Heat waves // 5 tips to stay hydrate

It was 31 degree C in the late morning. I was not feeling so good lately. I am having a sore throat and a mild headache. The hot temperature really causing me and my skin to dry up easily. I thought I have drink a lot of water daily but somehow I don't think it's enough because my lip is starting to crack and a pimple seem to show up.

(this is me trying to stay positive during heat waves...)

Now is more important than ever to keep your body hydrate. Staying healthy is the key to beat this.  

HERE ARE MY TIPS FOR STAYING HYDRATE THROUGH OUT THE DAY 

1. Bring a bottle of water with you all the time.
 This will help you to drink more. The moment you feel thirsty it means your body is dehydrate. Try drinking before you feel thirsty. Dry skin, dry lips and headache are also a sign of dehydration.

2. Stay in door most of the time. If possible exercise at home. Being sweaty, with fully clothes outsides is definitely not good.

3. If possible consume food with lost of water like soup and fruits.

4. Set a reminder in your phone or down water intake app on your phone to remind you to drink water. That way you have at least a visual reminder of how many water you take in a day.

5. Avoid consume beverage or food that can cause dehydration like coffee, soft drink, pop corn. Every cup of coffee you consume you have to drink two glass of water to balance out.

I hope that this little tips can help during this heat wave.

Getting things done // the review

If you only read one book this year, this will be the book to read, to live by and to digest. Getting things done by David Allen is the book for living a stress free life. I can't stress enough how important it is to learn the skills and the art of getting things done especially now where the speed of information created and travel are so damn fast!!!

What the book is all about?

"Since it was first published almost fifteen years ago, David Allen’s Getting Things Done has become one of the most influential business books of its era, and the ultimate book on personal organization. “GTD” is now shorthand for an entire way of approaching professional and personal tasks, and has spawned an entire culture of websites, organizational tools, seminars, and offshoots.
 
Allen has rewritten the book from start to finish, tweaking his classic text with important perspectives on the new workplace, and adding material that will make the book fresh and relevant for years to come. This new edition of Getting Things Done will be welcomed not only by its hundreds of thousands of existing fans but also by a whole new generation eager to adopt its proven principles. " excerpt from amazon.com

What do I think?

• every time I read the book I learned something new
• the best book ever about organising and getting things done in a system that can be customise to suits your lifestyle
• One thing that I learn from this book is "YOUR MIND IS NOT FOR STORAGE, YOUR MIND IS FOR THINKING AND CREATE IDEAS"
• listening to the audiobook is also great since David Allen himself narrate his own book. His voice is so pleasant to listen to and I was inspired to try and perfect the system.
• I might listen to this audiobook every month so that I will get ideas and inspired to be better at home and at work
• if you love planner and making lists you are going to love this book

I highly highly highly recommend this book for everybody. It's a must have book for everyone after Quran and Hadith. 

#thursday3 [28.01.2016]

I think I missed last week #thursday3. No problem, I am not going to sweat about it. It's a project about me and I can miss a week or two if I want to. Life is pretty hectic lately and it is very important that I hit that pause button and take stock.  

HERE ARE MY PHOTO AND FACTS FOR THE WEEK 
1. I am listening to the Magpies audiobook by Mark Edwards. Loving it so far.

2. I am enjoying digital planner and paper planner at the same time. How am I suppose to choose? I love them both equally.

3. Life at work may not be boring but working with limited budget has it's challenges especially when we are not provided with food during meetings. In a way it's good for my health, no unapproved diet.
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Think about it this way…If you take one picture and write down three facts each week — at the end of the year you’ll have more than 50 photos of yourself and 150 facts about what life has been like. It would make such an epic All About Me book — and most of the work is already done." - rukristin.com
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One fine day

This week layouts are so much fun. I realised that I took less photo this year when did not participate in Project 365. In a way it's a good thing. It pushes me to be selective with what I want to capture and what I want to scrap about. I am becoming more aware of other things other than photos and selfies like images from my daily life like things I ate, typography that I love, posters I am amaze by, movie I watch, things on my phone, audio book I'm listening to, books I read and many more.

I have a feeling that this year is going to be a great year.

"SHE DESIGNS THE LIFE SHE LOVES" -- I really love this quote!

HERE ARE MY SCRAPBOOK LAYOUTS FOR THIS WEEK  

Project Life App


Project Life App + Pic Collage App


Project Life App + Phonto


Pic Collage


Project Life and Phonto

"Be Creative, Show up and Focus on what's important"


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How I use Erin Condren Life Planner 2016/2017

Last year I bought Erin Condren Life Planner 2016/2017 just because I want to experience what's it's like to use a planner that is so popular. I like coil bound notebook but I am not sure about coil bound planner. I have used a planner like this before. It took me two months longer to oder one. 

I do love the color, the design and the changeable cover. I just don't know how to use this planner to it's fullest potential. It's a bit bigger for me to carry around and it doesn't have enough room for me to ramble and doodle.

So this year I am going to challenge myself to use this planner. On the first page I add my 16 Goals for 2016. I finally have my own laminator machine and I can laminate things for my planner. 

I love how people have been using this planner for memory keeping and for home management system. I am going to setup this planner around that theme - memory keeping and fitness related.


I still don't know what I will use this section for.


At first I try to use the monthly calendar for Blog Editorial planner, then as listersgottalist challenge but somehow around November and December I just can't commit and decide what to do with it. I need more.
















In January I setup my one month calendar to host my workout schedule for January using Insanity Max 30 program. I also used this to track my Max Out time. So far I have manage to keep it up and look at the schedule daily.

I am hoping to continue using this for February 2016. As for the weekly layout I focus more on things to do at home and what I think is important outside of work. And I add a lot of photos.

For week 04 I add stickers related to health and fitness. I also made page marker with List of things notepad. I love that I can write my todos with Sharpie marker and I can erase it with soap and water.

I like the idea of writing the highlights of the month at the end of the month. I am using the space provided at the end of month for this. 

I am still searching and looking at some ideas on what to do with the notes area at the end of this planner. 

So far I am happy with how pretty the planner is and how I want to look at it every day.

Get $10 off your first purchased at Erin Condren with this link.

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5 Ways to save money

The current economy here is pretty bad. I am not an expert on Economy and Financial but as a consumer and citizen of this country I do feel the pain. Either you stay at home or step outside the door, you are going to pay the cost - gas, electricity, water, toll, food and many more. 

The saddest part is there's nothing I can do about it. I am not going to bad mouth anybody because I don't really know what happened like what happened it GST collections, what happened to Zakat Money collected, what happened to all the taxes that we paid and many more. Let the expert do their thing and solve the crisis.

(photo from PenGems)

As a woman and a mom there are ways that I can do to save money or cut cost from daily routine.

1. Reduce personal grooming from twice a month to once a month
I used to spend money on personal grooming like facial, full body massage and slimming treatment monthly. I think it's a good idea to stop going to those spa and only go at least once a month or twice a month. Some how I just can't justify the spending.

2. Eat less
Now is a good time to eat less. This is definitely a great idea especially when there's no food during meeting, workshop or training. Fasting on a weekly basis is so much effective. You will definitely reduce the cost of eating during the day.

3. Get healthy
Taking control of your health is super important now. When you are healthy you will reduce your trip to a clinic or hospital. Cost of curing a diseases is so much expensive compare to preventive maintenance. No more stressing out about office politics, not sleeping well due to unnecessary stuffs and not working out due to overtime at work. I can put all those things in my lists and not worry about it when I am at home.

4. Rotate clothing
Given that most of the stuffs here is at least 6% higher than before, you are going to save a lot of money from not buying too many clothing. Maintaining an outfit on a regular basis cost a lot. The less you have the less money you will spend on cleaning, ironing and storage. Amazingly enough I did not buy any clothes this year.

5. Entertain only one obsession at a time

I have many things and projects that I am obsess with at one time like planners, project life, art journal, stationary addict, scrapbooking, decorating, photography, apple obsession, shoes, shawl, makeup and many more. All of these obsession cost money and to make matter worst it's in US dollar. I need to cut back with my obsession. Only entertain one obsession at a time. This month is going to be planner, stickers and printable. Nothing else. I am going to focus on one obsession at a time. (Hmm maybe I should revise my goals for this year).

I know I can't just go cold turkey with my spending and lifestyle. Reducing a little bit at a time will be a smarted approach. I need to be prepare with what ever the government decide this coming week. I don't have the power to do anything about it. All I can do is make peace with it, pray and ask for Allah's guidances and help. Allah is the all Mighty, only He can help me and all of us.

MAY ALLAH BLESS US ALL

"STOP BEING AFRAID OF WHAT COULD GO WRONG, AND FOCUS ON WHAT COULD GO RIGHT"

6 things you can do before end of Januay

I know January is coming to an end. If you like me (crazy planner girl) you probably have set up your planner for the rest of 2016. I have a confession to make here, I haven't got a planner peace yet. That means I have not yet decide on my planner for the year and how many planner I am going to use this year. Last week I have set a goal for myself to use only three planner this year but my challenge is to choose which three. I have lots of planners and I love them all.

I guess it's not too late to setup planner, buy a planner and even set goals for the rest of the year.  There's still a few days left before end of January and there's a lot you can do in terms of setting your goals and take actionable things to be happy

#1. Watch Youtube channel that inspire you.

2016 Planner Setup - Personal Color Crush (filofax)

Kikki K Overview & Plan With Me

5 Life Hacks How to Have the Best Year

And many more....

I always get amazing ideas after watching youtube channel related to planners and goal setting. I like seeing how others do things and how they make every thing works for them. 

#2. Read Getting Things Done by David Allen.

If you only read one book this year, get this book. It will definitely change your life forever and really help you with planning and organising your life

#3. Try using iPlanner this year

I have been obsess with iPlanner since it was introduced last year. I love iPad and I love writing on my iPad. Going digital has been my dream for a really long time. Check out this video tutorial for how to. It's so simple and works like paper planner. I love love it. Sometimes I can just get lost in time just decorating this planner.

#4. Write your goals

There's nothing like seeing your intention and goals in front of you in your own handwriting or own word. I recommend that you type your goals, print them out and laminate them. It's the list that you are going to see every single day of the year. I am enjoying looking at my lists so far. It look so pretty in my planner.

#5. Join One Little Word workshop

I love Ali Edward workshop. Her class is usually more about finding yourself and documenting them in the process. I am joining her one year long workshop this year called One Little Word. It's not too late to choose your word this month. I know that she sell a few products related to this workshop but it's optional. You can use what ever you want. The best part about this class is it helps me stay connected with my word monthly. Her assignment has help me to learn more about myself, learn and evolve as a human being.

#6. Make an inspirational board
I am using Evernote as a place where I collect all my inspiration. Pinterest board is also a good place to setup and collect inspiration. I found out that inspiration board is a great visual reminder for me. I like to stay focus this year and this technique is really good for me to keep what I want to achieve visually where I can access any time and any where.

I hope that these six suggestion will help you in terms of setting up your planner and goals for 2016. Just remember that you can always hit the reset button. 

Because she loves me // the review

Ever since I read Follow You Home by Mark Edwards, I have been obsessed with his style of writing. I started reading this book late last year and finally finished in the first week of January. The reason it took me longer to finish this book is because there were so many things happening in December that effect my reading time.

What the book is all about?

"A gripping tale of jealousy, obsession and murder, from the No.1 Bestselling author of The Magpies.

When Andrew Sumner meets beautiful, edgy Charlie, he is certain his run of bad luck has finally come to an end.

But as the two of them embark on an intense affair, Andrew wonders if his grasp on reality is slipping. Items go missing in his apartment. Somebody appears to be following him. And as misfortune and tragedy strike his friends and loved ones, Andrew is forced to confront the frightening truth...

Is Charlie really the girl of his dreams – or the woman of his nightmares?…" excerpt from amazon.com

What do I think?
- This book definitely surprised me. I did not expect it at all. I really like a book that can surprised me like that.
- the story about a boy meet a girl, fall in love and not so happily ever after from there on
- the total madness and the jealously in this book is totally understandable. It shows how lies and betrayal can destroy a relationship. 
- I would have like to hate Charlie but somehow I can understand her point of view. I am not sure if I like Andrew but I can sympathise him. He had a hard childhood.
- I am so ready to read Magpie now. Mark Edwards really makes me crave for more!!!!!

I highly recommend this book if you like psychological thriller and your heart can take it.

I recommend that you buy the kindle version and you get the audio book at a cheaper price.


Currently reading Magpie by Mark Edwards

One little word // January: FOCUS

Making your word visible is the first assignment for January. There's something about making things visible that makes your mind know how important that thing is. 



This year I choose this A5 notebook as a host for my One Little Word Journey for 2015. I love the freedom these blank page bring to the whole process uncovering what FOCUS mean to me this year.


I am keeping things simple and low on decoration and design. The main objective is to let my word shine.

Picking out the reason why you choose the word is really important so that you will keep coming back to it.

I didn't choose any four or five prompts, I choose all of them. I feel like I need to sit down and really dig deep especially why FOCUS speak to me or why I want to invite FOCUS into my life this year.


Show up will the theme for this year. What it means to show up for your word? Be involved with FOCUS and make FOCUS part of my life this year would be one of a way for me to SHOW UP for my word.










I am so looking forward to invite FOCUS into my life this year. Ali Edward is really inspiring and an amazing teacher. I learn a lot from her class.

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Pushing the limit

Ever since I decided to take a break from doing Project 365 this year, life has been a little bit calmer and I am not so worry about missing out a day without taking any photos. That leave me with the challenge of what to scrap about daily or weakly without that the mind set of week by week layouts.

I have to dig deeper and look at Project life system as more than Project 365. I am loving the freedom of making a scrapbook layout with Project Life App without the mentality of  Project 365. I want to push my creativity to a different level by making scrapbook layouts outside of my comfort zone. 

HERE ARE MY SCRAPBOOK LAYOUTS FOR THIS WEEK  

I am trying different ways to make a scrapbook layout using Project Life approach. I am loving the creative process so far. I can make more than one layout a day if I fel like it.


I wish Project Life app can do more but in the mean time I am using other app on my phone to make a little tweak. Adding extra photos, text and element to the layout with Phonto app. Tweak and add filters using Pic tap go app.


Since printing directly from the app is limited to US resident only, I transferred all my layouts to Dropbox and print from my computer to Photobook Malaysia.

"Be Creative, Show up and Focus on what's important"

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Introducing Paperdorable // review

This is a small size planner made by Malaysian. It's from Paperdorable.com. The planner comes in two color - Flamingo Pink and Denim Blue. I love both colors. I choose Denim Blue just because I have already too many pink on my desk and I love the interior lavender color.

I promise myself that I am going to keep my planner to three this year but before January ends I already broke that promise. I just got to have this planner even though I know that I am not going to use this as my main planner. I am thinking of using this as my exercise journal/ planner. If that doesn't workout I can always hand it to my daughter. She loves small /personal size planner.

I love paperdorable service. They process my order in less than a day and in two days I received this cute planner from Pos laju. I like the material, it feels soft and light in my hand. It's a little bit bigger than Color Crush Planner personal size. I think I like this better than Color Crush Planner.

I love the interior design and color. I have always have a soft spot for lavender color. The planner comes with 2016 inserts with beautiful inspiration divider.

I also love the gold ring binder. It makes the page pop out!



The paper is a bit thick than Kikki K insert and it's still bleed through if you are using gel pen or sharpie. Ball point pen should be ok.





The pen loop is bigger and elastic enough to fit bigger pen.

I like that this planner comes with plastic protector at the back (the one that prevent the page from curling). 
It's thick enough if you want to add more things in it.

I can't wait for them to make A5 size planner. I will definitley give it a try when they do make one.

Price: RM179
They do ship worldwide

Size: 
Planner Size: 150mm (W) x 190mm (H) x 36mm (D) 
Insert Size: 171mm x 95mm 
Divider Size: 171mm X 105mm 

Features: 
Today’s ruler 
6 Planner Dividers 
2016-2017 Calendar 
2016 Planner (include both month-on-2-pages and week-on-2-pages)
 Contacts section 
To Do list section 
Notes section 

They also sell pens and other stationary 

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