lifestyle – Page 4 – Keeping it creative

Blogging, lifestyle, reflective journalling

Currently… Life update July 2024

Posted on Jul 9, 2024Jul 9, 2024 by Laura

So, the plan was to do one of these every three to six months but I’ve just checked my published post list and it seems I haven’t done one since June 2023! Anyway, I enjoyed looking back at last year’s post and seeing what’s changed and what’s stayed the same. I’m still reading lots of books at the same time, and it appears that two of them were started this time last year and are still on the go now. I’m also continuing to love seeing the wildlife in our garden but I’m upset that the hedgehogs who used to visit last year are no longer coming – our hog biscuits are being polished off by various other creatures included neighbourhood cats, a fox, a cute little mouse and what appears to be a baby rat (the images and videos on our wildlife camera show a twitchy nosed character who is bigger than the mice we’ve seen featured onscreen!). Here’s some more things which are currently filling my days…

Currently reading…

I now record my reading on Storygraph (rather than using my bullet journal) and at the moment, I have 9 titles listed as current reads. However, a few of them have been shelved for a little while so here’s the ones I’m actually grabbing on a regular basis:

Prickly Company by Kitty Johnson – a lovely romantic fiction book which features the goings on of a street called Hilltop Place and a side story of hedgehogs visiting gardens via a ‘hedgehog highway’. If you’re looking for a light read coupled with facts about hedgehogs (and a possibly unexpected twist), this is the book for you! It’s taken me so long to finish this blog post that I’ve now actually finished reading this one and have moved on to the book directly below.
Salt Slow – this is a book of short stories by Julia Armfield which caught my attention when I was reading a book related blog. Described as a collection of gothic, magical realism, the stories are like nothing I’ve read before. I’ve enjoyed some of them more than others so far but my favourites have stayed with me well after the conclusion.
Feel Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal – I put this down for a bit and picked it up a few days ago when I was chillaxing in front of our tower fan on a very warm day. As I’ve been reading, I’ve been using a highlighter pen to highlight interesting lines and paragraphs. At a later date, I’m going to summarise the highlights in written form.
The Happiness Year: How to Find Joy in Every Season by Tara Ward – full of seasonal tasks to help you find the joy during Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, no matter which is your favourite and which you least prefer.

Currently feeling…

I’ve recently made some changes to my diet which have helped me to feel better about myself. So far, I’ve lost 9lb which I’m really pleased with as two of the medications which I take for my Bipolar disorder have a side effect for me of increased appetite and tiredness which have led to weight gain over the past few years. I’ve tried really hard to modify my eating habits after a doctor recently told me that my cholesterol level was a little on the high side. Changes I’ve made include:

cutting out sweets – bye bye Colin The Caterpillar sweets from M&S and other gummy favourites!
choosing healthier breakfast cereal – supermarket own brand Weetabix every day (no more crunchy nut cornflakes) and Special K to ve reintroduced when my crown has settled)
sticking with our vegan spread on bread for sandwiches and in white sauces rather than using up the butter purchased for a particular recipe (only having butter when we go out for a meal)
watching my portion sizes – having a small handful of crisps from a large packet rather than a full individual bag, reducing the amount/type of table sauces and dressing e.g. mayonnaise, barbecue sauce, less calorie laden salad dressings etc, having one or two biscuits instead of three, checking the portion sizes on boxes, packets and tins, making sure most of my plate is full of fruit and veg etc.
not having so many treats on weekends (less cakes, ice creams, less calorific desserts etc)

Currently working on…

I’m trying really hard to spend time working on our garden each day so that plants thrive (apart from those irritating weeds that seem to pop up everywhere within days), deadheading is done regularly, leaves and stems are checked for disease and little critters such as greenfly, snails and slugs and evaluations of fauna which helps us to see if our spaces are wildlife friendly. At the moment, it feels like I’m not dedicating enough hours each week to keep on top of things, but I’m trying to be happy with the progress we are making in our front and back spaces rather than noticing all of the bits we haven’t got around to!

Currently creating…

I have two creative journals on the go at the moment – my summer 2024 TN insert and another insert for our North Wales holiday last month. I’ve printed lots of photos from my phone, manipulated images taken on my dslr in Photoshop and have made stickers and ephemera for decorating the various pages. I’ve also got postcards, tickets, receipts and other bits and pieces for tipping in too. Now I just need to dedicate some time each week for creating the spreads.

Currently enjoying…

I love summer time as it means I can enjoy a range of fresh and juicy fruits and easily get my 5 a day seven days a week. I love mango, raspberries, nectarines, peaches, watermelon, pineapple and sweet oranges but my absolute favourite are strawberries. Although not as healthy as enjoying them on their own, I’ve bought some cooking chocolate and for dipping them in as a special summer treat. If you seen my bucket list, you’ll also know that I plan on making strawberry lemonade at some point soon.

Final words…

If I’m going to be in with a chance of this being published any time soon, I think I’ll have to leave it there. As before, I encourage my readers who have their own blog to give writing a ‘Currently…’ post a go as it is an interesting way to evaluate your current priorities and, over time, see how they have changed.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about what I’m currently up to in July 2024. I think I might add a date to my bullet journal future log for starting the next update so I don’t leave it too long next time!

bullet journal, Bullet journaling, exercise, fitness, goal setting, Health and Nutrition, lifestyle, wellbeing

Setting up my Bullet Journal for July 2024: Health and fitness theme

Posted on Jun 30, 2024Jun 30, 2024 by Laura

This time, I’m coming to you with what might be considered a bit of a random BuJo theme for summer. My original idea was to do wildflowers and grasses, but, as my current personal goals are mainly focused on weight loss and body toning, I thought why not choose a theme related to these, so I opted for health and fitness. I wrote lots of ideas on mini post-it notes and then decided which ones I’d actually go ahead and do (with the limited time I had left to be ready for July). Here’s what I have to show you so far:

Quote page

Photo credit: Laura Jones for Keeping It Creative

This was created using Canva (none pro version), an A5 size portrait size design and a lovely peachy pink colour font. I then added a couple of bits of washi and a little sticker from a page of health and fitness related phrases from my Carpe Diem booklet.

July Cover Page

I had so much fun setting this up and it was nice to make use of some Carpe Diem stickers I already had in my stash. The solid black images of women exercising were made in Cricut Design Space.

July Calendar

I shifted the boxes on my usual calendar one place to the right so I could add my goals for the month on the left hand side. I’ve now decided that a better target than 10K steps most days would have been 2400+ calories burnt but I can always create a habit tracker for the above instead.

My reasons why…

I got the idea for this page and a few others from Planning Annie on YouTube. She has lots of ideas for health related spreads and I really recommend watching her ‘health and fitness planner spreads’ video if you need some further inspiration. The ‘reasons why’ I’ve chosen are very personal to me, so, for example, my GP has advised that my blood pressure is at the high end of normal and that my cholesterol levels are slightly elevated from the normal range so related reasons why have, as you can see, been added to the spread.

July Finances

I almost forgot to do my financial tracker as it isn’t something related to the aspects of health I’m focusing on (financial health aside). I’ve been really good at spending no more than I have coming in each month for quite a while now but it’s still interesting to see where my money is going.

Another motivational quote page

With 9lbs lost so far in a relative short frame of time, I’m feeling really motivated to lose more weight. The second part of this popular quote, from Jim Rohn, will hopefully be related to my new and improved eating habits which will join with my regular fitness class habit that I’ve had for a fair few years now.

My weight loss journey so far…

I thought this spread might help keep my motivation high until eating healthily becomes a habit. I also think it will become useful for making dietary tweaks. Basically, I’m going to record observations (e.g. a particular piece of clothing fits better), thoughts (e.g. this is just the beginning, am I drinking too much water? etc) and feelings (I always feel super hungry before Clubbercise so I need to plan is a filling snack two hours before, I feel much more confident in my new top etc) throughout the coming months to monitor my progress to good health.

Final words…

That’s all of my spreads so far, although, as I said, I might create a habit tracker page ready for the new month. I’ve also decided to go back to a rapid logging style of creating daily pages as I’m finding that my week on two pages layout just doesn’t give me enough room. I will, however, need to record events taking place that week at the top of the page so I know what’s happening and when but this can be done on a Sunday night ready for the week ahead.

However you plan to spend the month of July, I wish you a good one,

Anxiety management, bullet journal, life hacks, lifestyle, mental health, planner lifestyle, wellbeing

Monday Matters: 5 reasons why you should make a packing list for your holiday (AKA vacation)

Posted on Jun 10, 2024Jun 8, 2024 by Laura

As my regular readers will know, my husband and I are off on a week’s holiday later in the month. Before we go on any trip, whether it’s a weekend away, a mid week trip or a longer holiday, without fail, I create a packing list in my bullet journal which includes absolutely everything that I plan to take no matter how obvious the items are – I’ll even list the contents of my handbag even though the stuff is already inside. Today, I’m going to share with you my three reasons for making the aforementioned list and why I believe is an essential part of holiday preparation.

It helps you avoid under or over-packing

Before starting my packing list, I spend time thinking carefully about the length of our holiday and how many days worth of clothing I will need. I’ll also think about whether I will need more than one outfit for any of the days or if it’s likely we will be going out for the day and then coming back in the evening and staying in. Finally, I’ll consider whether any items will be re-worn or if, for example, they might have become sweaty if it’s really hot weather. The same process will be applied to my underwear items so I know I have just the right amount of stuff. This helps me avoid over or under packing and usually means that I have the perfect amount of clothing. After careful consideration I will work on my clothing list, writing down exactly how many of items were I need multiples e.g. 15 pairs of socks, 5 bras etc.

It ensures you don’t forget any essentials

There are always a number of items which you absolutely must take on your holiday. For me, this is things like my medication, mobile phone, debit cards and cash, hairbrush and for somewhere hot, sunscreen, a cap and my sunglasses. These would go on my essentials list and are written down first when I create by bullet journal spread. Doing this ensures you don’t forget any essentials – or at least it does if you run through your list before you set off and tick off all of the items!

You can pack methodically in a (relatively) stress free way

In the past, I’ve found packing my bags for departure extremely stressful, even to the point of inducing tears. Creating a packing list makes things much easier and a hell of a lot calmer. By going down your list for each category, you can get each item folded (or rolled) and ready in a collection so all that remains is to decide where it will go in your suitcase or bag.

As part of my list, I also add a ‘last minute’ list which includes things which will be in use at home before travel e.g. my toothbrush, hairbrush and make up, and tasks which need completing before setting off e.g. emptying the kitchen bin, watering our pots in the front and back garden etc.

You can keep your lists to help you next time

As all of my packing lists are written in my bullet journals, I can flick back and find a similar holiday list to help me get started. So, for example, if we’re going down to visit my parents in the summer time, I can look back at last years list and re-write it with some tweaks such as adding new items of clothing, removing bits and pieces that I no longer own etc. This makes things super quick and easy and again contributes to packing being a less stressful event!

It stops you stressing over forgotten items

My husband always says to me in the car to the airport or on our way to our destination “have you remembered anything that you’ve forgotten yet?”. Invariably, my answer is no, unless I forgot to do my last minute check through like I did when we went to my mum and dad’s house last and I forgot my hairdryer as it was in use prior to setting off. In the past, for my husband, the answer was quite regularly “yes” when I replied “have you?” until he realised a list on his phone might be of great help!

As well as preventing you forgetting things (at least minimising the potential), it also means that you don’t have to then go searching for replacements at your destination. This is particularly helpful if you’re going somewhere remote with limited access to shops, if you prefer particular products (e.g. I only use vegan cosmetics and toiletries) or if you’re going abroad somewhere (especially if you don’t speak the language). It might not be the end of the world if you forget non-essential items but it often causes some form of inconvenience at least.

My packing list for this month’s holiday

There are lots of packing lists examples available online and you can even purchase PDF versions, but personally, I prefer writing my own from scratch for each holiday. This means it’s completely personal to me and relevant to the particular destination, season and length of time I’m away for. I also take my list with me in my bullet journal when I go so that I can do a quick whizz through before we go home so I can check I’ve repacked everything. Below is my packing list for our holiday to Wales. It’s still a work in progress as we’re not heading off yet and I like to take my time with it.

Final words…

I hope you’ve found today’s blog post useful and can see how creating a packing list, for me, is an essential before travel task which is great for making me much more relaxed and better organised. Drawing up your own personalised list can lead to you feel less stressed and better prepared and I promise you will realise what a worthwhile activity it is. I’d love to know where you think would be the best place to write your list (analogue or digital?) and if you can see the benefits of keeping them in a safe place until your next holiday.

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Some of my readers have messaged me via email and have expressed an interest in dropping a comment or asking a question after reading a particular blog post. Unfortunately, this involves setting up a WordPress account but, luckily, it doesn’t take long and, once created, you can leave comments on any blog posts (from bloggers who use WordPress) which spark your interest. Also, you don’t need to be a blogger to set up account either. I hope this helps! I plan to paste this into each of my posts in future but have put it in post script so my regular readers and fellow bloggers can ignore!

Bullet journaling, goal setting, life hacks, lifestyle, memory keeping, planner girl, planner lifestyle, Planning and journaling

Creating a bright and colourful Summer Bucket List spread in my Bullet Journal

Posted on May 28, 2024Jun 1, 2025 by Laura

Last autumn, I set myself the challenge of creating a bucket list for each of the four seasons and making a Traveler’s Notebook journal for each in which to record all of my experiences across the year. This week, I finished setting up my final double page spread for the summer season in my Bullet Journal and I’m super pleased with how it turned out. The aim was to produce something inspirational using bright summer colours and images which embody the summer season. I enjoyed the process from start to finish and thought I’d share with you my finished product, explain a bit about how I went about setting it up and give a step by step guide to help you make your own.

Defining the season

The first step I took was decide on the dates for summer – I chose to base my seasons on the meteorological start and end which is June 1st to August 31st, but I could have opted for the astronomical period which cites the beginning as Thursday 20th of June to Sunday 22nd September. It’s obviously up to you which you go with and you probably already have your own idea when summer falls.

Brainstorming ideas

Initially I look at a range of bucket list ideas on Pinterest and noted down any which appealed. I also spent some time thinking about what summer means to me e.g. going to the beach and activities I enjoy doing such as birdwatching, photography, tasting summer fruits and going for walks in nature. As we’re off on holiday to Wales for a week next month, I then researched places to go and things to do in the local area which I could add to my list.

If you end up with a huge, long list of ideas, think about which activities most excite you, which fit in with your priorities for this year (e.g. relaxation, having fun, being adventurous, learning new things etc.) and which feel most realistic.

Setting some achievable goals

Whilst adding items to my list, I tried to make sure that there we’re some quick and easily achievable goals and some which will take more planning and organising. It’s also important to consider your budget, time constraints and any other commitments you have. It’s no good writing that you want to do a hot air balloon ride if you have no idea of the cost and haven’t researched locations from which these are available.

Creating a visual representation

For my bullet journal inspiration board, I selected some stickers from my stash and made some in Cricut Design Space. I even chose to add some real photographs of the places we would like to go, so I have an image of my local beach, and pictures I found online of Yorkshire Lavender and the two National Trust places we intend to visit during our holiday in Wales. I also found some tiny stickers to fill in the gaps between the bucket list items.

Of course, you don’t have to create a concrete visual representation for display. You might choose to simply close you eyes and picture yourself doing the activities and thinking about how they would make you feel or you might just write your list and put it somewhere you can regularly refer to.

Planning the details

For each activity, I’m now spending time fleshing out the details. So, for example, I’ve found what looks to be a simple and tasty recipe for strawberry lemonade and added it to Notion. I’ve written down the postcodes and travel times for the National Trust places and the RSPB reserve and have done some reading so I know what to expect when we go. I’ve also noted costs involved for different items and have purchased my summer novel on Kindle (for 99p!) and seasonal jigsaw puzzle already.

Final words…

I hope I’ve inspired you to make your own bucket list for summer 2024 full of exciting activities you’d like to try and maybe some old seasonal favourites. Creating a plan which is unique to you, is a great way to explore possibilities for the upcoming months so as to ensure you make the most of all of the free time you have available to you.

Wishing you a fun summer,

art, bullet journal, Bullet journaling, creativity, Cricut, lifestyle, planner girl, planner lifestyle, Planning and journaling

Setting up my Bullet Journal for May 2024: Gardening quotes and flowers theme

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Laura

This month, it’s time for me to start a new bullet journal and the one I’ve chosen is the Tsuki ‘suzume’ from Notebook Therapy. Suzume is Japanese for sparrow and, as a bird lover, this was the perfect choice for me. The notebook features gold embossing of a sparrow carrying a flower in its beak plus a crescent moon, shooting star and sparkles on the front of the gorgeous pink linen cover. There’s also small details such as the same flower to the spine, plus gold edges to the pages which are really special touches too.

For my theme this time, I’ve chosen a combination of gardening quotes and pretty flowers. I’ve mainly used stickers to decorate my pages but I did take the time to create a hand drawn and coloured in image for my front cover. Hopefully, this month the weather will be a little warmer (and drier) and there will be a few more opportunities to get outside to tend to our flower beds and pots and see our bright blooms appear. We’re also hoping to spend some time relaxing on our garden bench (including after dark looking for our hedgehog visitor) and I might even get to enjoy my morning coffee in the sunshine. Fingers crossed!

So, here are my pages for the month of May. I hope you enjoy looking at them and I would love to hear your thoughts or questions about any aspect of my set up in the comments below.

Front cover

I enjoyed using a combination of Tombow Dual Brush pens and Crayola Supertips to colour in my hand drawn design. I then added the spots to the watering can using a Sakura gelly roll pen to add more interest.

Month on two pages

The sticker decor for this page was all created using images from Cricut Design Space and turning them into print and cut images. I couldn’t resist adding a few sparkles using a Uniball Signo gold glitter pen.

Finances

My usual chart to record my incomings and outgoings.

Weekly plans

I’ve done the same set up for each of my weeklies and used flower decor throughout. This is for the first week which I’ve already started to fill in. I’ve been busy making tiny icon stickers to use to represent different activities and I’m continuing to add to my collection. This will make my planning process quicker and more visual.

Final words…

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog post and look at my bullet journal spreads today. I appreciate any form of support or encouragement towards my blog whether that’s reading my content, liking my posts, making comments or asking questions – especially as things seem to have gone a little quiet over the last few months (sob!).

Wishing you a joy filled May whatever your plans are for the month. I’m hoping to get the rest of my Spring bucket list ticked off as there are still quite a few items left including a waterfall walk and a bike ride!