embarking on Project Life 2013

Week 1 (love including items Ellie makes at school)

This year, I'm using the Seafoam Kit with bits from the Clementine Kit and a few other good things. And hopefully I will begin to get a bit better at photographing these layouts but my intention in sharing these is more to encourage you to print out your photos and write down your stories and less about me saying, "look how pretty!" (Insert me smiling and winking here.) Because my Project Life album isn't about perfect. It's about getting these stories out of my computer (and my head) and onto paper.

Week 1 close up (made the collage instagram photo of EJ and me at the top using an app - love it!)

So far I'm really loving the 4x4 page protectors for mostly Instagram photos (printed from PostalPix) and a few 4x6 photos that I cut to fit. Because of the turnaround time for the PostalPix photos to get here (it isn't long but can be a week), I'm using a post-it with the photo description as a space holder if I'm waiting for a photo. This way I don't get too behind and can finish the rest of the layout.  

Week 2

Another reason I'm using more Instagram photos this year is because 1) I usually have my iphone with me and often upload my favorites to Instagram and 2) perhaps more importantly, this way I'm included more in the album, which is a goal for me this year. (I take a lot of self-portraits on Instagram.) Plus iphone photos are the only ones I really take with both me and Jon or of all three of us.

Week 2 closeup (I was feeling out of words during this week and loved that I could just use the "who what when where..." card and the "life looks like" card)

I've also been uploading my 4x6 photos to Walgreens and having Jon pick them up on his way home from work (or I upload them at 11 at night and pick them up in the morning and stop for a Starbucks treat as a way to get out of the house on studio days). For some reason, this feels easier right now, but I still use the Selphy if I want to print one or two photos.

Week 3 (with an insert of these photos)

A few favorite supplies in addition to the kit:

• Journaling with my Smash pen and these Sharpies
• Martha Stewart labels
• Ali's journaling cards
• Grid journaling cards cut to 4x4 for journaling on those layouts
• I changed to this corner rounder this month and I love it!

Week 3 close up

One big piece I've realized so far this year: I've let go of narrating the photos I use. Meaning, I don't always journal about the photos. Sometimes there is a story I want to tell with a corresponding photo or two, but often I want to include stories that don't have photos. And really the photos themselves tell their own stories. This is another way I keep letting go of any need for perfection with this project. Week 3 is a great example of this.

Just like last year, I'm continuing to include bits of journaling about the real life/hard stuff. Like the awesome beauty and intensity of being a mama to a smart little girl who understands so much but still has the emotions of a two year old to sift through each day. Including these pieces is really important to me and has helped me see how much of this experience is for me.

To read more about how I approach Project Life (and how I let go of perfection big time with it), see this post.

If you are new to Project Life, head over to Becky Higgins' site to watch a fun short video that explains everything.

PS You shared some awesome comments/emails after I wrote this post about why I take self-portraits and I want to respond to them. Look for a post about that next week.

PPS Registration for the Summer Your Story Retreat will begin next Wednesday, February 6. (The retreat website will be updated with more info on Monday.)