My Plum Paper Family Planner Video!

Hello Friend!

     I am absolutely smitten over my Plum Paper Family Planner.  I have been getting great use out of her since the tail end of September, so I figured that a Review and Flip Through video would be appropriate.  Happy viewing!

Until Next Write,

Teresa

@sentimentalitee

A Look at My New Happiedori!

Hello Friend!

     My final online purchase arrived in the mail yesterday!  I say final because she really is the last thing I am going to order online for the forseeable future.  The holidays require much practice in self control and budget dieting.  And dieting in general for  that matter. 

     I bought this lovely Happiedori from Sam (@happiescrappie).  Sam is a paper crafting creative genius, and this Happierdori is her version of the Fauxdoris out there.  If you are not familiar with what Fauxdoris are, they are based on the Midori Traveler's Notebooks.  These notebooks are beautiful and typically handcrafted covers for...notebooks.  That may sound odd to a lot of people, but for journal and notebook enthusiasts like myself, it is another fun way to house our thoughts, drawings, lists, and braindumps.  So without further ado, I invite you to scroll along with me as I introduce you to Peach, my new Happiedori!

     Here she is!  Is she not a beauty?  Sam has a great online shop where you can customize your own Happiedori.  You can pick the colors of the outside, the inside, and the elastic.  I chose peach for the outside to represent a softer version of orange, patent yellow for the inside, and a purple elastic.  Orange, yellow and purple are my blog colors.  These three colors represent the bird of paradise.  

     Here is a "spine shot" of Peach.  Note the cute heart charm at the top.  I am planning to find a great charm to add to the bottom as well.  That will require me to re-thread the notebook, but Sam has a great YouTube Video which shows you how to do this.

     Sorry for the poor angle of this shot, but this shows you the open side of Peach.  I had a notepad booklet that I bought a while ago from Target's clearance section which fit perfectly inside Peach.  I am using the notebook as a guide to cut down patterned paper that I have collected over the years to create my own journal pages (see below).

     This shows you where the binding elastic originates.  You pull this around the entire notebook to keep it closed when not in use.

     One of my lovely penpals sent me a two year monthly calendar for my birthday, and I decided to keep it in Peach.  I can never have too many calendars.  I had to use my first passport sized Traveler's Notebook by @jonelifish (top left) to hold it down since it does not lie flat on its own.

     This is what Peach looks like beyond the two year calendar.  The left side is half of the notepad booklet, and the right side is the start of my DIY journal.  I made the journal by using the notepad booklet as a sizing reference, folding the paper in half, and then cutting it down to size so that nothing stuck out.  The width of the paper (standard 8.5 inches) was perfect for Peach, so no trimming was needed.  

     Here is the center of my DIY journal.  You can see where the elastic holds everything together.  There is a way to bind the notebooks with more elastic so that they do not sit on top of each other like they do in mine.  Please refer to Sam's video for tips on how to do that.  The plastic you see was included in Peach.  Most gals as well as myself are using it as a Dashboard for sticky notes.

     This is the back of  Peach.  The left side shows the back of my DIY journal, and the right side shows the other side of the notepad booklet.  

This shows how the elastic is tied into the back flap of Peach. 

     

     So far I am loving my new Happiedori.  I have been using her since Saturday, and she now houses my daily to-do list.  I usually take a lot of planning, reading, and writing material with me to work so that I can catch up with things on my breaks.  Peach will allow me to keep my planning material at home on my days off.  The only thing that I do not like about Peach is her smell.  I am not sure if the smell is from the adhesive that was used to glue the different material together or if it is coming from the actual material.  I guess I have been spoiled with the lovely leather smell of my passport notebook shown in the previous pictures.  That is a minor detail for me though.  I hope you found this post helpful!  As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask!  

Until Next Write,

Teresa

@sentimentalitee

Hello Friend!

     Today consisted of yet another satisfying trip to Target.  I like going to different locations, and we just so happened to be in an area we only occasionally frequent, so I had to stop in and see what this particular store had to offer.  Scroll along with me as I show you what I found!

I have grown to love Sharpie pens.  These were on sale for .75 each.  This happened to be a color I didn't have, so I snagged it. 

I did not know EOS (Evolution of Smooth) made medicated lip balm, so I decided to try it out for $2.99.  Orange is the perfect color for this season anyway! 

I have grown to love owls, especially after reading this interpretation of what they symbolize: intuition, ability to see what most people do not, etc. 

These gift tags are perfect not only for gifts but also for my pen pals! 

Page flags are  a must for all planner enthusiasts, and these cute, petite page flags are a hard find.  This was the only set I could find in a sea of notepads and sticky notes.

These labels are so fun.  This picture shows the front and back of the package, so yes, each sheet is basically .50!  I plan to use them in my planners and my pen pal letters.

I am usually not a fan of Halloween paraphernalia,  but these glitter stickers were too kawaii to pass up!

I credit my three year old for this purchase.  He saw the pumpkins and said he "had to have it".  I took a closer look at it and figured that it would be great in our smashbook!  Plus, I am planning on decorating a big pumpkin in a similar way that you see on these stickers so they'll serve as great inspiration when that time comes!  (1.99)

These awesome alpha stickers are gorgeous, but the thing that caught my eye was the fact that they were on clearance for .69 each!  They are marketed for the Halloween season, but I think they can be used all year round.  

     All in all, we had a marvelous time today, not because of the great Target run, but because I was able to spend time with my boys and my Dad.  A day off well "spent" indeed.  

Until next write my friend!

Teresa

@sentimentalitee

Medela Freestyle Packing Video!

Hello Friend!

     My, it has been a long time since I have posted.  Things have been pretty busy for my family and me, and I do apologize for the lull in activity.  Today I have an atypical subject to share with you all.  Actually, it is only atypical because I have never discussed this part of my life on my blog before.  This may very well become a "Page Tab" in the near future as I start to pick up where I left off!  Before I rediscovered my childhood passion for all things stationery, I went on a lengthy and drawn out hunt for two things: a terrific double stroller for my toddler and (at the time) newborn, and the perfect breastpump bag.  I found "stroller peace" when I decided on the Britax B-Agile Double in eye-catching red.  I did a back flip (okay, maybe just a quick jump in place) when the huge box fit into the back of our family GMC Terrain with room to spare.  After that task received its ceremonious X, I put all my efforts into finding the perfect breastpump bag.  I returned to work when my second son turned 6 weeks old.  I was determined to keep my milk supply up while working full time.  I definitely underestimated how much milk my poor baby needed on my first day back, so by the time I came home, my whole family was starving.   To make a long story short, I became the bag lady at work.  I had a purse, my Medela Freestyle bag, my lunch bag, a water bottle, and my Hawaii Starbucks travel mug.  Every single work day.  I never found it embarrassing to go on my "pump break" at work, but I did find the vinyl pump bag to be quite hideous and just plain boring.  After using my colorful Orla Kiely  double zip traincase for a few weeks, I came across my old Caboodles Cosmetic Travel Organizer and found "breastpump bag peace".  I think that a large part of my success with keeping my milk supply up had to do with my repurposed Caboodles bag and the thrill I got from the fact that everything just fit in it perfectly like a puzzle.  I had to train my brain to think that pumping at work was fun, and this little bag just made me smile every time I sat down to do my "Mama Tee" duty.  Please check out my video to see how everything, including the cooler, fits!  

     For all of you breastfeeding and nursing moms out there, I commend you.  I was not able to nurse my first son because of several reasons.  In hindsight, I know that if I had actually been comfortable and open to asking for help and advice from seasoned pros, I would have been able to breastfeed him too.  I admit, I had a bout of postpartum depression after I had my first baby.  I also admit that my second time around was not any easier, but I do know that nursing my sweet baby made all the difference in the world.  Before I get all sappy on you, please know that I am here to answer any questions you may have about my experience with both 100% formula and 100% breastmilk parenting.  I sincerely hope that you have found this post helpful and encouraging.  

Until Next Write,

Teresa

@sentimentalitee