So far so good with keeping up to date with Project Life this year. Each week I am focusing on taking more photos, telling more stories and trying new techniques and I still enjoy it as much as when I started.

This week I documented some things that are keeping me happy - bubble baths and reading to be precise. I love how this project lets you capture the little things in the moment. I included a combination of handwritten, typewriter and computer printed journaling this week.

I used some stamps to do repeat stamping to create the "Yes I can" 3x4 card and I included a few different chipboard pieces for embellishment.

My two most favorite pockets from this weeks spread has to be the two below.  The "Yep I take photos of myself" card is from an Ali Edwards Story Kit and when I came across it I knew I needed to do a fun photo collage to go with it.

• Ali Edwards Story Kits
• Ali Edwards Stamp Kit 
• Stazon ink in black
• Illustrated Faith Washi Tape
• Tim Holtz Phrase Stickers
• Pink Paislee's Pictures + Words No 9 digital collection
• Tracy Larsen White 1 Square
• HP Envy 4523 Printer

On January 23rd my Gran celebrated her ninetieth birthday. Up until about six months ago she was as healthy as can be but sadly she took a turn for the worse and hasn't been able to fully recover.  After spending a few months in hospital and assisted living, she is back at her home with a full time carer.

The original plan was for the whole family to make our way to my Gran's favorite spot and surprise her with a few days of us all being together, enjoying the beach and each others company.  The hotel was booked, the airline tickets were on hold with the travel agent and we were set to go but life can be cruel. With my gran only being able to manage having people around for a few minutes at a time, we had to change plans.

While we weren't able to be with my Gran on her special day, I still wanted to document it in my project life album so i went through all our family photos and went to work putting these two pages together. I decided to include the speech I would have given had we all been there as well as some fun facts about my gran and her life so far.  I also thought it would be fun to capture one thing from each person in my family, capturing a special attribute or quality that we celebrate about my gran.    

• Ali Edwards Story Kits (Roots and Now & Then)
• Ali Edwards Stamp Kit 
• Stazon ink in black
• Tim Holtz Phrase Stickers
• Studio Calico Bronze cardboard hearts
• Pink Paislee's Pictures + Words No 9 digital collection
• Tracy Larsen White 1 Square
• HP Envy 4523 Printer

One of my overarching goals for 2017 is to actively make progress on caring for my body, mind and heart. The term "self-care" has become pretty popular over the past several years and is something that I have wanted to do more of, to do better at but I have found that to do that, I needed to make the concept a little more grounded for myself. There are so many different ways that you can approach this but I wanted to create a self-care series where I can share with you those things which I am actively implementing in my life and how they are working for me.

The first thing that I am going to be sharing are the changes that I have made to my beauty products. For the past five or six years, I have been struggling with my hormones. At first I went to my GP who suggested that I go back onto the Pill to regulate my levels but I knew that this wasn't the right solution for me.....I wanted to find out what the problem was and a way to fix it rather than taking something that would cover it up (this is totally a personal choice and I am by no means suggesting that you shouldn't take your doctors advise. I guess I'm just saying that the choice is yours to make, and this is the one that I made for me - so do what is right for you).

I came home and started reading every book and every article I could get my hands on related to hormones and natural solutions.  As with everything, there is a ton of information out there but one of the themes that came up time and time again was the impact that the chemicals in our skin and beauty products can have on your hormones. So I downloaded an app called Think Dirty and scanned each of my skin care products to find out how "dirty" they were. The app rates the products on how full they are of chemicals and other nasty ingredients and I was horrified to see just how bad they were.

Have you heard the quote by Maya Angelou that goes "When you know better, you do better"? Well that is exactly how I felt now that I had this information.  As i used up the products I had, I began to replace them with more natural ones. I did a lot of research trying to find these products so I thought I would share with you my favorite ones that I am using at the moment.        


1 Moisturizer | Trilogy Vital Moisturing Cream is definitely my favorite face cream that I have tried. It leaves my skin hydrated and isnt greasy at all. I bought mine from Feelunique.com and will be buying it again.

2 Shampoo and Conditioner | I have had a few hit and misses with this one but finally found some shampoo and conditioner by Pureology that I actually like and that works well with my hair.

3 Exfoliating face mask | This mask smells amazing and while I wouldn't, I'm sure you could totally eat this if a little were to fall onto your lip.  It provides a deep clean and smooths and brightens your skin. You can find this here as well as many other places online.

4 Hydrating face mask | Sukin hydrating facial masque was a happy accidental find. I was walking through Boots and it was on display at the end of the isle. This is an Australian brand that is paraben free and natural.... and super affordable. They have a great range of products and I will be trying more of them out in the future.

5 Face wash | When looking for a face wash I have two requirements. Number 1, it needs to froth. Number 2, it needs to give a good clean without leaving my skin dry. Origins Checks and Balances ticks these boxes for me.

6 Body lotion | This for me was one of the first items I looked to replace.  I tried a few different ones along the way but have settled on Weleda's Sea Buckthorn body lotion. Just lovely.

7 Deodorant | This has been my newest adventure.....and the most tricky so far. I've tried a number of different brands but found that none of them have really met the no stinking by the end of the day rule that I have.  My latest find is a little different from the normal sort of deodorant but it smells great and more importantly, it works...even after an hour and a half playing netball. Aurelia Cream Deodorant is a cream consistency that you rub onto your underarm and then turns into a powder. The brand has a great free from policy and is worth a look.

8 Body wash | Yes to Blueberries is super affordable and is pretty popular in most high street shops which is great.

And that is it for the first installment in this series. I hope you find this useful and if you have any recommendations for products that I should try please let me know.

• Ali Edwards Story Kits
• Ali Edwards Stamp Kit 
• Stazon ink in black
• White Uni Posca pen
• Pink Paislee's Pictures + Words No 9 digital collection
• Tracy Larsen White 1 Square
• HP Envy 4523 Printer

Eighteen days until it is officially spring....and yes, I am counting!  I can not wait for the weather to get a little warmer and the sun to come up a little earlier.  Right now I am fighting off a cold and not feeling so great but the thought of spring being just around the corner is helping me get through.

Spring brings the opportunity for a refresh on my goals and I decided to make the most of it. Where as I started 2017 with yearly goals, I decided that I wanted to set myself goals to cover the next three months.  And while that refresh was just what I needed it is great to see that my refresh goals still line up with the yearly ones to some extent.

Here are the goals that I will be focusing on over the next three months:

01| Continue with the practice of listening to my body by asking what it needs and paying attention to       how it feels
02| Give my emotions less control over my eating and exercise habits
03| Set up my blog in such a way that it leaves those who read it feeling hopeful, challenged and                  positive
04| Broaden the circle of friends in my life
05| Create a realistic plan for my financial future
06| Get to know who God really is
07| Be curious about what living a whole life looks like
08| Take action on my goal to raise enough money to help free someone from human trafficking


From there I took myself and my powersheets off for a few hours to a somewhat local marina where you can find a coffee shop that has actually won awards for the best hot chocolate in England!  I kid you not....that hot chocolate was delicious and well worth the award and the price tag.

Here are what my March Goals look like:

Monthly

• Spend time with new and old friends 
• Create a three month blog plan and decide on topics
• Set up my Retire Ready account
• Read one book
• Research fundraising ideas 
• Create and tweak my morning routine
• Create and tweak a weekly exercise routine

Weekly