You’ve seen it in cartoons a million times. Suddenly a light bulb goes off over the head of your favorite character, and a crisis is avoided or a brilliant plan is hatched. That is kind of what happened to me when I came upon these two books. (Feel free to insert that imaginary lightbulb here!)
As the mom of two kiddos who are differently abled and who require constant care, too often I feel like I’m chasing life … and not gaining much ground. Can you relate? Always looking for a solution, I found a simple answer that has actually worked for me. Perhaps it might work for you too.
First is the One Line A Day Memory Book. I mean. Hello, brilliant creator of this genius book, you totally had me at one line a day. I can accomplish that. And that’s exactly what it feels like. An accomplishment. Here’s the gist. Each day, you write whatever you want to record to commemorate the day. For me, it’s about writing a take away for the day. Two days ago, for instance, I awoke to find that my son (Charlie) had awakened during the night, had opened a cabinet, and had torn two rolls of toilet paper into tiny shreds all over my great room and kitchen. Thousands of little pieces. Some he had licked and stuck to the wall. Others were buried deep into the rug. I even slipped on a few when I stepped out of my bedroom into the kitchen and might’ve let a cuss word slip along with my feet. haha. It looked like snow. No joke.
Of course I wanted to walk out the door and pretend it didn’t happen. To pull a Scarlett O’Hara: “Fiddle Dee Dee…I’ll just think about that tomorrow.” But I’m not Miss Scarlett, so I swept, vacuumed, and crawled around on my hands and knees to pick up the rest. That’s real life. My life. On that day, I wrote that Charlie made it snow. Four words sealed a memory I’ll carry for a lifetime. It’s still not a sweet memory to me right now (grrrrr), but one day it will be. THAT is what this book is to me. I don’t have the time or energy to keep a journal, but ask for one line a day, and I’ll jot something down.
Buy it here!
Second is the Panda Planner. Created by an entrepreneur who was struggling after lyme disease, a traumatic brain injury, and cancer, it’s proving to be everything it’s touted to be. Yes, it’s a planner in every sense of the word. There is space to prioritize your to-do list, to write in appointments, and to make necessary notes. But it is so much more than that. The Panda Planner also encourages you to begin each day by listing things you are grateful for and excited about while allowing space for you to end the day by noting your wins. In all ways, it is positive, positive, positive. Choosing to give thanks is vital to our health and well-being and this planner is all about infusing it into everyday life. As if that’s not enough, there’s also an end of week review that helps you recall your successes, consider how you can improve for the next week ahead, and prepare for how you can make your week great (Yes, GREAT!) with work, family/friends, and other relationships. It’s not just a planner, it’s a life changer.
Buy the Panda Planner here!
So there you have it. If you’ve tried either of these, please comment below and let me know your thoughts. If not, maybe you’re ready to try something new like I did. It has reduced my stress level and helped me to feel a lot more organized with life in general. Now I can say: “Let it snow, Charlie. Let it snow!!!” Well, not hardly, but you get the general drift (no pun intended).
I always get questions about where I buy my clothes. This comfy outfit is a true hodgepodge. The button-down is by Sonoma (Kohl’s), the tank is from Target, and the shorts are from American Eagle. I’m all about hodgepodge on most days by the way, aren’t you?
Just my thoughts.
~Melanie
Brick Marshmallows 