cocoa daisy june sneak!

i am having the most fun with the june kits!  the digital cut files and stamps are so charming (and you know i don't even like to use those things, lol).  so far, I've gotten four projects done and hope to do at least that many more this weekend.  i mean, i have to for sure use the whales (not pictured)!  join us tomorrow night at 8:00 CST for the BIG reveal!

cocoa daisy: mini album video



well!  i FINALLY got started on my 2015 project life album!  WHEW!  here is the page i made plus a mini-album contained within it.  i won't type bunches as i actually made a VIDEO all about it!  WOOT!  and be sure to check out the cocoa daisy blog as today's post is all about minis.  you'll get lots more inspiration from the design team.  it was a mini mania sort of month over there.  :)



 



 

good blog reads

i pulled this top photo off facebook as it amused me greatly.  then i took photos of my cat traps, a tissue paper pile on the left and the dusty treadmill on the right.  i can relate.  i've been trapped in a bit of a hedonistic feline attitude myself this month.  apparently, it's a may thing with me.  this year, however, i am determined not to let may but the brakes on my blogging momentum, thus the random blog post extravaganza today.

so, i have just finished updating my blogroll.  those of you who have been around for a while know that i love blogging and blog reading and like to share new blogs that i've come across.  i keep those in a blogroll that i update periodically.  my current categories are cooking, gardening, scrapbooking, art journaling, textiles, photography, and lifestyle.  if you're into blogs too, feel free to enjoy my blogroll whenever you like.  i usually flip through it daily.  :)

cocoa daisy planner class now enrolling!

newsflash!  cocoa daisy has a planner class starting on june 15th!  sign ups are going on now.  see lots more information HERE.  now are you ready for some truly shocking news?  i'm teaching!  what?!  yes!  i've become a planner nerd just like simon, that cute bunny with the cool specs.  join us!  we're going to have lots of fun as we get it all organized!  :)

menu plan: true confessions

i think i will not cook this week.  on sunday my kid was camping with friends, so i had popcorn and cheese for dinner.  mmmm.  but then he came home with the pukes, so i didn't really bother cooking on monday.  tonight is his 5th grade graduation.  maybe we will have burgers and mac&cheese.  maybe not.  then on wednesday we will for sure eat out with friends before church.  on thursday we should probably finish the leftover tortilla soup.  and then we have the weekend.  our first glorious weekend of summer vacation.  g has his goodbye to 5th grade party on friday and then on saturday i am thinking we should celebrate summer freedom with a visit to my favorite mexiven food truck at the flea market.  next week i will get back on the cooking wagon for sure.  for reals.  i will have so much free time!  woot!

if you haven't been around when i've shared my popcorn recipe, here it is.  you really should try it.  i don't even like the taste of store bought microwave popcorn anymore.  and do add a bit of extra sharp cheddar on the side.  it's a delicious combination.

in a lunch sized paper bag add 1/4 cup popcorn and 1 tablespoon olive oil.  fold the top down twice and secure with one staple.  pop for 1 minute and 45 seconds (you may need to adjust the time for your microwave).  season as desired. 

cocoa daisy: may planner pages

i'm a little late posting my planner pages this month, but i think that's a good thing as i've had so many planner breakthroughs in the last week or so.  i'm starting to really get this thing figured out.

i'm getting addicted to the add-on kit, so i was stoked when christine announced a subscription for that one.  i mean, it was totally stressful wondering if there were going to be any left of the june kit with kp's post it notes in them.  i am proud to report that mine arrived earlier this week.  whew!

i finally switched out my beloved february charm.  may's nerd planner bunny was just too cute and totally won me over.  his name is simon.  isn't he adorable?

now here are a couple of new discoveries.  i used to just cover up this simple calendar, because i didn't really think i had a use for it.  well, i had a "duh" moment.  i've started using it to track my miles each week.  every week i try to get in 26 miles (a marathon!), and this is the perfect place to write down my mileage each day.  then i give myself a star on the week number if i hit my goal.  such motivation!

i have also realized that the place where i stick all my sticky notes is called a "dashboard."  see!  i'm learning.  :)

still loving the free downloadable calendar each month.

here's another new thing.  i've finally started decorating full throttle.  yep.  on the left is random ephemera from the month that i've been sticking in there.  i used to let this stuff pile up on my desk, thinking i'd put it in my project life album.  great idea, but i never remembered.  instead, it would mostly pile up and then get thrown away.  i like this much better.

on the right is where i've been putting my important events for the week as a reminder to myself and then decorating it a little with stamps.  i had the revelation this month that it would also be a fun place to write little notes about my day.  i think with this new plan, however, i need to start writing my weekly events in a fun ink color, so they'll stand out from my journaling. 

i am not at all happy with my stamping on this page though.  i'm a horrible stamper to begin with and then i used grey ink which wasn't dark enough.  i went back and tried to stamp a couple again with black, but that just made them look fuzzy.  now i've decided it would look cute to restamp the tag and bunny on white paper and then cut them out and glue them in.  i think i'll even color the bunny then a la sam ho.

then this is pretty much the most fun i've had in a while.  i just randomly started playing with florence antonette's #creativemidorichallenge and had a blast.  i've looked at a few list making/journaling type challenges before, but i really am loving this one.  it's the perfect mix of thoughtful with fun and fluffy.  i just get bogged down mentally when they're all requiring me to think.  it's too much work after working all day, lol.  these two pages hold prompts 1-9.  i did 10-18 yesterday and have started another set today.  i'll share those soon!

here's a closer look at the "p is for . . . " prompt.  i found wordfetti that started with p and then was inspired to do a little extra journaling that i tucked in the glassine envelope for privacy (p is for privacy!  ha!).

here's another week at a glance page that i have started.  i am totally loving the bee stamp set from cocoa daisy this month (i also used it on a set of cards).

and i finally used up all my washi and needed to replenish in summer colors.  having this page to pull from has come in handy so often.

how about you?  are you a planner girl (yet)?  :)

a sunday morning walk in black and white

these are a few of my wildflower photos from sunday converted to black and white.  i think i will never grow tired of thistle and queen anne's lace now.  good thing it blooms all summer long.