{personal photo}
Cheers to you and yours – enjoy your long weekend!
Blog Archives
Itty Bitty Tiny Little Mini Birthday :: You get the gifts
You know how when in the early days of a relationship, even the smallest milestones are celebrated? We’ve all either been there, or rolled our eyes at the mention of something like, “It’s our 12 day anniversary!”; or “Today marks our 4th month of being together”. Swoon. Even with children this is true. We count their time with us in days, then weeks, gradually move on to months and somewhere into the second year, we slowly give up on the monthly measure and start to say, “oh, she’s almost two” or “he’s just turned three” But when it’s all so new, we count every step and treasure the time preciously. As time goes on, the increments stretch out and we start to look at things from a bigger perspective; but at first, every tiny little bit feels rather large.
Well, today marks two months since opening a little shop on Etsy. I can see you…rolling those eyes! It feels like much longer and just like a new parent or someone in a new relationship, there has been a lack of sleep, an abundance of excitement, plenty of trepidation and second-guessing and a healthy dose of just figuring it out as I go. It’s a really amazing experience to find myself in the midst of something that has a place for everyone.
Joy
So, in celebration of this itty bitty little mini milestone, I have gifts to share with you! I created the {PaperKeeper} out of a need to keep my day-to-day routine somewhat organized. As a full-time working parent, I was feeling a bit buried by all the paper that would come home from school; I would of course ‘save’ it [translation: pile in my kitchen] and I would inevitably find said paper after the ‘expiration’ date. The whole reason for keeping it had usually passed by the time I found it. Or, I was constantly rifling through the stack to find out if I needed to pack a lunch for my kiddo that day, or if it was a hot lunch day. Mornings are no time to be rifling through papers. I was also constantly referring to my calendar via my phone/computer to see what was coming up on the short horizon. I thought to myself, wouldn’t it be nice to have all that in one handy place, where I can actually see the papers I need to keep? Duh! Hello {PaperKeeper}!
My calendar is what sits front and center on my own {PaperKeeper}, followed by the lunch menu, game schedule, school master calendar and a few other reminders. While everyone has their own way to organize themselves, I thought I would share some great printable calendars and other ways of organizing your life, that coordinate so perfectly with the {PaperKeeper}. No one said being organized had to be dull and colorless! So, below are a few great items from Etsy and few others you can download directly from the web from some incredibly talented and generous folks. [be sure to drop a comment on their blog/site if you you end up using one of theirs].
Have you ever heard the statistic that states that every minute invested in planning will save you ten minutes down the road? I think it’s true – every bit of time we invest in setting up a system to automate routine tasks, the more efficient we are and the more time we have to do what we truly enjoy.
Here are some wonderful FREE [told you, gifts!] downloadable printables to help you get organized, set up some systems and create some extra time to do what you love most!
Thanks to Design Finch, for that great stat on planning and a great collection of free printables, including this adorable week-at-a-glance PDF. Once you get to this site, be prepared…there are many choices. Oh, organizing is suddenly fun! Who knew!
Maybe your family thrives when you plan out the meals for a week? [I know, what a concept, huh? ]
Download this weekly meal planner from The Project Girl
Do you or your family need to be on a cleaning schedule you can all see [and agree to, of course]? Here is a colorful way to keep a chart of your chores. I think it’s more fun to do chores when you can check them off the list!
Download this cutie from KamleyLane.com
There are so many ways to get organized and I hope you found something that fits your style and your way of gettin’ it together so you can find more time to do what makes you happy. And you know what would make me happy? It is after all, my birthday, you know. Put it in a {PaperKeeper}!
{ Happy Happy! }
Living in a Tangerine Dream
Treasury Thursday :: Living in a Tangerine Dream
Usually this time of year I am craving the sun. This time last year, I was on the verge of googling the cost of sun lamps and took photos of the sun whenever it did make a fleeting appearance. While not good in the grand eco scheme of things, I am loving this unseasonably sunny and dry winter; and have hardly needed my winter coat! I feel I am living in a tangerine dream. In homage to the sun, shining or hidden, today’s Treasury Thursday is all about the tangerine, bright, delicious and good for you!
Did you know…
- Tangerines are packed full of vitamin C and fiber.
- One tangerine can provide about 37 percent of vitamin C needed for the whole day.
- Most of the tangerines produced in the United States come from Florida and California.
- Tangerines originated in China
Here is a recipe for sunshine in a jar, or Tangerine Marmalade. Cook up a batch to have a bit of sunshine on hand for the next gloomy day. And consider adding a little sunshine in your kitchen or workspace to help you get organized!
Take a minute to enjoy the bright shiny items listed below, or view in Etsy and share a little sunshine on these creative folks! Leave a comment and give me a Treasury Challenge for next week: a word, a color, a concept, a phrase. I will pick one and feature it next week! Until next time…I’m going to go eat a tangerine.
 Circus Carnival Photograph -… $20.00
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 Tangerine “Creative Min… $15.00
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 Orange Dots Circles 5×5 art … $28.00
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 Quilted Pouch – Orange and A… $22.00
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 free shipping – CLOCK circle… $55.00
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 Autumn Leaves in Fall, Tree … $25.00
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 Orange Floral Decorative Pil… $45.00
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 LINOCUT PRINT – ORANGE Radio… $22.00
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 Camera Strap- Orange Vintage $29.50
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 KNOTS cotton jersey scarf ne… $28.00
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 Autumn soy candle with crack… $44.00
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 SALE Orange Carnelian Tumble… $115.00
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 SALE — Buy 2 Get One FREE -… $20.00
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 Tangerine Seed Beaded Bracel… $28.00
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 Vintage Tangerine Orange Gla… $32.00
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 Oh so tweet Vintage Tangerin… $38.00
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Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.
Would you like to know how to create your own Etsy Treasury – click here to learn how!
A little birdy told me…
do you tweet? follow me @paperkeeperetsy and I will follow you!
…about two great twitter and blogging resources!
I went to my first Twitter Party the other night. Well, by went, I mean I walked from the kitchen to the living room and sat on the couch, in attire not worthy of a quick run to the grocery store. Food for the event was comfort-food themed, also known as a typical thrown together weeknight dinner of baked chicken and mac-n-cheese.
In two hours time, I tweeted, replied, re-tweeted, mentioned and messaged. I think. My brain and my fingers couldn’t seem to move fast enough, but I got into the groove of it and I was so grateful to the other @’s who were honest enough to say this was their first twitter party too. I didn’t feel like the only one over in the corner with whiplash as tweets flew by left and right.
This tweeting thing is all new to me; if three weeks ago, you had told me I’d be at a twitter party, I would have laughed and then asked you to please speak English. But I have to admit, it was really fun. @digitwirl and @inteledge hosted a great evening featuring fun tech gadget gifts, and anyone who knows me well, knows I love the gadgets. The only thing better? Winning one!
I’m on a steep learning curve with the intricate web of social networking that goes hand in hand with having an Etsy shop. I asked myself the other day if I would have gone down this Etsian road if I had known about all the tweeting, blogging, digging, stumbling, kaboodling, and pinning that is behind it all. I thought I would just be making widgets in my kitchen. I might have been scared off before starting, it is a lot to learn, and it’s one of those things where the more you learn, the more you realize how little you know.
Thankfully, for newbies like me, it’s not lonely journey. There are some great resources out there for new tweeters and/or bloggers like me. The network is so intricate and interwoven, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly where I found them but I am so glad I found these two particular resources.
The first one I stumbled across while digging through links to find some direction, is Handmadeology – the Science of Handmade. Tim at Handmadeology is amazing and runs a great blog, but even more so are his e-courses. They are written for the person who knows little to nothing except for the one important fact that they need to know a lot more. The courses are paced out one day at a time with information broken into manageable chunks that are easy to understand and put into practice. Each one builds upon the next and I find myself just waiting until the next day’s lesson arrives.
Through the 5 day course called Social Media Blitz, I realized that I had to get on Twitter. Well, actually use the account I set up a few years ago. And actually Tweet. To be honest, this scared me. For a pretty tech savvy gal, for some reason, Twitter eluded me. But I got on the bus and kept reading. I created a Facebook page, set up accounts with StumbleUpon, Tumblr and a few other networks. Stealing moments where I could, in between working, momming and just living, and making those widgets, I read every word. Through his email newsletter, I found out about the Twitter Blueprint e-course. In one of the first days, he wrote, “The best way to build followers is to follow others. Most likely they will follow you back.” I didn’t believe it. But, I did it. And, guess what? He was right. Of course. In two days time, my number of followers more than doubled. I have a long way to go, but, I am going. Thanks Tim!
Through Twitter, I stumbled upon a fantastic blogging blog, called SuccessfulBlogging from Annabel Candy who’s twitter handle is appropriately @bloggingmentor. Her blog offers countless tips and strategies for improving your blog and using Twitter. In that Twitter way, I found her, followed her and yes, she followed me back [thank you!]. Not long after, a few interactions occurred, which is old hat to Twitter Pros, but to this TweetBabe, I was thrilled. It led to her taking a look at my Etsy shop, tweeting out my infant blog, [yes this one!] and it all came together for me. It was almost as she and Handmadeology were working in cahoots to drive home the point of how powerful this network is. I knew it here [me, pointing to my head] but now I really get it [me giving you an a-ha moment face].
Thanks Tim and Annabel.
Do you have a great blog, website, tip or resource that you think I should know about? Share it here. And, yes, I will tweet it.
Reward yourself
Organization tip of the day!
What's your favorite reward?
As you head into the weekend, it’s likely you will be busy with all the many things that fill our to-do lists this time of year, on top of our usual tasks! Somehow we manage it all, and it all gets done, but keep in mind to take a few minutes to reward yourself! Reward yourself :: Set some small deadlines or easy-to-reach goals that are part of your to-do list. Break big projects into small segments and after you meet those small deadlines, promise yourself a small treat. When the entire project is completed, think on a little grander scale. If you can stand to add one more thing to your list [but think how quick it will get done, and then you could reward yourself!] leave a comment and share your favorite reward! Mine is wine! Cheers!
The Countdown has begun!
- The countdown to Christmas has begun…
Advent has begun, the countdown to Christmas is underway [I won't mention how many days are left...] and while caught up in making sure the egg nog is stocked, the tree is decked and the Elf on Shelf has a safe relocation each and every morning, the daunting list of things to do comes along with all the magic.
Here’s a tip to help you make merry and keep your elf hats on during this whirlwind of a holiday ride: “Pick a spot in your home where you can create a landing strip. So that when you get home, you can empty your hands and put everything onto a tray/bowl/hook near the doorway: keys, purse/wallet, ID and cash, cell phone, anything you will need next time you head out. This way it doesn’t get tossed on the counter, table, or bookshelf, or refrigerator [it's been known to happen!] and you can spend less time looking for your keys and more time thinking up clever spots for your Elf on the Shelf!”
