I love End of the Year recap posts that review the things we loved over the past twelve months. Today’s post is a just-for-fun post with all my entertainment faves of 2015.
PLEASE NOTE – The movies, shows or music listed here are simply things I enjoy but I am not necessarily recommending to you. Everyone has their own level of what they feel comfortable watching, especially my Catholic readers. If it doesn’t seem like something you would watch, please don’t!!
2. Far from the Madding Crowd– I don’t know exactly why but I love this movie. It may take the long, less traveled road but a happy ending finally arrives.
3. Cinderella – It was like watching a modern day saint story showing us how to have heroic virtue with a romantic twist.
4. (Tie) American Sniper AND Avengers: Age of Ultron – American Sniper was hard to watch but I couldn’t look away. Heart rending. I think I enjoyed Avengers because I got to see Hawkeye’s secret family life.
5. (Tie) Insurgent AND The Intern – I’m a sucker for YA movies and The Intern was a surprise hit for me. Robert DeNiro was cool even as a grandpa.
I thought for sure that Mockingjay: Part 2 was going to be on this list. In fact, I finally was going to see it tonight but the theater pulled it from the roster at the last minute and I missed the last showing. So now I have to wait until it comes out on blu-ray. Boo.
My 5 Fave Songs
If I listened to the Top 40 radio station I may have listed Uptown Funk or Shake It Off but I prefer a little alt music instead.
X Ambassadors – Renegades
Death Cab for Cutie – The Ghosts of Beverly Drive
Silversun Pickups – Circadian Rhythm (Last Dance)
Florence + The Machine – Ship To Wreck (Live on SNL)
Atlas Genius – Molecules
My 3 Fave Books
I’ll admit it. I don’t read as much as I should! I like to read in bed but more often that not I fall asleep before I can turn the first page. As such, my reading goal of 12 books was not met. I only hit 8. So in this category I am counting the top three of those eight.
3. Daredevil(Netflix) – I think this has been my favorite of all the super hero shows on TV. Dark, thought-provoking and edge of your seat exciting.
4. (Tie) Agent CarterAND Season 2 of Blackish – I love Agent Carter‘s retro feel, ruby red lips and feminine butt-kicking. Blackish brings up some touchy subjects but the dialogue and humor can’t be beat.
5. Jessica Jones – After the first show we debated whether to continue watching or not. It is rated Mature for a reason. I would never outright recommend it because there are too many variables of what the readers of this blog consider “appropriate.” It was much darker than we anticipated, Jessica was as anti-hero as they come and there were a couple scenes we fast forwarded. However, the story completely sucked us in (thanks to David Tennant) and it caused serious binge addiction.
Honorable Mentions: FIRST – Fargo, Season 2 (Ditto everything I said about Jessica Jones.) Not as good as season 1 and more violent but once we got into it we couldn’t wait to see what happened in the next episode. SECOND – Quantico – There are moments when the show is trying too hard and gets annoying (particularly with the romantic relationships and casual sex attitude) but solving the mystery of the real terrorist makes up for it. THIRD – Hallmark Channel Movies. They are predictable and at times cheesy but I can’t NOT watch them and have seen practically every one made this year!
Social Media
Anyone that knows me knows I also love social media! I love to post, tweet and gram all over the place. Here are your faves of my contributions.
PPS – Disclaimer: “Revolution of Love.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.”
In other words, if you click on my affiliated links and make a purchase, I get a small compensation that goes towards keeping the blog online. Big hugs to those who click and help support the blog! xoxo 🙂
Merry Christmas, everyone! I hope your day is filled with love, joy and peace. Thank you for your friendship and this little online community that means so much to me. You are in my prayers and I thank you for all the times you have prayed for me and my family. 🙂Below is this year’s Christmas letter. I was going to do the normal highlights of the year letter but I just wasn’t feeling it. This is what came out instead.
Dear Family and Friends,
I have tried to write our yearly letter a number of times but I keep deleting it because it all sounds so boring. There were no great business adventures or prestigious school awards or social accolades to speak of. There were no exotic vacations, unless you count the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland. There was nothing extraordinary. It was a year of ordinary moments – both good and not so great.
There were definitely highlights of the year – Brian being cancer free every three months when he had his routine testing. Or when we traveled to So Cal for my brother’s wedding. All eight of my siblings attended with their families. Or when I made my first trip alone to attend a Catholic Women’s Blogging Conference. It was a time of growth, discovery and closeness to God. But those were out of the ordinary moments. It was not the normal daily experience. The day to day looked more like this…
~~ There were countless dishes in the sink and laundry that multiplied when I was not looking. However, it meant that we had food to eat and warm clothes on our back.
~~ There were the usual toys, markers and Legos on the floor that required Jedi like reflexes not to damage your feet when walking barefoot. However, there were also proud moments when a child showed me what he built or the picture she drew and their creativity gave me a glimpse at their burgeoning talents.
~~There were incredibly loud noise levels reached when all three boys (and their father) had light saber battles or played football in the hallway. However, the sound of their giggles and contagious laughter couldn’t help but make me smile.
~~ There was the driving – so much driving – to and from school, picking up kids on three different school schedules and the countless after school appointments and activities. However, there were those moments when a child saw me after school and his face lit up as he ran to me with open arms yelling, “Mommy!” It melted my heart every time.
~~ There were meals to cook, toilets to scrub, work to be done, family to visit and deadlines to meet. However, I was paid above and beyond when a daughter placed her arms around me and rested her head on my shoulder, when a father-in-law kissed my cheek and thanked me for visiting him, when a reader sent a note of thanks or when my husband told me he loved me (even when I knew I drove him crazy at times.) Those are the moments that make life seem not mundane but blessed. Those are the rewards that make my heart light and give me strength when I am tired. Those are the times when I ask God to forgive my selfishness and for taking things for granted. That’s when I ask for the grace of gratitude.
So I pray this Christmas that God lightens the load you are carrying. I pray that your struggles are softened by love and kisses and moments of peace. I pray that all your “mundane” moments be transformed into little blessings that sparkle as brightly as the lights twinkling on a Christmas tree. I pray that the presents you are given are not under your tree but the people surrounding you. May you share joy, peace and the grace of God’s mercy this Christmas.
“Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do, but how much love we put in the action that we do.” – Bl. Mother Teresa
Happy Christmas Eve! I thought I wouldn’t have time for Theme Thursdaybut the kids are in bed but not asleep. They are filled with Christmas anticipation so who knows how long I’ll have to wait. Since this Santa’s helper can’t get to work until they are asleep, I thought I’d make a quick post. Here are the latest #holylens photos and other Instagrams of the last two weeks.
1. The TREE looked a lot smaller in the big tree lot! (Just don’t mention to Brian how heavy it was to carry!) On the plus side, it fit 16 yrs of ornaments! #holylens
2. I’m feeling nostalgic, thinking about the first Christmas with my DAUGHTER fourteen years ago. #holylens
3. I could feel guilty that we are so behind on our Jesse Tree but instead I’m to going to REJOICE that the boys are quietly coloring the symbols while I read them bible stories. (The fact that they’re quiet is a miracle in itself! #holylens
4. A STAR from our Christmas tree. #holylens
5. I like to CHANGE our front porch according to the season. #holylens
6. After weeks of family sickness (including my bronchial infection), yesterday’s cancer testing (so far Brian is doing ok!) and general holiday/ family stress, I am ready to start a new, better day on this very chilly but gorgeous morning
7. It’s pajama day, class Christmas party and last day of school for 2015. It was officially declared best day ever! (Until mom made them take this photo. Lol)
8. Attending three class parties at once wasn’t easy but I did it! Now it’s two weeks of vacation. Woohoo!
9. Every time I watch White Christmas I can’t help but think of my sisters. I love and miss you BYM, EML, & JDC!
10. I love that my bullet journal lets me plan and CREATE at the same time. #holylens
11. It’s an early anniversary date with my hubby to see the saga that continues to thrill GENERATIONS. Next week we take the older kiddos to experience the magic. #holylens
12. For the third year in a row our awesome babysitter made a gingerbread house with the kids while Brian and I went out for the afternoon.
13. Happy fourth Sunday of #advent!
14. Long before I was married I dreamed of having a little girl named Isabella. Today I know Bella’s NAME is perfect because she’s beautiful inside and out. 💕 #holylens #mamalove
15. Shall I SPEAK about one of my fave Christmas traditions – sending out Christmas cards? (I’m trying a NEW font.) The only thing more exciting is getting a card in the mail. My heart makes a little LEAP.
#tripleplaytoday #holylens
16. Even though life gets a little hectic, every day these four help me realize that I’m BLESSED. #holylens
17. I feel like a MESSENGER that’s gotta ask – Do you feel like it’s been an #adventfail? I did… until now. A quick message on the blog. #holylens
18. After a beautiful Christmas Eve mass at the mission, it’s time to PREPARE for Jesus’ party. Santa can choose the cookies or carrots. #holylens
This is it, guys, the final stretch! I haven’t had much time to be online lately but I did notice on Instagram and Facebook a number of times that people mentioned their “advent fail.” I was feeling the same way last week. It was a crazy week. Many of us at home were sick. My cold turned into a bronchial infection. Brian had been getting really bad pains in his head (unlike a headache) and because of his cancer history, the docs wanted to do an MRI to make sure nothing serious was going on. (Thankfully, he was okay!) There were family issues, illness, school events, Christmas pageants, doctor appointments and the usual family life stress. I was grasping for peace but it was hard to find in all the chaos.
Then one morning as I was taking a quick shower, I starred thinking about that first Christmas. Mary and Joseph were certainly not a in a situation conducive to calmness and peace. It had to be hectic! There was Mary nine months pregnant taking a long journey on a donkey. They finally arrived at their destination but it was loud and noisy with all the other travelers. They didn’t have a place to stay and they couldn’t get anyone to give them a room even though Mary must have looked like she was about to pop any minute. Finally they found a place that was normally fit for animals. I’m sure the smell alone was less than ideal.
What struck me was that God didn’t wait for the ideal circumstances before Our Savior was born. Instead, He worked with the present situation and transformed it into something miraculous.
I realized I had to stop wishing for things to be more ideal before I could really get into Advent. I had to learn to embrace all the inevitable bumps in the road and roll with the punches. I think God is less concerned about whether we lit the Advent candle each night and more concerned about whether or not we sought his help when things got rough. He knows that while there are some things you can do to lessen the stress of the holidays, there will always be circumstances that are less than ideal.
So let us take these last two days not to cry over our Advent fails but to thank God for the opportunity to once again turn our hearts to Him. He is the font of mercy and it is never too late to run back into his arms! Let Him hold you and kiss the top of your head as He whispers, “I understand, my child. Go, be at peace.”
Like Mary and Joseph, may we not see all the obstacles in our way. Instead, may we see how God can work in any circumstance to bring about the miracle of salvation, mercy and grace.
At the beginning of October I did a my big yearly post about my Erin Condren planner. I loved it! However, I was also taking Mystie Winckler’s course Work the Plan and in it she talked a lot about the bullet journal. The journal/ planner was created by Ryder Carroll as…
“A customizable and forgiving organization system. It can be your to-do list, sketchbook, notebook, and diary, but most likely, it will be all of the above. It will teach you to do more with less.”
Imagine it as a catch all for numerous post it, lists, notes and ideas floating around in your world.
It sounded intriguing so I watched Ryder’s video and visited his website BulletJournal.com.
It was super impressive but I wasn’t convinced to switch. It sounded slightly complicated and it was so black and white… and plain. You know me, I need color and a little pizzazz in my planner or I lose interest.
It was back to my Erin Condren and Mystie’s course. I loved making goals and smaller workable tasks towards those goals but I realized the course was set up a heck of a lot like Ryder’s bullet journal. I started to see how the bullet journal could really work in my life right now. I also loved the idea of having everything in one place because it was bugging me that I had so many different notebooks, journals and pages of random notes that were all over. The appeal of having everything in one convenient spot was winning me over.
I started searching Pinterest for Bullet Journal inspiration and I realized that the BuJo (nickname for the bullet journal) doesn’t have to strictly follow the system that worked for Ryder. You can adapt it and make it your own. This was best exemplified by blogger Kara of BohoBerry.com. Looking though her beautiful artistic pages, I realized that the BuJo could be a great source of life organization AND an expression of creativity. Frankly, she sold me. I decided to give the bullet journal a two month trial. From Nov 1 – Dec 31 I would use the bullet journal. If I liked it, it would be my 2016 system. If I didn’t like it, I would pull my EC planner back out.
Setting Up My Bullet Journal
A bullet journal can easily be done in an inexpensive notebook, although the most popular notebooks are either a Moleskin orLeuchtturm 1917. Kara has a great comparison post about the Moleskine vs Leuchtturm. Although I have no idea how to pronounce it, The Leuchtturm was my choice for these reasons:
Hard colorful cover
Choice of lined, graphed or dotted pages
Acid-free paper that was slightly thicker than the Moleskin
Numbered pages (love that!)
3 pages for an Index/ Table of Contents
An elastic closure
A book marker (some say 2 book markers but mine only has 1)
I love my Leuchtturm.
First I set up my legend or key. This is how I would label my daily tasks and notes.
Next is my two-month Interval page. This is where I break down my yearly goals into small bite size tasks I want to work on over the next two months.
During my Interval, I have 2-3 Projects I want to accomplish. Since it is the holiday season, my projects were things that would help me prepare for our annual Thanksgiving trip to visit family and Disneyland and to prepare for Advent and Christmas.
Monthly View
In the bullet journal the monthly view is supposed to look something like this:
But I really don’t like the layout. My mind needs to see a traditional calendar in order to quickly process what is on the page. So I “cheated” and drew my own calendar. However, that is the beauty of the BuJo. It’s not really cheating because you can adapt it to suit your needs.
November view.
Some one asked me what the “12.2.3” represents each weekday. It is simply the school pickup times for my kids. Between the four of them, they are on three different schedules. (I spend a lot of time driving back and forth.) 😉
December view.
Daily Pages/ Nightly Review
Some people like to do their planner review in the morning before the day starts. Since I’m not a morning person, all my energy in the morning is focused on simply getting myself out of bed, ready and my four kids fed and off to school by 7:40 AM. Yeah, a morning planner review if not happening. For me, an evening review after all the kids are tucked in bed and kissed good night, the dishes are done and the next day’s lunches are made…this is my me time to unwind.
I grab my cute little square tote (that I found at the Target dollar section for $3) and my LapDesk (similar to this one) and sit on the couch to start my evening ritual.
For the last couple of months I’ve been trying to spend about 5-10 minutes in prayer and make an examination of conscience. I think about the things I want to improve and thank God for the blessings of the day, often adding 3 things I’m grateful for each night in my bullet journal. (During Advent I have a separate prayer journal for my nightly exams and prayers of thanks. After Advent it will go back into my BuJo.) Ending the day with gratitude really helps me keep things in proper perspective.
Usually by now it is 9 PM and Brian joins me on the couch. He usually reads a little while I work on my planner then we relax to watch a favorite show.
I look over my bullet journal and review my day. I mark off what I have done and decide if the unfinished tasks should be moved to another day or deleted. I add any other notes of the day (such as online purchases). I also check the notes app on my iPhone for any notes I jotted down while on the run and transfer them to my planner.
On Mondays I have the week’s meals listed. If I don’t assign a day, I at least write six meals that I can make that week.
I don’t usually have Tasks lists on the weekends since it is mostly family time. Instead I add notes about what we did or memories I want to remember.
Many evenings I also enjoy participating in the ListersGottaList.com daily challenge. Saturday’s prompt was – What were your favorite Christmas gifts? I used to keep these lists in a traveler’s notebook but now they are kept here.
On Sunday evenings I do a weekly brain dump. I jot down everything that has been floating around in my head. Once that is done I go over the list and assign specific days to do that item. Some tasks don’t need to be done on a specific day so I add an arrow and fit them in on days when I have a little more free time to tackle them.
Once I review my current day, I make the label for the upcoming day. I write the day’s schedule, household tasks if I’m going to be home that day and any blog tasks I need to work on. I also write any tasks from that week’s brain dump assigned to that day and any other things I need to do or remember.
One of the great things about the bullet journal is it’s flexibility. Last week I was sick on Wednesday and Thursday and did not do an evening review. So Friday morning (after the kids were in school) I added the dates and noted that I was sick and anything else significant I wanted to remember, including a quote from my morning devotion. Some days take a full page and some days only 1/2. It doesn’t matter and I love that.
Other Random Pages
The bullet journal is the perfect spot to keep lists – books I wan to read, movies I want to see, recipes to try, blogs/websites to visit, local places I’d like to see during a staycation, etc. I also keep notes on podcasts or periscopes that are especially helpful.
The BuJo also works well for keeping track of blog posts and keeping a list of blogging ideas.
In December I decided to make a goal chart for my daily goals. I thought a nightly visual would help me to keep my goals in mind instead of getting lost in the shuffle of the day.
The things you can add to your bullet journal are endless!
Future Calendar
The one thing I missed about my Erin Condren is having calendars of the entire year. I liked having visuals in a traditional calendar format of upcoming events. This was especially helpful at school meetings when we needed to quickly review over upcoming events.
To make up for this, I made simple calendars that I cut out and washi taped to the last pages of my BuJo. As the months pass I can remove the paper calendar easily with the washi and still use the blank page for writing.
If you’d like to print out a PDF copy of the calendar, I placed them in a file on Google Drive. Enjoy. 🙂
Favorite Pens
Everyone has their favorite pens. The Staedtler Triplus Fineliner Pens are a favorite of mine but when I am using my bullet journal I really need the ability to erase. I used to only use pencil in my planners until I found Pilot Frixion pens! At first I bought the smaller Pilot Frixion Colors Erasable Marker – 12 Color setbecause 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 extra eraserseparately.
I loved the pens but I didn’t check the size and they wrote a little thick. (See sample 1.) 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. (See sample 2.)
UPDATE (12/22/15):I want to add a note about the Frixion Pens. One of the sweet ladies from the FB group Bullet Journal Junkies just warned me that the ink can disappear in extreme heat. (The heat caused by the friction of the eraser is what removes the ink.) Supposedly it can be brought back if placed in the freezer. Sooo while I still love my pens and it doesn’t get very hot where I live, I may or may not switch back to the Staedtler Triplus Fineliner Pens. Sigh. #firstworldproblems
UPDATE: (1/10/16): I didn’t want to fill my instagram feed with bullet journal posts so I started a second IG account just for that. You can find me @bobbis_bujo.
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Well, I think that is plenty to share for now. Hopefully it gave you an overview and maybe a little inspiration. 🙂
Do you use a bullet journal? What kind of things do you keep in it? Any tips for a newbie? 🙂
PPS – Disclaimer: “Revolution of Love.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.”
In other words, if you click on my affiliated links and make a purchase, I get a small compensation that goes towards keeping the blog online. Big hugs to those who click and help support the blog! xoxo 🙂
1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens – The movie was good but the emotions attached to it made it great. 
1. Season 3 of Sherlock Holmes (Masterpiece Mystery) – It’s Sherlock. It’s Benedict Cumberbatch. Need I say more?
#cwbnca Perfect way to start the weekend? With these lovely ladies – Meagan, Kendra, Emmy and Micaela.
