The 31 Day of Writing Challenge continues. It’s Day 6 of my 31 Days of Gratitude 2015. Second, it is the first Tuesday of the month so today is our Pinterest Party – Planner’s Edition!

Join me for a Pinterest Party every first Tuesday of the month as we link up and pin it, create it, and inspire others to do the same. Recipes and crafty ideas are encouraged but think outside the box too. Think organizing ideas, birthday themes, a cute outfit, a new hairstyle, marriage tips, life inspiration, traveling destinations, a great quote – anything you’d post to Pinterest.

Show us how you didn’t just pin it but brought it to life!

Not on Pinterest? No problem. Link-up your own creation to inspire us so we can pin in to our own boards. Don’t have a post ready? The link-up will be open for a month so there’s still time. Plus, feel free to link up a new post or an older post that hasn’t had much traffic lately. 🙂 (If you want to grab the button, scroll to the bottom.)

This month is a special Pinterest Party because it is the PLANNER EDITION! Whether you are a planner addict (raises hand) or a newbie just starting to plan, we want to hear from you! If you are a blogger, add the link to your planner post. If you aren’t a blogger let us know in the comments what kind of planner you are using and what you love most about it. 🙂

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Here is a look at my planner…

Maybe it is because I am getting older but I have been thinking a lot about how precious our time on earth is and how quickly the days can escape us. The busyness of family life can make it easy for days, weeks, even months fly by and we find ourselves asking, “How is it already a new month??” The hours of my life are precious. I can show my gratitude for each new day by using those hours wisely.

That is not always easy for me to do. I am often guilty of wasting too much time. I am all for having down time, play time and me-time but I want to make sure I am getting all my priorities done first and not letting them fall through the cracks while I get sucked into a rabbit hole of social media or Netflix binging.

One way I combat this is through my planner. If you know me, then you also know that I love making lists and if I don’t write it down, I won’t remember it five minutes later. Literally.

In 2013,  I was using a Martha Steward Discbound planner (which is sadly no longer available for purchase) and I loved everything about it except that it was too big to carry around with me everywhere. Because I spend a lot of time out of the house, I needed something that was more portable.

In 2014, I switched to a new Erin Condren planner. I thought I would hate a spiral planner since I couldn’t add to it the same way as a binder or discbound but it has not been a problem at all. I loved the layout and portability so much that this is my second year with an Erin Condren Life Planner.

I prefer my planners to run like the school year from September to August so in September I set up my new planner. (It was like Christmas for me.) 😉

I love that EC Planners come with removable covers and I can change them according to season (or my mood.) Last year I had the Favorite Things cover.

This year I went with the “life in little squares” cover using some of my favorite Instagram photos.

Another draw of the EC Planners is all the colors. I don’t like planners with plain black and white pages. I like bright colors that make me want to actually use the planner.

In my monthly spread, I use washi tape to make color coded small squares. Blue are doctor appointments and speech therapy. Green is school related. Red is an event I need to attend or drive the kids to. Orange is a family birthday.

I write the definite items in ink and possible dates and notes in pencil. However, one thing I did not like about using markers or pens is that if I made a mistake, I couldn’t erase it like a pencil. Well, until now! I finally found a solution but I’ll get into that in a bit when I talk about favorite tools.

The weekly page is where people can really go to town to decorate and fill the boxes with all sorts of decor. Me? I seriously just need a space for my To Do lists. It probably looks a little more like a bullet journal but it works for me.

This is how the weekly page looked last year. The three boxes were labeled as Morning, Day and Night.

This year the calendar is still divided up into three sections but it is no longer labeled as – Morning, Day and Night. Instead it is blank, which I love since my top box is for places I have to be that day. The middle box is for things I really need to try and do that day. The last box is for things I should do but it’s okay if I wait until later.

This year you also have the option of ordering a planner with your days going horizontally instead of vertically.

The new EC planners also no longer have that little circle decor going down the side or the mini calendar in the top left corner (which I never really used) and instead it is a spot for your own weekly quote of inspiration. I use a little washi and a sticker or two for decor and that is enough for me.

In the last bottom section I keep track of my dinner menu and posts that I will publish on the blog that day. The right side column is for goals and notes.

Other differences from last year’s layout:

There is no longer a quote at the top of each monthly calendar. Instead there is a lined sheet for notes and a full inspirational quote page at the beginning of each month.

Hey, that’s pretty darn close to my blog’s tag line! 😉

The front of the planner also has a new goal section, which I love.

As readers of my blog know, for the last year I have been really big on making goals. I have my larger yearly goals and smaller monthly goals that help me make progress in smaller steps. I added into my planner my yearly goals in the 5 areas of my being  – as a Daughter of God, a Wife, a Mom, a Homemaker and a Woman. The sixth box has one of my favorite quotes. “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” – St. Catherine of Sienna.

I wanted to put my monthly goals on the second page but there was only the one sheet of paper. So I made a color copy and added it to my planner with EC coil clips. This way, each month I can add my smaller monthly goals to my planner. That is so helpful to me.

The back of the planner still has lined, decorative blank (and now) graph pages.

The one thing I don’t like is that there are less pages than there were in last year’s version. Yet, the spiral ring is larger. It’s not so much larger that it is a deal breaker but I would have liked more sheets to go with it. On the plus side, the larger (and sturdy) spiral let’s you add more of your own sheets with the coils

These two photos are from last year’s model but they are basically the same.

A Look Ahead calendar.

Stickers – both pre-labeled and blank.
There is still a pocket for papers, a perpetual calendar to keep the dates of birthdays and dates to remember and a few free goodies in a pocketed pouch.
As an extra, I purchased a pen loop and a separate tablet that sticks to the back of the planner. I use these for notes to school or my own scribblings.

I also had an EC gift card so I added a couple extra items.

Post-it notes that pop into the planner. (I love me some post its!)

Coil clips to add your own pages to the planner and decorative stickers.

Favorite Planner Tools

The green is the thicker line (I don’t know the exact size since the description isn’t in English. The pink line is .7 thick.

Erasable Markers

As I already mentioned, my new favorite planner tool are these erasable markers/pens. I first saw these markers on a Periscope by Tina of Zoo Cuties. At first I bought the smaller Pilot Frixion Colors Erasable Marker – 12 Color set because they were less expensive and I wasn’t sure if I would like them or not. I kept envisioning those erasable ball point pens that were popular when I was in grade school – the were smudgy and made a mess. However, these Frixion pens did not smudge at all. The only way they erases is with the special eraser at the top of the pen or you could purchase an eraser separately.

I loved the pens but I didn’t check the size and they wrote a little thick for the small boxes of the calendar. I went back to Amazon and purchased the Pilot Frixion Erasable Gel Ink Pens, 0.7mm, Assorted Colors, 24/Pack. Although it was more expensive I knew it would be worth it because they were exactly what I was looking for.

The next time I place an Amazon order I’m going to get the Pilot Frixion Ball Knock 4-Color Gel Ink Multi-Pen for my purse or to hook onto my planner. 😉

Charms

Photo Credit: Tiny Saints

There are tons of charms and elastic bands you can get for your planner. Someone asked me where I got the St. Anne charm on my planner. It is from Tiny Saints. Since St. Anne is my patron saint (for non-Catholics, that’s basically someone in heaven I especially like to ask to pray for me), the patron of moms and my middle name namesake, I thought it only fitting.  There are lots of other saint charms to choose from as well.

Planning Tote

During the day if I am not within reach of my planner then I’ll write a note on my iPhone (which is usually in my pocket.) A lot of people like to review their planners in the morning but I am a night owl and prefer to review my planner the night before each day. That is when I’ll write down any notes from my phone into my master paper planner.

Some people like to just keep a digital planner and always have it with them on their phone. I tried that but I am a paper girl. I need to feel the physical touch of pen and paper. It’s what works for me.

To hold all key planning supplies, I use this cute little square tote I found at the Target dollar section for $3. I went back later to get another but they were sold out. I’m glad I at least got this one. In the evening I grab it along with my LapDesk (similar to this one) and sit on the couch with Brian after the kids go to bed. He’ll read a little while I update my planner then we’ll watch a movie or TV show. It helps me unwind and regroup for the next day.

Washi Storage

I have 5 rolls of washi that I use all the time in my planner tote (and duplicates in my traveling office). For all my other rolls of washi, I found this flat 12 x 12 cardboard box at Michael’s.

I cut empty paper towel tubes in half and lined up the washi on top to keep them from rolling around. It may not be glamorous but it works great.

Oldies but Goodies

Lastly, I still use my EC planner pouch. (Pictured here with last years planner.)

Along with my planner I am still using my traveling office. 🙂

Other Planner Option

I’ve been using the Erin Condren planner for two years now and I still love it but that’s just me. There are so many styles to choose from.

Create 365 Happy Planner

If you like the style of the Erin Condren but it’s out of your budget, then try a Plumb Planner or a Create 365 Happy Planner.

Photo Credit: MochiThings.com

Or maybe all this planner decor and colors is overload to your sense and you like your planner to be streamlined. My sister BCM (who for years was the clean Felix to my very messy Oscar) likes her planners plain and simple. She purchased the Medium Monthly Planner from MochiThings. It suits her perfectly and is beautiful in its simplicity.

Traveler’s notebooks are also really popular right now. It wouldn’t work as my everyday planner but I love it for my Simplified Organization brain dumps  and for some Listers Gotta List fun and favorite memories of the month.

I’ll have to make a separate post about my traveler’s notebook . 😉

My 2014 discbound planner.

If you like full size pages, try a discbound (like Arc) from Staples and print off your own planner printables. There are tons of free planners and really cute ones to purchase on etsy and elsewhere. Browse Pinterest and find your faves. (If you make and sell planners leave a link of your shop in the comments so we can check it out.)

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In the end, whether it is an Erin Condren planner or a 99 cent notebook from Target, find something that inspires you, matches your current needs and is in your budget. Then have fun planning (and doing!) 😉

NOTE: These items were purchase by me and I received no compensation. However, if you order anything from this Erin Condren link – bit.ly/ec_referral_rol, I will get a small store credit and you will get $10 off your first order! Yay! 🙂

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I’m linking up this post with the sweet Jess and Kate over at Sweet Little Ones Blog.com for this week’s Tuesday Talk. 🙂 Go check out their blog. There’s plenty of good stuff to read!

Now it’s your turn.

1. Choose your creation or inspiration, share about it and snap a photo if you can.

2. In your post, link back the original blogger/idea, rather than your Pinterest pin. That way credit goes to the proper person. 🙂 (But feel free to add your Pinterest profile link so we can follow you!)

3. Add a link back here so others can play along.

4. If you want to use it, here is the html code for the logo:

<a href=”http://revolutionoflove.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/pinterest_logo_new_640.jpg”><img class=”aligncenter wp-image-6848″ src=”http://revolutionoflove.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/pinterest_logo_new_640.jpg” alt=”pinterest_logo_new_640″ width=”500″ height=”397″ /></a>

5. Link up below. Make sure you’re sending us to your actual post, and not to your general blog address.

Want to find me on Pinterest? I’m here – pinterest.com/bobbi_rol/

The link up will be active for a month. Have fun!

PS – You can follow RoL on Bloglovin, Feedly or another news feed. If you are a social media fan like me, we can stay in touch through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Periscope or Katch (past Periscopes), GoodReads, Letterboxd, or Spotify, 😉

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