt, and, more recently in cupcakes! This year we’ve bought our own little plant, but, as it’s an alpine variety, we’ll only get mini fruits from it (as long as the flowers get pollinated!). I can see some tiny yellow fruits on the plant but I’m not sure if that guarantees they’ll turn into red strawberries or not. There’s also lots of flowers but I’m yet to spot a bee on any of them!

Other fruits we love to eat in the summer include watermelon, peaches, nectarines, cherries, pineapple, raspberries, plums and juicy tomatoes, most of which are grown in the UK. Eating locally grown produce (or at least from the UK) means that they retain their nutritional content, taste better and are better for the environment (less food miles). This recipe for watermelon, green bean, halloumi and mint salad is a favourite of ours and we even have own homegrown mint leaves to add this year.

In the summer, there are lots of vegetables that thrive here in the sunshine including peas, beans, courgettes, aubergines, peppers, lettuce and potatoes. When it’s a hot day, one of our favourite meals to create is a poke bowl (pronounced poh kay). This often includes layers of lettuce or spinach, cooled roasted veggies such as pepper, aubergine, butternut squash and broccoli, a protein source such as chickpeas and coucous, sweet potato chunks or cooled salad potatoes for the carbs. We then drizzle on salad dressing and enjoy our bowl al fresco at our outdoor table and chairs.

And, of course, as well as eating seasonal produce, you can also make some amazingly tasty fruity drinks too. Our current favourite is a refreshing ‘Cinderella’ mocktail which we found a recipe for last summer. It uses a combination of citrus flavours, sweetened with a small amount of grenadine syrups and, once shaken, is topped up with the spice of fizzy ginger ale. Here’s the ingredients to make two glasses full:

150ml orange juice
150ml pineapple juice
60ml lemon juice
3 teaspoons grenadine
1/2 litre ginger ale (or soda water if you prefer)

Add the orange juice, pineapple juice, lemon juice and grenadine to a cocktail shaker (or give it a good stir in a glass) and shake until combined. Divide into two tall glasses and add some ice. Top up with ginger ale. Enjoy!

Embracing the outdoors

Summer is the perfect time to connect with nature and enjoy spending lots of time outdoors. Being in natural environments improves our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing and is known to reduce stress and enhance our mood. I’ve been trying to spend as much time as I can in the garden this year and my husband and I have treated ourselves to a mini tabletop firepit which is perfect for sitting out in the late evening.

Have fun playing an outdoor game – my husband and I purchased a bright orange frisbee last year and we took it to a large outdoor space at a National Trust place we go to regularly. We both had smiles on our faces for the entire time, even though the wind kept lifting it and sending it off in the wrong direction! And it was fantastic exercise too. Other lovely outdoor games include bowls, badminton, quoits, croquet, throw and catch or even trying to get a ball or beanbag in an empty bucket.
Tend to your garden – summer is not the time for digging, moving plants or completely overhauling the garden but a few gentle maintenance activities such as hoeing a few weeds, deadheading spent flowers, checking on the progress of home growing fruit or vegetables helps to keep things progressing and looking good. It’s also important to do some early morning or early evening watering which allows the water to penetrate the soil and get to deep roots. Established plants should be watered deeply every few days or so, whereas seedling or delicate plants may require daily watering, especially during spells of hot weather. And, don’t forget to take time to observe your achievements and appreciate your hard work.
Take a hike – There are so many beautiful places to explore in the UK including the lake district, the highlands of Scotland, Snowdonia in Wales, The Peak District in Derbyshire and surrounding areas, the South West coastal path. It’s best to avoid walking during the hottest part of the day (11am – 3pm) but an early morning or evening trek can be wonderful. Also, remember to take plenty of rest breaks to look at the stunning scenery and always carry plenty of water to take sips from throughout your walk.
Go somewhere new and take a self-guided walking trail (you can find lots of these online or at a tourist information place) – depending on your preferences, this could be a historic tour of a nearby town or village, a nature walk through woodland, forest or around a lake or you could even follow a path around a nature reserve spotting birds from various hides. Just remember to dress appropriately for the weather, wear comfortable shoes and use sun protection.

Relax, reset and recharge

Just because the days are longer in the summer, doesn’t mean you have to fill every waking moment with tasks and adventurous activities. It’s also important to find time to rest and just be, especially when temperatures are particularly high and the Sun is blazing. Here are some ways to recharge and build wellbeing related activities into your routine:

Enjoy an analogue hobby outdoors – do some reflective journalling, read a book, sketch some of the flowers in your garden or at a local park, grab your paints and have a go at watercolour painting
Sit or lie outside (either in the sun with SPF on, or in the shade of a parasol or tree) and simply be. Try doing a mini meditation or other mindful activity such as using your senses to appreciate the here and now (take off your shoes and feel the grass beneath your feet, close your eyes and notice the different sounds around you, look up and watch the clouds moving and changing shape). I lay back on one of our reclining chairs a few days ago and I set the timer on my Fitbit for 20 minutes. I closed my eyes and relaxed for the whole time and those 20 minutes felt like a really long time. It was so good to just do nothing for a while – even though there was someone getting noisy building work done further down the street!
Pack a picnic and head to a local park, the coast, a lake or riverside. Depending on your preference, you could take a picnic rug or research somewhere nearby which has picnic benches available.
Give forest bathing a go – this restful, nature based activity was first developed in Japan but is now really popular in other cultures. This article from The National Trust provides a good introduction and also explains the wellbeing benefits.

Final words…

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading today’s blog post and it’s help you to come up with some lovely ways to make the most of Summer 2026. Although some of the activities will incur at least a small cost, there are also free suggestions if you’re living on a tight budget.

As I write these last few sentences of today’s blog post, it’s gone really dark and there are rumbles of thunder in the distance. And rather than thinking how awful the weather has turned, I’m excited to tick off an item on the summer bingo board – summer thunderstorm!

Wishing you your best summer yet!

bullet journal, Bullet journaling, creativity, Cricut Design Space, Cricut Joy Xtra, goal setting, intentional living, lifestyle, planner girl, planner lifestyle, Planning and journaling, productivity

Setting up my Bullet Journal for July 2026 – Strawberries theme

Posted on Jun 23, 2026Jun 23, 2026 by Laura

Hi all! It’s been a while since I last shared my monthly BuJo pages, but, as I’ve finished my July spreads super early (I actually finished the last few bits over a week ago!), I thought I’d get the various pages photographed and uploaded to my blog so you could see my finished designs and chosen theme. Obviously I’ve used stickers but you could quite easily simplify the pages and hand draw and colour different strawberry (or other fruit) themed images.

The front cover

I wanted to create a slightly thicker grid than the one above but I only had a Tombow pen in the colour I wanted so I used the bullet tip for it. I created strawberry stickers with no white border for a clean look and I was pleased with how well my Cricut Joy Xtra cut out the images. Overall, I think the page looks quite cute!

Monthly calendar

I already have quite a few things happening in July so I was glad to have my calendar ready early so I had a space to put them after initially adding them to my future log. I love how bright and colourful the spread turned out and, if you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that strawberries are my absolute favourite fruit and so this theme was a great option for me this month.

The calendar is the usual six by six dot grid spaces as I find I have just enough room to write in all (or most) of whst I need to add.

Finances – income and expenditure

This month, you may have noticed that I appear to have forgotten to use a ruler. Actually, I did it on purpose and it made it sooooo much quicker to do the grid for my calendar and the finances log. And, to be honest, I think it looks okay, and I might do it again and again for the rest of 2026! I saw a tip on a YouTube video (might have been Shayda Campbell) about using two hand drawn lines to show that the wobbly bits are intentional and it certainly doesn’t look as messy if you’re ruler accidentally smudges things or if you accidentally move the ruler.

Reviewing the previous month and getting ready for July

I started creating this spread as a way to think about how things went the previous month including what went well, what didn’t go as planned, changes I might make the next month and anything that I needed to look into to help me going forwards. It’s also a space where I can record any actions I want to take before I start to work towards my monthly goals. For example, this month, I need to read information on the Brockbushes website to find out when the strawberry picking is, how much it costs, what’s on the lunch menu at the cafe there (we can’t just eat strawberries all day), how long it takes to get there and what photos I might want to take so I have a nice record of what we did and any displays they have.

Monthly goals and space for evaluation

I tend to choose about 4 or 5 goals each month, sometimes related to hobbies or experiences I want to have, usually at least one related to my blog or Etsy shop (not included this time as I did a lot of work in June and now, a personal curriculum aim. These fall outside of the time I spend at work and I’m mindful of how much time I will have depending on my hours. In July, I have quite a lot of commitments and I’m getting sessions through regularly (2 since I photographed my spreads) so realistically, I can’t made my goals too lofty or I’m setting myself up to fail.

Weekly plan

I made all of my weekly plans the same for July so I’m just sharing one of them as an example. I kept the decoration very minimal but I do have some spare strawberry stickers if I want to add some later.

Final words…

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing my pages for the month of July and are suitably impressed with how early I’ve got them finished (ha ha!). I appreciate that not everyone has the time and inclination to create such highly decorated spreads but for me, it’s really one of my hobbies and something I find a fun, relaxing and mindful activity. I also think I’m more likely to use my planner functionally if it looks pretty! I check in with my bullet journal every day, and throughout the day if I’m at home, and it really works to keep me organised and on track to succeed in creating a life I love.

Wishing you a joyful July,

Business growth, Business management, Creative business strategy

How to Confidently Manage Your Creative Business Without Losing Your Spark (A guest post by Linda Chase)

Posted on Jun 10, 2026 by Laura

Today I’m sharing a wonderfully comprehensive guest post from regular contributor Linda Chase, which is packed full of tips for the confident and smooth running of your creative business ensuring that you can spend more time and energy focusing on what, for me, are the more exciting and rewarding elements such as conceptualization of ideas, planning, designing and making. Whether you’re just starting out or have been running your business for a while, you may feel that the financial and management aspects are a huge, laborious chores and tend to squash your creativity. If this is the case, and for many of us creatives I think it is, I’m sure you’ll find Linda’s article a huge help and full of key takeaways. Let me know what you’ve learnt in the comments and I’ll be sure to pass on your feedback to Linda.

Freelance designers, photographers, illustrators, writers, and other creative professionals often end up doing two full-time jobs: making the work and managing everything around it. The core tension is plain, balancing creativity and business can pull attention away from the craft, yet ignoring business challenges for artists makes income, client relationships, and time feel shaky. When creative work management gets messy, even strong talent can start to feel like a grind instead of a choice. Creative career sustainability comes from building enough structure to protect creative energy.

Quick Summary: Manage Your Creative Business Confidently

Set pricing basics so your work stays profitable and your decisions feel confident.
Use simple contracts and invoices to protect projects and get paid smoothly.
Build a lightweight workflow to keep projects organized without draining creativity.
Organize finances in a straightforward system so you always know what is coming in and going out.
Market authentically so promotion feels aligned with your voice and supports steady growth.

Build Money Confidence with Structured Business Foundations

Once you’ve got the core business basics on your radar, the next step is building the kind of confidence that makes pricing and money decisions feel less like guesswork. Earning a business degree can give creatives practical skills in pricing strategy, financial management, contracts, marketing, and operations, so you can set up simple systems that support your work while preserving your creative energy.

Instead of reinventing the wheel every time you quote a project, negotiate terms, or plan next month’s spending, structured coursework can help you understand the “why” behind everyday decisions and apply it consistently. If you want to learn while you work, options like bachelor’s-level business courses online let you build these foundations without stepping away from client projects or your creative practice. With that grounding in place, you’ll be ready to put a practical, step-by-step system into action in your day-to-day business.

Set Up Simple Systems for Pricing, Payments, and Promotion

This routine turns the business side of your creative work into a repeatable setup you can trust. It matters because fewer money surprises and clearer expectations leave you more energy for the work itself.

Set pricing you can explain in one minute Start with a base rate that covers your time, tools, and overhead, then create 2 to 3 packaged options (basic, standard, premium) so clients can self-select. Use contrast pricing to frame value in plain language by comparing your fee to the client’s current cost of doing it the hard way.
Choose a contract template and lock your scope Pick one contract template that matches your most common project type, then fill in the same few fields every time: deliverables, timeline, rounds of revisions, usage rights, and payment schedule. Add one simple “change request” rule so extra work becomes a clear add-on instead of an awkward conversation.
Send invoices that are clear and easy to pay Standardize your billing so every invoice includes the same essentials, and prepare your invoice with your details, the client’s details, line items, total due, due date, and payment options. Then choose one invoicing method/software so you are not rebuilding the process for every client.
Streamline your workflow with a reusable checklist Write a simple project checklist from inquiry to final delivery, including your key decision points like deposit received, kickoff scheduled, draft sent, and approval captured. Save email and message templates for common moments (welcome, revision request, final files) so you can stay warm and professional without starting from scratch.
Track money weekly and market in your natural voice Block 20 minutes once a week to log income, categorize expenses, and note what is still outstanding so you always know where you stand. For marketing, pick one channel you enjoy and one story you can tell regularly (process, before and after, lessons learned) so your promotion feels like sharing, not performing.

Creative Business FAQs That Keep You in Control

Q: How do I set time boundaries without sounding difficult?
A: Put your hours and response window in writing and repeat it calmly in every onboarding message. Offer one clear alternative, like “I reply within 24 hours on weekdays” plus an option for a paid rush fee. Boundaries feel professional when they are consistent and predictable.

Q: What deposit rule protects me and keeps clients committed?
A: A simple standard is 30% to 50% upfront before any work begins, with the balance tied to milestones or delivery. State that production time starts after the deposit clears, and pause work if payments fall behind. This protects your calendar and reduces awkward follow-ups.

Q: How can I stop scope creep without constant confrontation?
A: Define what is included and what is not included before kickoff, because defining project scope is the foundation of planning. Then use one written change-request policy: new requests get a revised quote, timeline, or both.

Q: When should I charge for revisions or extra rounds?
A: Charge once the client goes beyond the agreed number of rounds or changes direction after approval. Put your revision limits in the agreement and list your hourly or per-round rate for add-ons. Clients usually accept it when the rule is stated upfront.

Q: How often should I review my system as my workload grows?
A: Do a 20-minute monthly review: what ran late, what took extra energy, and what got underpaid. Update one template or checklist each time so improvements are small and sustainable. 47 percent of respondents believe their project management practices are damaging their profitability, so tightening your process is a real revenue move.

Simple Systems That Protect Your Creativity as Business Grows

Running a creative business can feel like a tug-of-war between making great work and managing the admin that keeps it paid and predictable. The steadier path is a mindset of sustainable business growth: keep expectations clear, build routine business practices, and adjust the system as real projects reveal what’s missing. With that approach, decisions get faster, boundaries hold, and scaling creative careers becomes less stressful and more intentional. Pick a few systems, review them regularly, and let your business support your art. Choose 3 foundational creative tools and set one monthly business review to check finances, workflow, and policies. That small rhythm builds resilience, stability, and room to keep creating for the long haul.

Final words…

Thank you to Linda for her super useful guide to effective management of creative businesses. I hope you found the content of today’s article beneficial and I encourage you to bookmark it on your computer (or add it to a dedicated page of links on Notion) so you can reference it in the future as your business starts to grow and expand.

amateur photography, beginner photography, Bullet journaling, education, goal setting, intentional living, learning, lifelong learning, lifestyle, personal development, personal growth, planner lifestyle, reflective journalling, Setting goals and intentions, wellbeing

Monday Matters: Creating a personal curriculum by starting small (with just one topic)

Posted on Jun 8, 2026Jun 5, 2026 by Laura

I’ve seen a lot of YouTube vlogs recently about creating your own personal curriculum, and, as I consider myself very much as a lifelong learner, I was eager to give it a go. However, with limited free time, a variety of goals in progress, and a vision board that identifies my priorities for 2026, I wanted to start really small by focusing on just one subject and a particular element I want to learn more about. If, like me, you already have a busy life but want to carve out some time to learn something new (and enjoy benefits such as enhanced brain function, improved emotional and mental wellbeing, personal growth and increased life satisfaction) read on to find out how I designed my personal curriculum for Summer 2026. Also, if you’re not sure what a personal curriculum even is, I’ve also covered this below too.

What is a personal curriculum?

A personal curriculum is a self-designed and self-lead learning plan that enables you to create your own educational journey, developing your skills and knowledge in an area which interests you. Unlike at school, college or university, you play the role of teacher, selecting your own subjects, assignments and, if you wish, learning objectives. You also get to choose how many topics you will cover (I would suggest no more than two or three to get you started), your methods of learning (e.g. books, videos, movies, podcasts, trips, experiences etc.) and the time scale for completion (e.g. one month, one season, one term or one semester). You can also plan study times around other commitments and think about how deep an understanding you wish to have by the end of your ‘module’.

The topics of your personal curriculum can vary greatly but could include academic subjects such as environmental sciences, philosophy, British Classics, Fine Art or Creative writing, hobbies such as baking, photography, knitting or watercolour painting, practical skills such as budgeting, gardening, basic car maintenance or computer literacy, or personal development such as time management, mindfulness, communication skills, learning a new language, emotional resilience or goal setting.

Choosing my focus for my learning plan

I have many, many hobbies an interests which made it difficult to decide where to start and what I wanted to work on. So, I figured that it might be a good idea to make a list of things I enjoy doing in my spare time. These are what came to mind straight away:

Creative journalling and memory keeping
bullet journalling
walking in nature
vegan cookery
drawing
watercolour painting
photography
blogging
fitness related including yoga, Pilates and Zumba

Some of these topics, I feel like I know quite a lot about already and so I’m happy with my current explorations of them and how much time I dedicate to them. Others, I want to learn more about but tend to explore them every now and then when I feel like getting creative (e.g. watercolour painting and drawing. The topic that I decided that I really want to focus on learning about right now was DSLR photography. However, as I’ve done a beginners course focusing on basic techniques and Photoshop, I wanted to explore a very specific type of photography which would uplevel my skills. I know I would love to concentrate on wildlife photography but I’m very aware that suitable zoom lenses and a camera upgrade would be required and I don’t have the finances for this at the moment (if ever!). What I do have though, is a macro lens which I really haven’t got the hang of yet and a love of photographing insects and flowers so I’ve opted for a module on Macro Photography as a good starting point.

What do I want to learn?

I grabbed a piece of paper and brainstormed all of the things I wanted to learn about the topic of macro photography. Then I worked in my bullet journal to made a spread called An Introduction to Macro Photography finalising my ideas by identifying a rough order of action points. I started with the theory behind this style of photography, including tips and tricks, then moved on to practical experiences and opportunities to evaluate my learning and progress. I kept it pretty simple, using stamps and black ink, but if you wanted to, you could set out learning objectives or expected outcomes at each stage and go to town with the decor.

Finding resources to support my learning

There are plenty of resources online about macro photography so I made the decision to stick with web-based information for the whole of my ‘module’. I don’t want to buy books on my chosen topic as these can quickly become outdated or might involve equipment which I haven’t got (e.g. the newer mirrorless cameras) and, although I could go to the library, I like the idea of dipping in and out of online resources when I have a spare few minutes and don’t want to carry heavy books around with me.

To ensure I (almost) always have access to the wealth of webpages, blog posts and YouTube videos I’ve come across, rather than writing them down in my bullet journal, I’ve opted to paste the links into Notion so I can click on them whenever I want, and as long as I have my phone or my computer accessible (which is pretty much all of the time), I can do some self study. Now, I’m not an expert on Notion, so it’s not a fancy set up with items pertaining to different aspects of my curriculum but the titles in the links are enough for me to gauge what the pages or videos are about helping me to establish when they might be useful, and that’s enough for me!

When choosing your resources, it’s important to firstly establish what type of learner you are. Learners can be broadly categorised into the following (bear in mind that you’re likely to be more than one type):

visual learner – prefers images, diagrams and charts
auditory learner – learns best through lectures, discussions and audio materials such as podcasts and audiobooks
kinesthetic learners – prefers hands on learning through physical experiences and practical activities
linguistic learner – excels in reading, writing and verbal communication
logical learners – enjoys solving problems and logical reasoning
social learners – thrives in group settings and prefers to learn through collaboration
solitary learners – prefers to study alone and is self-motivated to learn, keen to independently reflect on own learning

Should I record my learning?

Whether you take notes on what you read or explore is entirely up to you, but for me, writing and journalling is part of the fun, so I absolutely want to do plenty of recording even if it’s just me writing that I spent ages trying to get the perfect shot of a butterfly and just as I fully depressed the shutter it flew off to pastures new and left me feeling a tad frustrated. Also, as a stationery lover, it was the perfect excuse to go notebook shopping! I got three slim notebooks for £3.50 and as long as I ignore (or get over) the fact that the word ‘notes’ is slightly off centre (grrr), I’m sure I’ll enjoy using one of them for my Macro Photography learning!

Now I just need to decide which design to use. I’m thinking the bright and sunny yellow colour?

Top tips for keeping it fun and interesting

Now you’re no longer studying at school or college, you get to choose exactly what you focus on and the pace of your learning. To ensure you have fun and maintain interest in your personal curriculum, I have the following suggestions and tips which should help:

embrace fluidity Whether your employed, run your own business, or are currently not working, there will be times when you have lots on your plate, times when you have a lighter schedule, times when you’re full of energy and times when you simply need to rest rather than adding more to your to do list. For your personal curriculum to be successful, I think it’s really important to ‘go with the flow’, accepting that your learning can and should flow with the rhythms of life rather than being a rigid set of actions to be completed at a set time or by a set date.

give yourself grace Similarly, if you do carve out a specific time to do a specific activity such as reading a chapter from a book, watching a video or making notes on your learning, if it doesn’t get done, don’t be hard on yourself, instead, spend time considering and questioning why. Maybe you got distracted by social media. Perhaps a more exciting opportunity presented itself that you didn’t want to miss. Or maybe you had low energy that afternoon and didn’t think it was a good time for you.

release perfectionism Strive to do your best with your personal curriculum study rather than demanding flawless results. When you were at school or college, you had particular grades to aim for and may have felt like other people were placing high expectations on you. However, you were probably also told that ‘as long as you try your best, that is all that matters’. Embrace the present and recognise that you are doing the best you can with the energy and resources you have available and that is totally okay.

avoid comparision The term ‘personal curriculum’ is a bit of a buzz word or phrase at the moment and there seem to be plenty of people talking about developing one and often sharing theirs on social media. I’ve seen examples where individuals have picked about four or five topics in a single month and set around six learning objectives or foci for each. Just the thought of doing this, my part time work, housework and spending time with family and friends (which is also a big priority of mine) stressed me out. But, then I came to realise that, although looking at what others are up to can get your creative juices flowing or give you ideas about the scope for your self study, it can also be pretty dangerous for your own wellbeing to compare yourself to others. If, like me, you want to start slowly and dip your toe into setting yourself a personal curriculum, you could try picking a single topic of study and a small part of what might be a vast and open-ended subject. It’s also worth remembering, that these same people who have been sharing their in depth curriculums, might not have done half of what they set out to do, and might be drowning in their own self-directed learning program behind the scenes and wishing they hadn’t set themselves such lofty goals! Remember, learning in your adulthood should be fun and light-hearted and if it stops being these two things, it might be time to reconsider your choices.

Ultimately, when designing your personal curriculum, ‘you do you’ as the saying goes, choosing your own resources and learning styles rather than adopting ideas from others that you’ve seen on social media. And remember, the beauty of learning as an adult, is that you can always tweak bits along the way or completely miss out parts where you feel like you’re not enjoying yourself or that it’s all getting a bit too academic (or formal) for your liking!

Wishing you lots of happiness in your learning, whatever you choose to do,

Blogging, intentional living, lifestyle, memory keeping, Planning and journaling

Currently… Life update May 2026

Posted on May 14, 2026 by Laura

Hi all, I feel like I’m neglecting my blog a bit at the moment because I’m so busy with work, creative projects, spring cleaning and trying (and somewhat failing) to keep on top of the garden. So, today, I thought I’d come back with a less onerous blog post in the form of a life update. I find these much easier and quicker to write as they don’t require any research and only require a little light reflection on what’s going on for me right now before the words flow from me as fast as I can type. I hope you enjoy reading my little update and it encourages you to do some memory keeping either in your favourite journal or on your own blog.

Currently watching…

…stuff we’ve recorded. Over the winter months, we collected lots of TV shows on our Virgin box and we’re still working our way through some of them including Riot Women, Waterloo Road and Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes. We also have series lined up from earlier in the spring such as Babies, A Woman of Substance and The Walsh Sisters. When I’m at home during the day, I’ve also been trying to catch up on The Sewing Bee and Stacey Solomon’s Sort Your Life out which I enjoy watching whilst doing some ironing. I’ve still got lots of episodes to work my way through but I’m making progress anyway!

Currently reading…

As a bit of a change from my usual psychological mysteries and police procedurals, I’ve been reading a few ‘classics’. Last week, I read Animal Farm, which I found really interesting and thought provoking, with themes of corruption, power, inequality, betrayal and exploitation. I found it particularly amusing that I’d chosen to purchase it during voting week! The book is classed as a novella, as it’s under 100 pages so I finished it within a couple of days.

This week, I chose another short and easy to read classic (this time classed as novel) which is particularly aimed at children but, in my opinion contains themes that may not be fully grasped by younger readers. This popular book, namely The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 and 3/4, promised to be ‘laugh out loud’ funny, but, although I smiled at a few parts, I felt is was more sad in nature than anything else. I read a book from the series when I was at school but I really can’t remember if I enjoyed it or not.

I’m going back to my usual reading genre now and have just started on The Waitress by K.L. Slater. I really should resist the urge to read lots of reviews on Storygraph when I start reading as I’ve found this one has quite a few less complimentary comments – I think it would be better if I just read the book and made up my own mind on how I feel about it.

Currently working on…

…tidying up the garden and removing a plethora of weeds. I’ve set myself the challenge of doing at least 20 minutes per day, but, unfortunately, it keeps raining rather heavily! Last month, the ground was solid and unworkable due to being dry for weeks on end, now the ground is a bit on the soggy side making it easy to pull up the weeds but their shear number is pretty overwhelming. We’ve also had a few plant casualties this year and one of them is proving to be very time consuming and difficult to cut down and dig up. This has not been helped by the fact that my husband and I have been feeling poorly for weeks on end and didn’t have the energy for such work.

Currently having fun…

…in the kitchen! We made vegetarian tacos for the first time last week with smoky pulled aubergine and black bean ragu, plus crunchy iceberg lettuce and creamy feta cubes. We really enjoyed making them but they were pretty messy to assemble and eat – very tasty though!

We also tried out a vegan rock cake recipe from The Veganuary Cookbook which was another great success. They were so simple to make and we used flaxseed to bind the ingredients as a replacement for the egg which is usually used for baking. The cakes were full of dark chocolate chips and chopped glace cherries and have been a delicious sweet treat each evening after dinner.

Currently pinning…

…a range of hamstring stretches to perform at home on a regular basis. Our Iyengar yoga class on Monday focused on a range of asana which involved using our hamstrings and I found all of the poses to be difficult. I know that mine are tight due to all of the walking I do, but our yogi advised us that lower back pain or sciatica can stem from hamstring issues so I’ve decided to make a habit of doing ten minutes of stretches each day from now on.

Currently working on…

…drawing up a more relaxing evening routine. A few months ago, I worked on creating my ideal morning routine and drew up a page in my bullet journal as a guide to follow. Now, I want to create a companion to this in the form of a page or pages on my ideal evening routine. I’ve started making notes on what I do at the moment and which of these elements I want to keep doing, stop doing or make changes to. I’ve bought some stickers from one of my favourite creators on Patreon, My Abiding Journal which I intend to use to help me with the planning and to decorate my BuJo page(s).

Final words…

Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to read my quick catch up. I hope it inspires you to make a record of what you’re up to currently so you can look back on it in the future and see how life changes through the seasons and years. If you don’t have your own blog or YT vlog, you could write a summary in your planner, journal or favourite notebook and why not mark a week at regular intervals on your calendar so it becomes a habit that you continue.