College Organization Tips

When it comes to school work…I’m lost as far as organization goes. Now that I’m starting at an online university, I need to figure out how to get my work organized and scheduled.

I’ve perused Pinterest, and there are so many links for college organization, binder organization, etc. I want to read it all! I don’t have the time though (well I could read it all, but then I don’t think anyone in my family would get fed.)

So, I’ve come up with 3 methods I think will help me through. Once I master these methods, I will find others.

1. SQ3R method of reading textbooks.

This method involves reading all headings, subheadings, bold words, and pictures to get the general idea of what will be read. Reading the questions at the end of the chapter helps gain a sense of what information should be pulled from the text. Once the questions are read, then comes reading the chapter, repeating what has been read then recheck to make sure questions have been answered correctly.

2. One task at a time

I will need to remind myself of this all the time. I always have a million things going on in my head and I tend to forget what I’m supposed to be doing at that moment in time. Multitasking really isn’t an efficient way of getting things done. Focusing on one thing at a time will help to get it done faster and with the least amount of errors.

3. Keep social media to a minimum

I admit it…I’m addicted to FB and Pinterest. I check them frequently and can easily lose HOURS of my time on them! I really need to limit my time on these sites when I’m studying…especially since I’m an online student!I hope that these tips can help you as well! Do you have any tips for me? What helps you stay on top of classwork…or anything else for that matter.

 

Going back to college

I cannot wait to start school Aug. 19th! I’ve been hemming and hawing about homeschool over the last year and Andy and I have talked and we think that Eli will do great in public school. He loves learning and the people. Andy and I have also talked about me eventually going back to work. So…I’m enrolled in Liberty University to go for my teaching license in Elementary Education with a minor in Special Education!

I’ve got a LONG road ahead of me, but with Eli in school I’ll be able to focus on school work more. I’ve got a 5 year personal plan written out and I’m working on my yearly goal plans. I’ve started and re-started college so many times. This time I have an end goal and a plan to get there! I have lots of teachers in my circle to draw information and inspiration from. Thank you, Erika, my mom and Kristin…They have all been a great help to me!

(I’m also having to contain my school supplies obsession! I want to buy a teacher planner…and I don’t even teach anyone right now! lol)

Anyway, thank you ahead of time for your support! What I had envisioned for my life and family is changing…for the better. I’ve always loved being a stay at home mom, but I’ve felt that I’ve missed out in developing myself outside of the home and being able to help others. Oh, and it doesn’t help that it’ll help the pocket book…but not before the loans are paid off.

 

I’ll be back…

I promise. The family and I have been really sick and so I fell away from the blog. I’ll be adding in some different home topics. My Household clean-up got sidetracked…ugh! That always happens to me. Now I’m at square one again. 

I’m re-thinking the direction of my blog posts…instead of home cleaning, which i’m horrible at, I’m going to focus on what God calls me to write.

Top 5 favorite Pins

Each week, I will post my five favorite pins for different subjects. Sometimes I may do an entire post on the same subject. Since this is my first one, I’m going to share with you some of my favorite pins this week. Ones that I actually read! I have a habit of pinning and forgetting…even though I have a board titles “Look closer at this week” There are pins in this board that are months old! So, I’ve decided to share a few of my favorites with you this week. These pins really struck a chord in me and touched my life.

Marriage

I couldn’t have come across this pin at a more appropriate time in my marriage. This year is the year of transformation for me. One those things I’m going to be transforming is my attitude as a wife. I’m rather outspoken and sometimes don’t think about what I’m saying before it is already too late. One of my goals is to be more intentional in what I say. One of those ways is to praise my husband more, instead of nagging him. I need to build my husband, not tear him down.

Mothering

I love this challenge! I do it every month. It reminds me to be intentional with my children. I am not only here to teach, correct and discipline them. I am here to show them grace and love, along with teaching them how to show grace and love to others as well.

Children

I have yet to make this chore chart, but I LOVE the idea behind it. I’m even thinking of making one for myself! I like that it is interactive and you can really see what you have already done! It is great for all ages preschool to {in my case} adult!

Crafting and Faith in one!

Not only is this pretty, it is functional and interactive! If I’m going to craft something, it needs to be interactive. I really love this Prayer Pail and think it is a wonderful way to get the whole family involved as well. I have my own personal prayer journal that are prayers for other people, but that seems more private than this Prayer Pail. Leave it out in the open and ANYONE in the household can pick a stick and pray for that person/event/group/etc. right then. A time can be set where the family gathers around and prays over each prayer request.

Decorating Home

I am absolutely in love with this little girl’s bedroom! Her mommy did a fabulous job. I’d love to use this as inspiration for my daughter’s room someday when she has her own room. Make sure you check out all the pictures!

{the above 5 pictures in this post are not mine, please follow the links to go to their original blog posts.}

Inspiration whiteboard

Above my desk I have a large white board. When I find or read quotes that inspire me I print them out and post them on the board. I also write quotes. Along with a workout schedule I found in Weight Watchers magazine. You’ll notice that I don’t have bible scripture on the board…I have my bible on my desk. Open to a daily scripture I want to memorize. It is portable and can go with me anywhere.

This board is where I reflect in the morning with coffee and get my mind ready for the day.

 

Also, if anyone has any idea how to get that back smudge off of my board…PLEASE TELL ME HOW! I’ve tried rubbing alcohol, olive oil, WD40…I don’t know what else to try!

Agape,

 

How to make a mouse pad

Pricing for flimsy rubber mouse pads is ridiculous! I needed something to protect my white desk from the constant use of my mouse (I spend more time at the computer that I care to admit!). I didn’t want to dole out money on some mousepad that had a picture of a dog. I wanted something meaningful to me. Something that would encourage me.

I’ve recently found “The Mom Pledge” poster I downloaded from Hannah Kelley‘s website. Which is what I’m using for my new mouse pad. {I didn’t take pictures when I made mine, so I’m making a second one for the purpose of this tutorial.}

What you need:

• A print out of what you want your mouse pad to look like
• Cardboard of some kind…I used the back of a Mead spiral bound notebook and cut it down to size}
• Gluestick
• tape
• Clear page protector

supplies

trim accent paper

glue picture to accent paper and cardboard. Trim cardboard.

place in clear protective sheet.

 

1. Gather all supplies
2. Decide which accent picture, quote…whatever, you want on your mouse pad. Trim it to size and find some accent paper that goes nicely.
3. Glue picture to accent paper, then glue it to the  cardboard. Trim cardboard.
4. Place into a clear protective sheet.
5. {this part I forgot to take pictures of.} Trim protective sheet so that only the nicely folded side is closed. Cut off the bottom and hole punched side. Turn it over so that you are looking at the back of the mouse pad. trim and fold protective sheet as needed so that it is snug around the cardboard. Use your tape. The back isn’t pretty but it gets the job done.
6. Flip over and enjoy your new mouse pad. You may want to get a few tiny rubber stickers to place on the back so that it doesn’t slide around while using the mouse.

If you use this tutorial, would you please show me? I’d love to see what pictures you use!

 

Agape,

 

Introducing my (faux) Filo

I am not a very organized person. I struggle with staying on a schedule. I’m great at writing one out …but follow through…horrible! This year I have made a choice to be more intentional with my days. I’m hoping that this day planner will help me.

I am currently using a DayRunnner that I purchased at Staples. I really wanted a Filofax but I just couldn’t bring myself to spend that much on something that isn’t habit for me yet. Maybe down the road after I use it for a while first.

Here she is…funny thing is, i actually call it my FauxFilo when I’m referring to looking at it IRL.

When I open it up I have my color coding pens, some sticky notes, note paper and pictures of my children. ❤

The DayRunner came with a calendar system, but I didn’t really like the colors.

I’m using the 2013 Planner by Crystal Wilkerson

First section is my calendar (3 months worth). I have monthly calendars that fold out. Weekly 2=page calendar and a calendar specifically for homework.

I keep the rest of the months in the back of my planner.

I use these pretty stickers to reward myself for doing everything I planned that day.

Next up is my Cleaning section (the planner I used had other sections, but I needed names that made sense to me, so I made my own tabs.) I made a Daily Routine, Daily cleaning, and weekly cleaning checklists. These fold out…the daily checklists have 4 weeks, the weekly checklist has 13 weeks.

The Daily Deep Clean was taken from the 2013 Planner, I just retyped it and added it to my checklist I made.

Next section is Health. To the left I have my goal weights (not shown…) and on the right I have my workout schedule. That sheet covering my goal weights is a sheet of stickers for rewards.

This is my journal section. I love these 30-day challenge pages! My first goal is to do two full loads of laundry to try to keep on top of the laundry.

This is my God section. I keep the current month and next month’s copies of In Touch magazine.

So, there it is. So far it seems to be working for me! I’m praying that this will be an instrumental tool in re-training myself to be an intentional person!

Some other sections that aren’t shown (because they aren’t developed yet) are Design and Celebrate. The design will be Pinterest printouts that I plan on putting into motion. Celebrate has a protective envelope with greeting cards; also, a list of birthdays.

Do you have a planner? How long have you used a planner? I’d love to see it!

Agape,

 

Welcome to Blossoming Vine

es un almendro floreciendo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I have made several blogs in hopes that something would keep my interest..I have a housekeeping blog (who am I kidding, I’m a horrible housekeeper!), a blog about my adopted and reunited experience, and a book review website. They were so random and very neglected. I wasn’t blogging, for fear of persecution, about the one thing I want to blog about: Faith. I didn’t have what it takes to proclaim to the world that I am a Christian.

^“It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, proclaiming your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night” Psalm 92:1-2

I am in no way perfect at being a Christian woman. I strive everyday to be a woman of God and most days, it just doesn’t happen. I struggle like many women out there who want to live a Christ filled life. This blog will be my journey to Christian womanhood and hopefully I can use it as a place of encouragement to other women who are struggling to be a woman of faith.

So, with this blog you can expect me to be imperfect and God’s word to be perfect. You can also expect ramblings of faith, family and being a wife and mother.