It’s time for End of the Year Recaps. Join me as we review over 2017 and share the good, the bad and the funny. Both posts will be a link-up for you to share your own thoughts, memories and top posts of 2017.
Wednesday – 2017 Recap (Part 1): 2017 in 12 Photos (hashtag #2017in12photos)
Today – 2017 Recap (Part 2): Top Posts of 2017
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I did not blog this year as much as I have in years past but readers’ favorites are still the posts about planners. 🙂 Here are my Top 10 posts of 2017.
#1
How I Use a (Blessed Is She) Planner and a Bullet Journal
(January 2017)
I have been a planner and journal lover since I was a little kid and learned how to staples pieces of paper together to make my own journal. In the winter of 2015, I switched from a traditional planner to a bullet journal and fell in love all over again. I had no intentions of going back to a regular planner. However, when Blessed Is She came out with their gorgeous liturgical planner I was really tempted to give it a try but didn’t want to give up my bullet journal.
As I debated about it and reviewed over the bullet journals I had filled over the year, there was one thing that bothered me. I loved looking back at my monthly logs, various lists and journal entries but I really had no need to go over all my daily To Do lists. They were taking up space.
That’s when I decided to use a traditional planner to keep track of all the appointments, To Do lists, grocery lists and such that I didn’t want to keep for the future. For my bullet journal I would keep all my monthly logs, monthly reviews, journal entries, workshop/podcast notes and the things I wanted to keep for the future. Here is a peek at how I set it up. (Read more…)
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#2
How I Use My Blessed Is She Liturgical Academic Planner 2017-2018
(July 2017)
For as long as I can remember, I have been a paper lover – stationary, stickers, journal, planners, etc. One of my favorite times of the year was when I got to shop for new school supplies – bouquets of sharpened pencils. Sigh. 😉 Things haven’t changed so when the new Blessed Is She Liturgical Academic Planner 2017-2018 came out I was giddy with excitement. It is the perfect combination of beauty, organization and liturgical goodness!
The planner is beautiful just as it is and can be appreciated by those who like a clean, streamlined look with a touch of lovely hand lettering. However, it also endears itself to those who want to embellish their planner with washi tape, stickers or drawing. Whichever team you’re on, this planner is sure to please. 🙂
Currently, I use a bullet journal for lists and long term items but I use the Blessed Is She Planner for my day to day living and organizing. Since I am a fan of personalizing a planner to make it your own, I’ll share with you how I use and decorate mine. We’ll start at the beginning. (Read more…)
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#3
My Favorite Stationary, Pens, Stickers and Planner Supplies
(July 2017)
Whenever I write a post about planners, journals, snail mail, or lettering, etc, I always get messages and emails asking me about the supplies I use and where I bought them. To make it easier for you, I compiled a list of my favorite stationary supplies. Hopefully it will help you find a new favorite. 🙂 (Read more…)
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#4
How to Use Instagram’s Stories
(July 2017)
Instagram has been a favorite of mine ever since I joined in 2012. Unlike other forms of social media, there is no (or very little) negativity on my feed or in the comments. There are just lovely photos of nature, home life and cute kid shots that make me smile.
When Snapchat started I gave that a try and it was fun to have a less formal outlet to share funny moments and random thoughts that would disappear from my feed in 24 hours. However, very few of my friends were active on Snapchat. So when Instagram started something similar (okay, exactly like it) with Instastories, I was eager to participate in hope that more friends would also.
I am pleased to say that Stories is a hit and many of my friends are active on it. However, there are still those who are reluctant because they feel intimidated and aren’t sure how to use it. I’m hoping this primer on how to use Instagram’s Stories will help ease them into it so I can see their lovely faces on my feed soon. 🙂 (Read more…)
(NOTE: This post needs to be updated since Instastories have many new features since writing this post but it will give you the basics.)
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#5
Online Daybook/ Currently/ 7QT: June & July 2017 Review with Fave Movies, Books, Links and More
(August 2017)
The latest happenings and a review of my favorite movies, books, links and more. (Read more…)
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#6
2017 Goal Setting Series: Part 1
(January 2017)
Back in the summer of 2014, I started thinking about making goals in my life. It was a rather foreign concept at the time. I said back then:
I never gave much thought to having life goals before now. (Well, except for the huge goal of finding a good husband when I was still single. ;-)) Seriously, I always imagined “goals” as being grand, lofty things like starting a business or going back to school or writing a book or something. It seemed ridiculous to make those kind of goals when I was just trying to make it to the end of the day with my sanity and perhaps a clean load of laundry. Lately, I’ve definitely been surviving, not thriving. Then I read what Elizabeth Foss said here:
What do you want your life to look like? What do you see as your unique calling? These might be grand, lofty, complex things, like starting a ministry or taking a mission trip. But they might also be less grandiose, but deeply textured things like running a well-ordered home and opening your doors to your neighbors. Honestly, for right now, in this season, one of your primary goals might just be to get some sleep!
Elizabeth recommended Lara Casey’s Powersheets and I decided to give them a try.
(Read more…)
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#7
Online Daybook and 7QT: April 2017 Review
(May 2017)
The latest happenings and a review of my favorite movies, books, links and more. (Read more…)
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#8
Book Reviews for 2017 (Part 1): January – March
(April 2017)
I am doing the 2017 Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenge (the “reading for fun” version) this year and I pledged on Goodreads to read 24 books in 2017. I am on schedule with 9 books so far. Here are the books I’ve read from January to March. (Read more…)
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#9
September/ October 2017 Goals
(September 2017)
September is speeding by and today is the first day of Fall! This time of year always feels like a fresh start to me, even more than January 1st. After the care free days of summer, I am ready to get back into a routine of school and fall activities. At this point I also like to re-evaluate the goals I made at the beginning of January. Some goals still need work. Some goals were accomplished, so I can focus on a different area. Taking some time to review helps me to make the most of these last months of 2017.
(Read more…)
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#10
How Mr. Knightly Helped Me Find Mr. Right
(April 2017)
Like many women, my love of Jane Austen began in my teen years but it wasn’t until my 20’s that the lessons of her heroines and their leading men started to affect the way I viewed dating in my own life.
Back in the 90’s when I was in college and began to date more seriously, I had fallen away from my faith and dated guys without much thought to the type of men they were. If I were to relate to any of Jane Austen’s characters, I would definitely have been Marianne Dashwood dating a string of wrong-for-me Willoughbys. I had a knack for falling in love with man-boys who were poetically trying to “find themselves” and didn’t have any direction in their lives.
In my early twenties, I came back to the faith in a strong way and narrowed the dating pool to Christian men. However, when it came down to getting more serious, our differing faiths always stopped us from continuing the relationships.
(Read more…)
Well, there is my Top 10 of the year! If you are a blogger, write your own post and link up. You can do your #1 Post or your Top 3 or Top 5 or Top 10! Whatever suits your fancy. I look forward to reading it. 🙂
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January was overrun by the death of my mom and her funeral. It was heartbreaking, but the bond of our family and the beauty of her funeral eased the pain a little.
Disneyland with my mom then and now.
In February we had our first really big winter storm – our fence and neighborhood trees fell, power was out and schools were closed for the day but within a few days we were back to our normal California weather.
December came after a year of gratitude and joy. I am so thankful that we are all in good health, that Brian’s cancer screening came back clean, that my mom is doing well, that my little nephew Joseph who was seriously ill has recovered from surgery and is thriving. Plus, I was able to make a number of trips to see family and loved ones and have made lasting memories.