project life 2011: update...

It's been about a month since the much coveted white box arrived on my doorstep.  Opening each piece and going through the contents was fun but, also a bit disconcerting. How would I keep up this year since it was already February and I was already, technically behind? 

Simple.  I decided NOT to be behind - it's all in the definition and perspective. Project Life can be anything you want it or need it to be. This year's album won't start on January 1st.  Instead, it starts on Monday, February 14th.  I have the best records of this year beginning on that date.  Works for me.

What about the first month and a half of the year?  Those photos and stories will be scrapbooked. I have over a dozen page ideas sketched out and journaling jotted down in a notebook, complete with dates, titles and descriptions of the photos to use, ready to go when I make the time to sit and create. 

How I am approaching this year is different as well.  Last year, I attempted to do a photo a day and then label each photo during editing with the day of the week and date.  Exhausting, time consuming and not realistic for being a first time mom.  I have January through May finished in that format and the rest, well, I'll figure it out.  This year I have a plan:

1) Journal everyday: I picked up a 4x6 weekly pocket planner in the clearance section at Target for $1.  It's small, light and travels with me wherever I go - switched from diaper bag to work bag to purse depending on what my day looks like.  I jot a few things about each day in the calendar.  Sometimes it's just the mundane schedule, other times it includes an anecdote. The important thing is that I am writing down little memory cues for myself so that, later, I sit down and expand on the information on the PL journaling cards. Relying on my memory alone is a set-up for failure a la Mommy Brain.  This works better.

2) A Project Life On-the-Go Kit: I travel all over New York City for work and often have down time during lunch breaks or as I am waiting for students to arrive for a training.  Times when I am not at my home office or sitting at my desk, without access to a computer, and where I can take a few minutes to journal.  I had been holding on to a mini metal 'lunchbox' that once housed Maya Road chipboard pieces.  It ended up being the perfect size to hold: 

• pen (I use a Sharpie pen...love them)
• black permanent ink pad (rubber band secures the lid for travel)
• PL date stamp
• box of asst'd jouranling cards (half with the plain grid, half of the patterned variety)
• day of the week stickers
• a few post-it notes for practice stamping or removing excess ink from the stamp

Using this kit and my mini calendar, I can easily catch up on journaling cards wherever I go.

3) Photos: I'm taking photos constantly but, printing them is another matter. Primarily, I use Shutterfly and order my prints on matte paper.  I've been very happy with their quality, turnaround and customer service (they are not giving me any incentive to say so - I just like the company). Although it generally takes about a week to receive prints in the mail with the standard shipping, the quality is far better than any of our local one-hour places.  I print only when I have a coupon code, free print offer and (now that I have over 3,000 points saved) plan to redeem my Pampers Gifts to Grow points for free printing packages. I am now uploading my photos into weekly albums in my Shutterfly account so that I can easily select out just the dates I need for Project Life.

-----> Are you doing PL 2011?  How it is going and what is working for you?