Welcome to my blog!
This feels kind of like when someone new is coming to my house and I want to get it all spic and span so they can see how it's supposed to look. (By the way, that IS how I get most of my cleaning accomplished - invite company over!) Can you relate?
Anyway, I'm glad you're here. Hope you feel at home. Come anytime! :)
So, today, some of us who are participating in the Big Picture Classes website's "One Little Word" class are doing this blog hop so we can look at what each of us has done in the class so far and get a little more insight into why we chose the "one little word" for 2011 that we did. You can sign up for the class anytime right here, if you'd like. The sign up is open all year. And for those of you that have read this far, but don't know, you can also follow the class link to find out just what the heck "one little word" even is!
Even if you stumble upon my blog today and you're not taking the class, please feel free to "hop" around the blogs listed and even think about chosing a word for yourself for the remainder of the year.
If you're hopping, the NEXT BLOG AFTER MINE IS: 31) Junelle http://yesandamenblog.blogspot.com
You will also find a complete list of the participating blogs at the bottom of this post.
My "one little word" for 2011 is FOCUS. I wrote about why I chose the word in this blog post. To briefly sum it up, since I got so distracted from my word last year (simplify), I realized that what I really need to do is FOCUS on the goals that I have. And, more importantly, I want to FOCUS on what God puts right in front of me. Because if He's put it there, then it must be important.
I mentioned in my previous post that (besides what God has planned) there were several areas I know I would like to focus on. Those are my faith, my relationships, scrapbooking and simplifying. I would like to add one more thing to that list. My health.
So, how has my word (and, specifically, God through my word) been speaking to me?
I think one of the first things I'm realizng is that if I try to FOCUS on too much, then I can't really FOCUS on anything. Yep.
One of the prompts this month was to come up with a quote for your word. And here's the one I went with:
Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus. Alexander Graham Bell
So, while I do want to concentrate on the areas I've mentioned above, and they will be on my mind and in my plans, I have realized that I really need to FOCUS on what's right in front of me at the moment. Or else I miss it. And I miss life. And I may miss what God has intended for me.
Here are some things that have been going on this month.
- my husband and I have been practicing the "clean eating" philosophy. It's SO so much better to have him on board with me rather than trying to fight the tide myself. It's going well.
- the hubs is ALSO on board with going through the house and getting rid of "schtuff". We want to get rid of things that just take up space. We're trying to handle it this way - if we don't really need and use it or if we don't really love it - OUT it goes! The exciting thing is that we have already made a few steps in this direction. I'm looking forward to lots more
- God has brought a situation/person into my life that will require lots of prayer and discernment and lots of potential for growth for both the person AND myself. I'm a little nervous about not knowing what to do, but that's where the "leaning on Him and trusting Him" part comes in. How's that for having the potential to increase my faith?
- I've set aside Mondays for scrapbooking and whatever artistic thing I want to do. I'm going to have to fight for this. And FOCUS on it! I need it. I followed a prompt given by the ladies at The Digi Dares for my first digital scrapbooking page in, like, forever - and actually WON the challenge! How's that for confirmation?
- That beautiful necklace I got from Lisa Leonard? I wear it a lot and it really does help me to keep my word in mind.
Finally, I'd like to share what I've done so far in my "One Little Word" album (prompted by the class). Here are my pages: (click on images to enlarge)
Here's a closer scan of the opening 5x7 page:
I created the little word collage/cloud on Wordle. So fun (and addicting) to do. To copy the image so I could reduce it, I actually had to do a "print screen" and save that as a jpeg)
Yes, I wanted the word collage to be a little "out of focus" so I adhered it with brads, knowing they would raise the transparency up a big from the page. Just a play on words... :)
Here's my self photo that's on the other side:
I did a wee tad of post-processing on that photo - trying to get the FOCUS on my eyes. My printer also did a bit of unexpected (and unwanted) post processing, too. Oh well. I've decided not to care.
There, you can see the back of the 5x7, which was a self-photo prompt. The right-hand side is a really cool page protector with quote and definition and thesauras and etc. prompts. The cards with the typography at the top or bottom were designed by our teacher, Ali Edwards and are part of the class materials. Love that. :)
Here's a closer, clearer look at that page:
Besides the handwritten responses, I added some stamping, an embossed tag, a photo and the definition that I printed, highlighted and adhered to the card, along with a little piece I popped onto chipboard. I had taken the photo for a journaling page I'm working on (Hello, Monday!), but thought it would go well here, too. The white dots? That came from shaking my white pen - of course it splattered everywhere, including on the photo, but I decided I liked it and left it and even added to it. Dang pens. :)
So, thanks so much for checking out my blog. If you made it this far, well, God bless ya! :) Do visit again!
Here's the listing of all the blog participants. Feel free to jump in anywhere (or follow the link I gave you above to keep going around...).
1) Margie http://xnomads.typepad.com
2) Jill Conyers http://jillconyers.typepad.com/life_as_i_see_it/
3) Monica http://scraplifters.blogspot.com
4) Lynn W http://crafty-creativity.blogspot.com
5) Miranda http://mirandasscrapsite.blogspot.com
6) Mandy http://captureandcreate.wordpress.com
7) Kathy http://katswonderings.blogspot.com
8) Lisa http://makeyourownescape.blogspot.com
9) Donna http://donnabryantdurand.blogspot.com
10) Abbey http://athomewiththerichardsfamily.blogspot.com/
11) Sam http://learncreatedo.wordpress.com/
12) April http://capturethememories.blogspot.com
13) Nicky http://seejanebake.blogspot.com
14) Rebekah http://istampscrapcraft.blogspot.com/
15) Relly http://rel.ly
16) Nancy http://goshery.blogspot.com
17) Cynthia http://paperpapereverywhere.blogspot.com/
18) Kathryn http://katlodesigns.com
19) Nikki http://inkyart.com.au
20) Heather http://scrappyhare.blogspot.com
21) Gayle http://lifeonlilypadlane.blogspot.com
22) Kristina http://ciqis.blogspot.com
23) Debra http://blakleyhomeplace.blogspot.com
24) Becky http://beckyandjames.com
25) Amy http://reflectivesnapshots.com
26) Marlene http://moore-fun-in-the-sun.blogspot.com/
27) Maureen http://cookingmylife.blogspot.com
28) Cheri http://cheriandrews.blogspot.com
29) Monica Scrapmom http://questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com
30) Jan http://mysimplelittlelife.typepad.com (you are here)
31) Junelle http://yesandamenblog.blogspot.com
32) Margaret http://gutsymom.blogspot.com
33) Sharyn http://www.analteredlife.com
34) Tere http://terecontodomicorazon.blogspot.com/
Happy hopping!
