Exploring: Smudging, Sage and Space Clearing

If you've read any of my "exploring" posts, you know that this is just my thoughts and opinions at the very early stages of exploring this.  Some of my ideas might be a little half baked or not fully formed, and I hope that's ok.  I'm writing in pencil and I promise to share as I go, but please, if you feel I need redirection please (kindly) do so in the comments.  I'm completely new to this and am sharing my first experiences and early resources in an effort to encourage anyone who might be too nervous to push themselves in that direction.

With that little disclaimer out of the way, I'll start with saying that I feel like I'm growing into a new form of myself.  I've always been spiritual, so this curiosity isn't what's new to me; it's the confidence I feel in exploring new, exciting things that makes me feel as though I've shed some sort of past skin.  I've been curious about smudging for years, especially in regards of clearing bad energy (instead of spirit), but the roadblocks I put in my own way simply fell away last month, leaving me primed and ready to explore it.  It's a good feeling, letting go of past baggage and stepping into new interests. 

For the past year my boyfriend and I have talked at length about the energy in our house feeling very weird.  We have an unusual layout to our floor plan and we’re both pretty invested in making our house really feel like a home base moving forward.  This has involved a lot of moving stuff around, painting, planning and effort.  I've explored some introductory Feng Shui and feel that it helps with the flow of the house a lot, even the boyfriend says the house feels like it has "good energy." So, I was browsing The Spruce (linked below with the resources) and I found an introductory article about smudging your home.  I'd always thought it was this super complex process, but I found a lot of information in a single blog post!  I was hooked, but I didn't want to lose momentum.  I set a strict amount of time that I would let myself research before either dropping it altogether or actually dipping my toes and trying it (I don't need more things to fixate on that never amount to action thankyouverymuch) and needless to say, I jumped right in after my deadline.  I didn't want to get stuck endlessly researching, I wanted to move forward and see if this would have a noticeable effect on our home!

Here’s some of the research I found that helped me get started.  Like I said, I didn't let myself get too caught up in research because I didn't want to get stuck in the process.  I left myself enough time to get a good grasp on how to get started, and that was it.   While I plan on continuing to learn about it, this is by no means exhaustive research.

https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-smudge-your-house-1274692

https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-smudging-1275274

https://www.yogiapproved.com/life-2/everything-you-need-to-know-about-smudging/

I followed the steps I found online and set aside about 15 minutes to smudge my house.  I enjoyed the process, I kept it very quiet and contemplative.  I wanted the house to be both clean and cleansed, so I smudged after we cleaned the house really well one Sunday.  We were entertaining that week, so we gave some things extra attention that we normally wouldn't.  After I cleaned, I slowly and mindfully wafted smoke around my house (every nook and cranny) and that was pretty much it. I have to say, the house felt very fresh afterwards and was really peaceful.  We clean with essential oils, so that could have been it, but it was nice enough and easy enough that I'll definitely be doing it again.

Overall, it was a great experience.  Since I've only done it once, I can't say for sure if this will be a lifelong practice, but I really enjoyed the quiet contemplative nature of the whole thing and the peaceful feeling we had in our house.  In the future, I'd like to see how other people cleanse their home and maybe be smudged myself.  I'm very interested in the whole process, though I'm not entirely sure I have all the pieces together yet. 

I'll continue to learn and explore them further, but for now it just seems a little out of reach.  My email list is the place to be if you want updates, though! And please, if you have any input, please comment below!

My Favourite Monthly Spread for my Bullet Journal

This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission if you use them.  I only ever recommend products that I know and trust.

Before we get started, I just want to let you all know that I'm hosting another challenge!  I loved the one I hosted a few weeks ago, and this time, I'm thinking bigger.  During first week of January, we are making a game-plan for 2018.  My emails will be leading you through my kick-ass challenge, and they'll be in your inbox bright and early January 1-5th!  Get in here!  

pssst!  This would be a great reason to ask for that bullet journal for Christmas!  This is the one I have and I love it.  

Leuchtturm 1917 Notebook A5 Hardcover Dotted Medium Black

I think a good Bullet Journal spread should be like a great kitchen.  Clean, with the things you use or need regularly at your fingertips and the rest in the cupboard.  As beautiful as some BuJo spreads are, the intricacies of all of the trackers and other features can be visually overwhelming, and I take out my bullet journal when I need a sense of instant peace.  Looking at a bunch of things that I'm just not filling in makes me feel like a failure, and I bullet journal to stay confident and on top of my shit. 

In my opinion, this spread is the Pinterest kitchen of spreads.  The things I use most often in a monthly spread (which is usually a page I fill out once and reference through the month, instead of staying active in it daily or weekly) are the focal point, with minimal features and lots of white space.  Since a month-at-a-glance can have lots of information, I like to keep it as minimal and underwhelming as possible.

As you can see, I've kept the calendar small and simple.  Only four squares in each box.  The only purpose of my calendar is simply to be able to reference days in the future.  Like "Hey Andrea, can you work Dec 14th?" "Let me check.  *opens calendar* No, that's a Friday, and I'm already working."  I don't put any information in the boxes, because even on bigger calendars I don't find that there's enough room.  I keep the boxes very small so I can have the dates running vertically underneath the calendar, where I put corresponding events and holidays.   I keep it to birthdays, anniversaries, travelling and holidays, and in my weekly spread I get more detailed. 

I also track my social media numbers and email list subscribers.  I put the number I have on the first of the month on the left side and I put my new number on the right side.  I used to track them weekly, but I started thinking obsessively about it, and while it's nice to track my progress, I find month-to-month helps me track it closely without deriving my sense of worth from things like my Facebook fan count.

I really hope you try out this layout.  I wish I could point you to the exact place I found this design, but I ended up on this specific design after lots of modification, trial and error, and trying first in pencil, but I do have to add how incredibly inspired I am from the BuJo community on Pinterest and Instagram.  They all have nicer handwriting then me and they all seem to be infinitely better at bullet journaling than me.  If, by some miracle, I'm your first foray into Bullet Journaling, be sure to check them out!  Its really something to make your own!

How I Share Essential Oils with my Boyfriend

I think I've made it clear by now that essential oils are everything to me.  In my opinion, they're called essential oils because they're essential (that's not really why, though, I'm just trying to be funny).  I talked about how I use them to better my mood and productivity over here, But I also use them in my cleaning and hygiene routines, and my diffuser is usually just hummin' away, making my house smell nice, all clean and good vibes-y.  So yeah, I'm pretty into it, and in classic "Andrea" style, my interest has turned into a bit of an obsession.

My boyfriend, however, like most humans, doesn't get immediately obsessed with new things, so while he enjoys the oils, he doesn't get too overly involved in the process.  For the most part, he doesn't  use them on his own, so if he's coming into contact with them, it's because of my scheming.  It's the loving, fun kind of scheming, but he tells me he enjoys it, and what's nice about essential oils is that using them on your partner means you get to smell it too, so you're getting some aromatherapy out of it.  It's kind of the gift that keeps on giving.

1.  Massage

Since my love language is touch, we both give and receive a lot of massage, and I honestly couldn't recommend it more.  Neither of us begrudges it, and after a long day, we both love it.  What I like to do is melt a little coconut oil in a bowl or jar (maybe 1/4 of a cup) and add a little lavender or eucalyptus oil (or both!) to it, and we massage each other's hands with our nice, DIY massage oil.

I've just got to add though, if you're using the oils topically (directly on your skin) you need to dilute them in some way.  Putting the oil on your skin directly is likely too strong.  I diluted mine in coconut oil, but there are lots of different carrier oils you can use.  You can even add a few drops into your lotion!  Keep your skin safe, people!

2.  In the air

Another great way to use essential oils is in your environment.  I personally feel like it improves the energy of my home, it makes our time feel more relaxed and it kind of helps cleaning pack a bit more of a punch than usual.  I have a gorgeous purifying blend that's full of things like tea tree and eucalyptus which helps to purify the air and gives a really crisp, woodsy smell.  I love diffusing that when I'm cleaning.  I kind of think about it like it's cleaning the air, and it makes the house smell SO CLEAN AND FRESH.

I also like to diffuse different oils for different reasons.  In the evening, I like to diffuse more relaxing oils (Lavender is my favourite right now), but uplifting, happy oils are my favourite the rest of the time.  Think citrus.  They're really stimulating, though, so if I'm already pretty caffeinated or wound up I'll pick one that's better for unwinding. 

3.  In his shower products

My honey wakes up super early for work and usually showers in the morning, so I figured he could use a little boost.  I usually add 4-5 drops of peppermint into his bottle of body wash, and we both love it.  It smells really clean and crisp, and it adds a really nice peppermint note to all of the body washes I've experimented on, so our hugs are getting creepily long.  He loves the smell, and says it feels tingly and refreshing on the skin.  Cooling peppermint is perfect for a little zip in a 5am shower. 

4.  In his skincare

My honey has a skin care routine, and I live for it.  It mostly involves taking my old things, but he's taking care of himself and that's what counts. 

His skincare mostly consists of a facewash, whatever moisturizer I'm currently using, and some type of essential oil.  If he's breaking out, he'll swipe a little tea tree oil to bring down the redness and calm it down, but I've also been known to sneak some orange essential oil to his moisturizer and he loved it.  "Why does this moisturizer smell happy?"

5.  In a warm bath

Is there any better way to spend time than in the bath?  No, absolutely not. 

My man snowboards all winter, so by the time he gets home from the hill, he's chilled and a little sore, and ready for a bath.  I like to draw him a bath in our nice, clean bathroom, maybe light him a candle, and get it all relaxing and cozy for him for when he gets home.  He really appreciates it, and the eucalyptus helps lots with his sore muscles and any congestion he might have going on from the cold

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Chris and I enjoy a lot of closeness in our relationship, and that's because I've noticed we serve each other a lot in our daily lives.  Surprise baths, massages, and other little gestures really encourage us to spend time with each other, as well as enjoy the other's service for a long period of time.  When Chris gives me a massage, not only do I get to enjoy a massage, but I get to sit there in bliss, thinking about how great he is for the whole time.  When I run him a bath, he gets to sit there and enjoy it the entire time.  It's good to reflect on how great your partner is, and essential oils definitely have given me new ways to bring us together. 

Returning to Yoga after Brain Surgery

I've been practicing yoga for 15 years, since I was about 10.  It's one of my favourite things, I've leaned on it through hard times, and in general, it's kept me pretty healthy.  A couple of times a week, I'd make a point to get on my mat, clear my mind and move and stretch.  It's been so valuable to me and central to my life that years ago, I decided that becoming a yoga teacher had to be on my bucket list.  I haven't checked it off yet, but it's there and ready for me whenever I am.  It's really nice to have this lifelong practice on my side when things get hard or uncomfortable, and I know that as I need it, it'll continue to support me.

I'm not going to lie, though, things do not feel the same on my yoga mat as they did before my brain surgery 6 months ago.

I waited about 5 months to go back to a class, and I picked a very gentle hatha practice.  I spoke to the teacher before hand, and let her know my situation.  Of course, like a sweet angel, she told me that if something didn't feel right, to move back to a pose that felt more comfortable, and that if I needed to rest, that was okay too.  The class that I picked was very slow and gentle, and while I totally blundered through any balance based poses, for the most part I felt pretty good.

Even though it felt good, though, I wasn't really ready for how foreign everything felt.  For most of my life, downward dog felt comfy and cozy, like slipping on my favourite pair of jeans.  Not in that class.  I was very aware of exactly how and where my body was struggling through poses that I'd done since puberty, and while a part of me wishes I could just look at it as a way to stay "present," I miss how comfortable yoga feels.

It's been two months since I went back to a yoga class, and for the most part, I've kept my practise at home.  It's been way less frequent than it probably should be, even though it feels easier every time I do it.  I guess I'm impatient; I want it to feel good and amazing now, not 6 months from now.  But, at least at home, I'm not tempted to try to keep up with the poses in a class when another flow might feel better.  A flow for me and my sometimes weird body.  I can hang out in poses that feel good, I can challenge myself in the ways I feel comfortable, and I never wonder if someone thinks I'm weird for hanging out in child's pose for a few extra breaths.

Exploring Manifestation

Manifestation is a big concept to talk about.  It's related to The Law of Attraction,  but it's only a part of it.  It's both broader and narrower, and there are many layers to it.  It's more than just wishing for money or good fortune; that's probably one of the worst ways to manifest your desires.  It is, however, a daily thought practice that provides results over time.

It helps if you think of your thoughts like the ocean; to manifest, you want to create deep changes in your thoughts, as though you're shifting the true current.  Manifesting will not work if you're only making splash sized changes.  As I've implemented manifestation practices into my life, I've noticed a constant feeling of transformation, because I'm changing and unlearning deeply running currents of thought to attract more positivity, confidence and good fortune into my life.

I guess we'll go ahead and define the word "manifest" and then we'll unpack it a little and see what it's all about.  I'm still relatively new on this journey, so I'm excited to share some of my early experiences as well as embrace the learning opportunities this discussion will bring forth.  An attitude of curiosity tends to make exploring new things a lot more fun, so here we go.  To "Manifest" is to bring forth a result by demonstrating an spiritual readiness and positivity surrounding your desire.  It's intentional, a little mystical, and it can be really powerful, but that all seems to depend on the level of commitment you bring to the table. 

Some Common Ways To Manifest:

• Vision Boards
• Visualization
• Journaling
• Displaying confidence and readiness for your desired thing (acting as though you already have it)
• Praying
• Meditation

So, manifestation can look like a lot of different things, and it can bring forth lots of different results.  Some people manifest more money and wealth into their lives, others manifest less tangible things, like better relationships.  In my experience, the most successful manifestation practice goes with a successful, strong meditation practice.  It seems to be the cornerstone; meditation seems to be crucial to the necessary mindset to attract your desire, especially because so much of it has to do with a clear, positive mindset.

My Manifestations

In the last little while I've tried my hand at some manifestation.  I'm sure I could be better at it, especially seeing as I'm not currently meditating everyday (which I've heard helps so much.   Even if it's only for 10 minutes.)   But, even if I don't have it completely locked down, I feel really good about where my life is at and it's definitely improved it in the specific ways I've set my intentions, so I'm counting it as a win. 

I've struggled a lot with confidence in the past.  I felt as though both physically and personally, that I was well below average.  Too ugly to enjoy the spotlight, too stupid to have a successful career.  Those thoughts were a daily occurrence, and I can recognize now how much they were holding me back.  There were countless risks that I didn't take, so I missed out on great experiences as well as awesome things that might have propelled my business further.  I'm talking trips, networking events, presentations, dates, dinners, etc.  And while I’m happy with my life now, I knew that I had to stop holding myself back.  Faking confidence has never worked for me, so now I needed to figure out how to attract it.

It wasn't a ton of work, and I'm going to talk about what I did to bring more confidence into my life. But first, I'll answer some questions: Is my confidence unshakeable? No.  Did I do all of these things perfectly? No.  Did I still get a good result? Yes. Can I still improve from here?  Of course. 

So here's what I did, for the most part.  When I felt unsure or self-conscious, I made it a point to ask myself "What would I do if I was already confident?"  Usually, that meant envisioning myself making decisions based on my own happiness and success, which felt super empowering.  And if I asked myself that question because I needed to make a decision, it was a really easy way to take my own fear out of the equation and make a decision that's in my best interest (even if it might be a little uncomfortable at first.)  This was the main way that I practiced manifestation, it was the only thing that felt like a definite step in the right direction.  I journaled and meditated, and while those things definitely helped me evaluate my own progress and check in on myself, I didn't notice a direct correlation doing those things and a direct result on my manifestation.  I think that journaling and meditating is part of the crucial inner work you need to do to have the right mindset.  But really, it wasn't a huge inconvenience.  It was pretty much centered around deciding to care enough to check in with myself and modify my thought patterns.

There were definitely things that I did to hold myself back, too.  I've noticed that whenever I focused too heavily on my manifestation, that I'd become desperate and impatient.  That made the process way less enjoyable, and I'd notice myself acting from a place of thirst and desperation instead of confidence.  I also would visualize other things that I would want to bring forth, like fun trips, a close-knit friend group in my new city, and those things have yet to manifest.  Looking back, though, I think that the visualization I was doing was more like daydreaming; it wasn't a focus in my life and I didn't really set any intention behind it.  Those thoughts flitted in and out of my brain, and while I'd love for those things to have happened, they just didn't.  That’s okay though, I think its simply not happening right now, because my focus and energy is better spent in other places before those things manifest.

Current Thoughts

So I was going to call this section "Final Thoughts," but the whole point of this is to share how I feel as I try new things.  These thoughts are far from final, I think, but I'm going to continue to share as I discover things worth sharing about manifestation. 

I truly have a lot of doubts about it.  Manifesting something like confidence is not quite the same as manifesting a new fridge.  I don't know how much of my confidence manifestation was simply the placebo effect.  I could have just really believed that manifestation was working, so it totally could have been my own mind healing my insecurities, instead of the romantic notion that I was milking the universe's good vibes through visualization.  That totally could have been how it happened, especially because the change I manifested was a mental shift, not a physical object.  I'm skeptical about how it all works… was it the universe or was it just the placebo effect amplified by some positive momentum?

I don't know, and I don't really care.  All I know is that I'm not constantly second guessing myself anymore.  My decisions feel a lot more intentional, I rarely react from a place of panic lately.  I have the patience to wait for my future successes to unfold and the peace to enjoy the smaller successes on the way.  Was it the universe?  Was it just dumb luck?  I truly don't know, but what I do know is that I worked a lot on myself these past few months as I tried to bring forth this change, and I'm better for it in a lot of ways.  I know that changing these thought patterns in myself had to have had an effect, even if it only amplified the effects of sheer chance.  But, I enjoyed implementing these changes, so as I continue to live my life, I'm sure that the techniques I used will come into play again.  I'm too excited about the result to ignore the methods, especially without at least trying them again. 

So, I guess it comes down to this:  Do I know if manifestation works?  No, but I think it's worth a shot anyways.  Worst case scenario, you set aside some time to meditate on your dreams and desires.  How could that be bad in any way?

Recovery Update: 7 Months Later

If you missed my 5 month recovery update and want to catch up, you can check it out here.

I still don't feel like myself.  I wish I could say that sometimes, I forget about this big surgery that swept up my life and turned it into something unrecognizable, but I can't.  It catches me in quiet moments as well as loud, when I'm struggling to think or when I'm next to someone talking on their cell phone too loud.  It catches me with things that get my attention right away, like physical pain, or a limp, or the question "why do I still feel this way?"  I wish it didn't happen so often, and its not even really that bad, but it does take me out of some pretty great moments I'd rather be present in.  It's not really enough to complain, but in those moments when I feel like a guest in my own body, I wonder will it always feel like this?

My tumour was growing in the part of the brain that controls fine motor skills.  Specifically, the motor skills on the left side of your body.  Luckily, I still have movement in my left side… I’m aware that it could have been much worse.  But the type of fine motor skills that I've taken for granted are still gone.  They improve gradually, but my fully functioning right side seems to say "keep up" as it effortlessly moves forward with my left side struggles to keep up.  Playing piano? Laughable.  Typing?  I went from 70 wpm to 25.  That's with months of practice.  Even tying my shoes seems to catch me up; my right hand, swooping around my left hand with just muscle memory, and my left hand fumbling for something that feels familiar.  It's uncomfortable, but I try not to dwell on it.

My swallowing also hasn't caught up, and I'm not sure why.  Here's what I know:  After my surgery, when I woke up, I was told I'd need soft food only for a while, because my swallowing will take a while to come back.  This is pretty normal, I think.  When I was in the hospital, it took lots of work for me to eat.  I'd chew, move the food to the back of my throat, and it just wouldn't go down.  7 months later, it still doesn't.  Water, juice and things like that are totally fine for me, but anything with substance, anything that needs to be chewed, doesn't really work for me unless I have water to wash it down with.  If I’m not sitting, focused, and quiet when I'm eating, it's easy for me to forget to chew and make sure my food is going down properly, and I'll straight up choke.  Some foods, as you can imagine, are easier than others, but I'm getting frustrated with withdrawing myself every time I eat, in case I get called on to chime in when my mouth is full. 

I'm starting to run out of patience, especially with my swallowing.  My mind is often buzzing, wondering what the problem could be.  Is there some type of damage or scar tissue from when I was intubated?  Could my surgeon have hit a nerve in surgery that caused some type of damage to my swallowing reflex?  Is my throat chakra blocked?  I wish I had the answer, especially because neither me nor my surgeon have any idea what's going on.  I really hope that something I'm doing isn't inadvertently making it worse, but it never causes me pain.  If I was really doing something wrong, I think my body would tell me by being in pain more often.

I'm pretty torn between whether I should be ignoring my difficulties and pushing through or coddling myself and taking it easy.  So far, I'm doing my best to push through and try and do all the things I normally would, I just make sure I have lots of rest.  The only exception I can think of right now would be the gym; I’m not even able to jog 20 feet, so I think that the gym would be a little more than I'm able to take on right now.  Besides, my job keeps me moving and active, so I think that for the short term, I'm being active enough.  As long as I get enough rest.

As much as recovery's weird feeling and sometimes uncomfortable, the last few months have felt really stable and secure, which isn't something I'm used to.  In the past, I've dealt with really extreme mood swings, often feeling sky high one day and crashing the next, or even just on a moment-to-moment basis.  It was something I was learning to deal with, but it was still a pretty big challenge for me.  But, for whatever reason, removing the tumour seems to have made it stop.  I'm not sure if maybe the tumour was pushing on a part of my brain that just really knocked me off balance, or if the gratefulness I've felt through this process has permeated so deeply that it changed a part of myself that I was really struggling with.  I've especially noticed that even as the weather gets more grim, my mood seems unaffected; something I haven't experienced since elementary school.  Maybe it's temporary, maybe it's all in my head.  At this point, who cares?  I'm riding this wave as far as it'll take me.

Braving the Wilderness - North Reads' November Book

North Reads is an online book club that I host on Facebook.  We 're into self-development, and we like to read books that can open you up or encourage your most beautiful life.  That doesn't just mean self-help… we're into anything and everything that you can think of to encourage your most beautiful life.  You can sign-up to join here!

My love of Brené Brown is relatively new, but very powerful.  We take similar approaches and she bases her teachings on something I've known for a long time… be yourself.  It's not always easy, and it's not really new, but as someone who has always stood out from my peers (not for any special, sparkly reason.  I'm just a little weird.) I've always dug my heels into that point.  Being myself is what felt best, and although it left me really drained in some ways, trying to be someone else took an even greater toll on me.  I knew bring myself had to be the key, and I've been learning to address the not-so-fun parts of that as much as I can.

Well, right when I was learning to accept the differently-abled version of myself that brain surgery has left me with, in swoops Brené.  Its not like she was this big secret, she was on Oprah even.  Her show AND her podcast.  So here's me, in this weird feeling body, trying to both accept myself and be authentic in the face of more visitors than I'd ever had, when I found Brene Brown's Ted X talk.  I've attached it below, it's wonderful.  It was exactly what I needed at a really challenging point in my life.

Brené (we're not on a first name basis, but I won't let that stop me) argues throughout her book that we, as humans, find deep and meaningful connections through vulnerability.  Admitting to a mistake, telling your spouse you love them, or anything else that feels both honest and scary is where we're at our most authentic.  It's where the opportunity for connection lives, and its something we need to lean into to find support and connection in a world where being yourself is scary.

Braving the Wilderness is her newest book.  I don't read the books before the month starts, but a lot of people have, so I'll post a little review for you to read if (somehow) you're still on the fence.  Here's what the Huffington Post has to say about it:

“[Brown’s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we’ve all had but haven’t quite known how to articulate. . . . [She] empowers us each to be a little more courageous.”

— The Huffington Post

So tuck in to our book this month with me.  A quick little non-fiction that I've found in every bookstore I've walked past, so its no problem to get your hands on it.  Everyone needs connection of some kind, and this month we'll talk about vulnerability and leaning into fear to embrace connection.  I think this is a big deal.  I think it's the secret sauce.

Bullet Journalling: A Peek Into My Planner

I'm not the type of person who gets things exactly right.  I'm so far from detail oriented that my personal slogan should be "good enough."  In my opinion, why would anyone sweat over the details when they could make it work just as easily without an extra 20 minutes of pointless frustration?  I know I can't be the only one like this, and I do it with almost everything.  Especially my bullet journal.

When I found bullet journalling, I saw a lot of meticulous examples with tiny floral borders, and while it was cute, I was just not about it.  I wanted a journal I could customize as I went, but I didn't want a huge pain in the neck that I felt obligated to spend hours crafting every week so I could start the actual planning.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoy that my Bullet Journal leaves room to have fun, but it's not a part of my daily (or even weekly) routine.  If I feel like its something I have to do, I'll resent having to do it, and if I'm going to put that much effort in, I'm going to enjoy it.  Life is too short to hold yourself to a standard that you resent meeting.

So hopefully, this will be a bit of a refreshing take on a bullet journal.  Not too cluttered, not too over the top, and it just does what I need it to do.  I really don't want to make this overly complicated or intimidating… so let me reiterate:  your bullet journal doesn't have to be perfect, every page doesn't have to look like its fresh from Instagram, and it's totally ok if you lose track of a few days.  It doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to work for you! 

Now, I'm going to take you through my journal a little bit, just to get some context.  Here's a fun little page I did to ring in the new year.  I don't do these decorative pages as much as some people do, but I love that its easy to sprinkle these in if I feel so inclined: 

But on the flip side, you can keep it simple.  This is an example of one of my weekly spreads; I've done some more elaborate ones before, but to be honest I just don't find it enjoyable.  I've learned that I like a clean view of not just today, but an entire week.  That way, I know what I have on the go and I feel much more in control.

Here's my more minimal weekly spread.  My helpy boy, Biscuit, wanted to get involved and, well, I wasn't going to say no.  What a helpy boy.  Helping mum with her blog.

You can also take a look at what I'm using for a monthly spread.  I have a pretty small calendar up top, with the days of the month listed below.  That's where I'll put things like major holidays and birthdays, but it's not quite filled in yet.  The other page is where I put monthly goals, I added the yoga because that's all I could think of at the time, but I also track things like vegan dinners, meditation, and other things that I can track to try and live really well.   Monthly goals and tracking go here too, I put my social media numbers in at the beginning and end of the month, because it's an easy thing to track in terms of my goals for the blog and other things like that.