My New Erin Condren Life Planner

Hello Friends!

It's almost the new year and with it comes New Year's resolutions. Once again, I've decided to get more organized with my life. So, I jumped in with both feet and purchased my first Erin Condren Life Planner. WOOT! I could hardly contain my excitement when it arrived at my door. Sorry I'm not including the unpacking, which so many planner people do. I'm still a newbie to the planning world. I was able to customize it with my name, choice of colors, and the quote. I wish the colors would pop more in this picture. The colors are robin egg blue and choral, in case your curious.

Now you may remember, I was using a Filofax. The reason I originally went with Filofax was because it could fit in my purse, which made it nice to carry around with me. Plus, I could refill the pages year after year. Good on the pocketbook and good for the environment. However, I didn't like the daily spread and having to print out and cut all of my pages. I know I could have purchased the pages, but I was trying to save money. Remember? I hated it! The planner that is. It became a chore. As a result, I stopped using it. Oh and also because the clasp melted one summer day and I couldn't fix it. ERGH!

So why the change? After all, the Erin Condren Life Planner isn't cheap. Plus it's quite a bit larger and won't fit so neatly in my purse. My friend used the planner this past year, and I was so jealous. I loved the pop of bright colors. I loved the uplifting quote on the cover. I loved the monthly tabs. I loved the monthly calendar at the beginning of each section. I loved how each month had its own color scheme. I loved how there was room to write. I loved the stickers. But, I didn't love the vertical spread.

As it so happens, Erin Condren listened to her customers, who didn't care for the vertical design, and created a horizontal spread for the Life Planner. YEAH! That sealed the deal for me. My planner came with the month of November and December, so I had some time to practice before the new year. I'm still practicing. I haven't been a planner girl since I was in school. Ahem. Long time ago.

This is the first layout I'm willing comfortable to share. It's not perfect, but it works for me. I'm still figuring out what I need to write down each week to help me stay on top of things. When it comes to decorating, I'm still a newbie there too. There are so many people our there in the planner world who have beautiful decorated planners. Do you know how many "Plan With Me" videos I've watched? My hubby thinks I'm obsessed. With that said, I've decided to keep my planner functional and simple.

Each day has the weather marked at the top. It helps me plan what to wear for the day. My "To Do" list for each day is in the box to the right. Aren't the cute heart check boxes cute? So are the washing machine stickers. The washing machines remind me which load of laundry to complete for the day. I find if I do one load a day it's easier to keep up with, especially in the summer when I'm hanging clothes on the line to dry. Since it was Christmas week I included a countdown to Christmas using snowflake stickers. I'll post links below to the Etsy shops where I purchased the stickers.

Isabella has been keeping me company on the couch while I work write in my planner and write this blog post.

Here is this week's spread. Not a whole lot going on this week. I'm on Christmas break. Ah! I've so needed some time off to spend with family. I think my students were also looking forward to some time off. They've been working so hard this year. I hope they come back refreshed and ready to dive back in.

Well here's hoping that my Erin Condren Life Planner helps me stay motivated to keep planning and following through with those plans to help keep my life a little more organized. Do you use a planner? If so which one works best for you? I'd love to hear from you.

Happy New Year!

Blessings and Hugs,
HopeAnn

P.S. My mom gave me a new purse for Christmas that my Erin Condren Life Planner fits in perfectly. Problem solved.

Links to Etsy shops:
Rory's Sweet Addictions weather stickers, heart check boxes, snowmen, weekend and half boxes

Planner Press washing machines

My holiday stickers came from Meijer's

Disclaimer: I am in no way advertising for Erin Condren or any of the shops on Etsy. I'm just sharing the love.