I’ve been spending wasting some time on Pinterest lately, but I think it is a good time-waster, if there is such a thing.
What have I been pinning?
journals, journals, and more journals!
All this pinning, well, it has me excited about journaling and bullet journaling. And I found this great blog called Little Coffee Fox. If you want some great examples of bullet journals you need to check out this blog.
Everywhere I go I seem to be running into journals…
at T.J. MAXX
at Target
at Home Goods
on Amazon
on Instagram
here, there, everywhere!
And, I want to buy them all! But, I have my own journals here at home and I told myself that I would not purchase another one until I filled up at least one journal. So, I broke out my Erin Condren journal and got writing.
*erin condren journal*
I’ve been writing my “morning pages” while the house is quiet and the fur kids are frolicking around their room. I’ve also seen other SOL bloggers write about morning pages (shout-out to Molly & Michelle) so they have served as an inspiration.
morning pages
Then, I dabbled in creating my gratitude page. I figured I would start with the month of August and jot down a gratitude a day.
Simple.Easy.Fun.Worthwhile!
gratitude pages
My goal – fill up my Erin Condren journal by the end of the 2016. And, consequently, I did the math by counting up how many blank pages I have left in the journal and how many days are left in 2016. My goal is quite attainable I’m happy to report!
But wait, there’s more!
I can’t help but to show you the other journals that I have been keeping for some time now. They are what the teacher in me would call a “scaffold journal”. They already have templates in them and I just need to provide the words without worrying about structure.
Here’s my Believe Training Journal. I *heart* it. This is my second one and it works really well for tracking my training runs, races, and cross-training. It’s motivational and it just so happens to be in my favorite color!
Then there’s my One Line A Day Journal and my Reading Journal. I love the One Line A Day Journal because it is a diary of sorts for five years. I love looking back at what I was doing on the same day several years ago. It’s a five year journal and I’m already on year three! The Reading Journal allows me to write down books I’ve read and what the book is about. Both are fun and simple!
Got journals?
Yeah, I got ‘um!
How about you?
~~~~~
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Runner, Reader, & Rockin' Mom 
I, too, love journals. I have a special one just for trip. It’s leather bond with a magnetic flap and a pocket for treasures in the back. My husband bought it before our trip to Europe a few years back. Most recently it recorded adventures diving in the Cayman Islands. Now that school is opening, I’ll be using my “Writer’s Notebook” to record writing to share with my students. Happy writing!
I try to keep a special journal for trips but sometimes I get so wrapped up in vacation that I forget to write! Yikes!
I feel that my blog is a journal of sorts and then I also jot down things on my planner. My husband, Dom, is a runner like you and has kept a running journal for years. His running journal has morphed into a regular journal of thoughts and experiences as well as the running.
I absolutely agree with you, Bernadette. My blog is a journal of sorts too. I love my running journal and I love to look back through it too.
Wow, Amy, you have a lot of journals! I’m impressed. I love the idea of a line a day journal and I’m really intrigued by your Gratitude a Day pages. Do you just include those pages in the midst of your regular journal? By the way I was just at Staples and TJ Max yesterday because my journal is almost full (yay for morning pages!) and I had such a tough time picking one out! My two requirements are lines and spiral bound so I can have one page facing up. My goal is to continue writing morning pages once school starts, but I like how you made yours more specific. I’ll have to do some page counting and math later!
Thanks for inspiring me with the morning pages! Yes, sometimes my entries do overlap and I have a feeling that some of them will serve as a spring board for some future blog posts. I am wondering about my writing once school starts but I’ve been timing my morning pages like you mentioned in your post and it basically takes about 10 minutes. And if it doesn’t happen everyday, that’s okay too!
I got 1, only 1 in my purse at all times. I like how you have a few and explained the purpose of each. That 5-year one is a cool idea. I may do some shopping today! Thanks for the inspiration!
I like the idea of keeping a small journal close by. I find that I use my Evernote app on phone. Glad you stopped for a visit, Sally!
Oh my gosh! Do I have journals? My husband of nearly 50 years gives me a wide berth but he doesn’t understand why anyone would “need” so many “diaries” (that’s what he calls them).
It’s not about the need!
I enjoyed your post. i have several reading journals that are fulll, but my writing journals all have empty pages.
I’ve given the one line a day journal to several people. Maybe I should give one to myself as a scaffold journal. I long to keep a journal, but struggle to do so.
Yes, you need to get one for yourself. It’s a fun and fulfilling little journal.
Oh this post warms my heart!!! YAY!!! I love the Erin Condren notebooks…I can’t use them though, because I must have blank pages. Sigh… I can feel your enthusiasm in this post!
Thanks, Michelle! You inspire me to keep.on.going! And, I probably won’t get another E.C. journal. They are wayyyyy to pricey!
Journaling seems as an easy thing to do. Just sit down and write. In reality it is not that easy. I admire that you have committed yourself and have been able to create a habit of writing.
You’re right about that! It’s kind of like shavasana in yoga. It seems simple but it is a challenge.
What a great goal. The fact that it is attainable gives the incentive to reach that goal. Good luck and keep writing.
Thanks for your support, Bob!
Thank you so much for the shout out! I love your One Line a Day journal! I love being able to look back on the mundane things of days past to see what was important to me back then. It’s such a neat little blast from the past!
You are welcome! I love your site and I’m excited to try some of the ideas you shared. I’m also anxious to read more posts.
Likewise! Keep on doing what you’ve been doing, it’s awesome!
Love this post and the pics of your journals. I can’t wait to come back and check out the links. My kids introduced me to bullet journaling, but I’m still not convinced. I’ll have to check out the blog you shared. Your post has me excited about writing and that’s what’s important. Time to pull out one of my many journals!
I hear you, Ramona. I am going to take bits and pieces of the bullet journal. Several of the bullet journal ideas I see I actually have an app for on my phone. Oh well! Happy writing!
So funny – I wrote about journals and diaries today as well. I have not been able to keep this habit going and am working on a sentence a day now to help create a daily writing habit. I love all your journals. Sounds like great fun. (I do have a notebook with books that I have read but never thought of it as a journal.) Thanks for the great post. I can feel your energy around journaling in the way your wrote this.
Thanks, Joanne! I’m glad you stopped by for a visit.
SO great! And thanks for sharing photos of your journals. They are incredibly tempting when you see them in stores aren’t they? I love how you are using yours an am just now going to click on the link and learn about bullet journals.
Have you seen Amy Ludwig VanDerwater’s site on Sharing our Notebooks? http://www.sharingournotebooks.amylv.com/
I envy your commitment to your notebook. I’m on again/ off again with mine. Thanks for sharing.
Yes, I love her site! Thanks for sharing. Others may want to check it out.
I have that same one-line-a-day journal! I am coming up to my one year mark on September 1st. It is so much fun to go back and reread what I wrote. This morning, I found my 17 year old daughter looking through it and giggling. She told me I wrote some pretty funny things, then added that most of them were about her brother and that she wanted to know why I didn’t write more about her. I have also been using a bullet journal lately and L.O.V.E. it. Keep writing, Amy!!
Love the idea of one line a day – will have to check it out.. My journals are more art journals, but I do keep ones for writing morning pages as I need them. Lovely post.
Thanks, Beverley! The idea of an art journal sounds fun. I would love to see a post about them. Glad you stopped by for a visit. Happy writing and drawing!
Yes. Morning Pages, I love this idea. As a runner, you know that this tends to open up the idea chamber, and I need to allow myself to write. Thanks for this post, it is very inspirational!