Blah Blah and BuJo 2018 Set-Up

It would seem that my biggest problem with having a blog is consistency. I need to giving this blog more attention than I have been. I seriously neglected it last year. It's something that I need to set a time for each week to make a post. And I'm not talking about sitting there in front of the T.V. while working on said post. It has been clear to me that that doesn't work at all. I get so distracted and I know that I'm not doing this blog (or any readers if you're out there) any justice at all. I'm sorry for that. I need to make an effort and that needs to start now.

I had finally posted this Tuesday all the pictures on my bullet journal of last year, 2017. I ran into a problem while doing so. I had found that I wasn't very consisted--at least I'm consistent in this problem--with taking pictures. I started to take pictures of monthly layouts and once I started to do video flip-throughs, those pictures never happened. This would explain the lack of pictures in some of the months of last year. I'm hoping to remedy this problem this year.

So now, 2018.

This actually begins with 2017. When I had started doing my BuJo I didn't have much in the knowledge of what kind of journal to get. A lot of what happened with my choice was because I already had a journal that I had started as a regular journal. I didn't have money at the time so I decided to use what I had. The brand is Piccadilly. I don't really recommend it after using it for all of last year. I found out quickly that the quality of the pages weren't all that great. I couldn't use many of the pens and markers I had. Also the size of the one I had didn't allow me to be as creative as I wanted. It worked at first but then I slowly realized that I needed more space.

So after doing my BuJo I naturally went through social media to find more inspiration. I at first found Boho Berry. She was very good for helping me get some inspiration for my BuJo. And then I also looked for things about planners. This is how I ran into QuirkyHeart. This is where my creative desires for my BuJo blossomed. I found a new way to design my BuJo that spoke more to me as a creative person. One day on Instagram I saw that she was testing some journals. I know that she personally uses Rhodia, but I really wanted to get a Scribbles That Matter journal. And I'm really, really glad that I did.

My Scribbles That Matter journal has allowed me to get a lot more creative with my layouts and to use more of my markers and pens than I could before. There's so much more space for everything. It has been nice to use a good quality journal. I recommend it to spend a bit more and go for it. You're going to have it for the rest of your life anyway, might as well make it a nice one.

So to start of the new journal for the new year I knew that I needed to write in the calendar year. I wish that I had done that for my last BuJo. I eventually had a printed insert that I used quite a bit. This time I decided to write it in. I thought that I would get some stamps to do this part for me, but it actually wasn't that bad to write out all 365 days of the year. Actually having it divided up evenly was the hardest part for me.

I also knew that I needed a place to write down important dates. I didn't want to use a huge note sections on each of my monthly layouts. I wanted to use that space for some creative endeavors. So making this spread has already proved to be very useful. I had thought that there wouldn't be much to put on here, but I was proven wrong very quickly. I mean, having those important birthdays is such a life-saver. The family continues to grow. Perhaps when the day I get married (whenever that is, haha) this will be even more important then.

And then there are some yearly goals and trackers that I wanted to put at the beginning on the journal. I'm actually missing a picture right now for this. There is a page dedicated to losing weight, and I haven't had the chance to weigh myself and put pictures in it, yet. I swear I'm getting to it... Right next to it is a movie list of movies I want to see. So once I get the weight one done, I'll put them on here.

What I do have here, though, is some yearly goals and a reading tracker. I made sure to leave space for goals. I know that as I'm able to complete these goals, I'm going to have to write some more in. I have plans--as you can see--to find and apply for a Master's program. Once I do that then I will need something else. The reading tracker is where I begin to show my creative side in this journal. I learned from my last BuJo that having pre-drawn books on the shelves didn't work so well. This time I decided to add some things to the shelves that tell a lot about me. I love Disney. I collect mugs and love The Nightmare Before Christmas. I like cats. I'm a BYU alum. I'm a Slytherin. Then as I actually finish a book I will drawn it on the shelf. Right now I think this will work for me. Now to actually have the time to read... That's another challenge.

I'm really glad that I decided to get into bullet journaling. Setting and making goals has allowed me to feel like I'm actually getting somewhere. My goal in writing about it is to inspire others to have that same feeling of accomplishment. I know that it's a great motivator in helping me become who I am meant to be, and I know it can do the same for you.