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Take a Sip in a Brighter Direction with Green Juice

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Evolution Fresh® for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

Take a Sip in a Brighter Direction with Green Juice. Today, we are sharing some of the ways we plan to take action and get healthier in the new year by focusing on healthy greens.

I just love the start of a new year because it’s a fresh start for a new beginning. You can start from zero and create your goals and achievements you would like to accomplish in the year to come. This year I am striving to love my body and to treat it well.

Some of the ways I plan to carry out this goal is by eating healthier by cutting down the process foods and eating more all-natural food. Evolution Fresh green juices is perfect to implement into my diet because these green juices contains over a serving of veggies in each bottle.

They are great for on-the-go and to re-hydrate the body. Evolution Fresh is a super-premium juice that is cold pressed to help protect nutrients and taste.

Another simple choice I am making this year is to move more. I do admit that I sit most of the day. One way I plan to move more is by taking 10,000 steps in a day. You don’t have to go to the gym to exercise to be active. I enjoy shopping or just browsing in stores because it gives me time to myself and I often go to the craft and home decor stores for inspiration. Just by walking around stores and making a conscious effort to park far from the door helps get those steps in.

Once I drop my daughter off at school, I plan to get moving and walking. Since I plan to get on the move more, Evolution Fresh is a great on-the-go option because I can grab a bottle from the refrigerate to take with me. When I eat healthier and be more active my body can definitely tell a difference. I have more energy and just feel over all better.

In the afternoons I sit down and spend time on the computer checking emails and doing blog things like social media shares, writing articles, taking photographs of recipes and projects and so much more. I usually hit a wall and get super tired. I love the Protein Power Greens for a burst of energy and the whey protein helps to satisfy my sweet cravings. These green juices tastes so fresh and delicious. They are available near you at your local grocery or Starbucks.

Just by making simple changes like eating healthier and moving more can really effect your overall health. You don’t have to jump out of the gate running. You will probably get burnt out and crash and burn fast. Start small like with a bottle of Evolution Fresh green juice. The juices come in a variety of fruit and veggie blends. The flavors are great and so refreshing. What are some simple ways you plan to take a Sip in a brighter direction? Learn more about these delicious juices here.

Starting a Photography Blog: 5 Simple Steps

Friday, January 6, 2017

After having my first child, I began dabbling in photography and quickly discovered the joy of capturing our daughter’s milestones and making magic out of everyday moments. At the same time, in between afternoon naps and midnight feedings, I longed for a way to connect with others outside of my own home, my own small life.

I started a blog, Simple As That, as a way of building friendships with other mothers who also wanted to capture their children’s lives in an authentic and beautiful way. We shared images and bounced ideas back and forth—and of course gushed over how darling our little ones were.

Fast forward more than ten years, and Simple As That has grown a lot from its humble beginnings. At the essence of what I share here is a desire to live simpler, from how we fill our calendars to how we feed our families to how we capture our lives. Even as thousands of women have visited each month for photo tips and inspiration, I’ve never forgotten where I started: as a new mom with a desire to build connections and take meaningful photos of my young family.

If you’ve ever considered starting a photography blog—whether to connect with other women, to motivate you to hone your skills, or to launch a professional business—I think the 5 steps I’m sharing today will give you a solid foundation for building a beautiful photography site.

Starting a Photography Blog: 5 Simple Steps

Determine WHY you want to start a photography blog
Set up your website
Build your online home
Use social media to promote your site
Building an audience

Read on for more details about each step!

Step 1. Determine WHY You Want to Start a Photography Blog

If you’re a mom like me looking to share photos with family and friends…

If you’re a hobbyist hoping to chronicle your photography journey…

If you’re a photographer looking to showcase your work and grow your business, as well as interact with other photographers and learn from experienced professionals…

If you’ve just started a 365 or other type of photography project and want a place to showcase your images…

If you’re traveling and want to share your adventures via photos…

If you’d like to showcase your work and give prospective clients info they would need to hire you…

This blog post is for you.

Knowing why you started a blog in the first place and what you hope to get out of it is key to staying grounded and finding joy and satisfaction throughout the journey.

Step 2. Set Up Your Website

Choose a Blogging Platform

There are many free blog hosting platforms out there (ie. blogger, tumblr, etc.), but what I recommend is a self-hosted platform that allows you to run a blog on your own domain. The most popular self-hosted blogging platform is Wordpress.org. This is what I use.

Choose a Domain Name

First things first, when it comes to establishing your online photography space, you’ll need to decide on a domain name.

A domain name is just a fancy phrase for the website address people will use to get to your site, aka your site URL. Choosing your domain name requires some thought and consideration—it will be your identity on the world wide web, after all.

Consider this when choosing a domain name:

Keep it short and easy to type. You want people to be able to easily find your site.
Make it memorable. There are millions of registered domain names out there, so having a domain that’s catchy and makes an impression is important.
Be yourself. Infuse some of your personality into your domain name. Make it yours.
Research it. Make sure your name isn’t being used by another company or individual.

Register your domain name

Once you’ve selected a domain name, it’s time to act fast. Those domain names can sell quickly. There are several options when it comes to registering your domain name, but one I recommend is Bluehost, because they offer affordable prices, and you can register your domain name with them as well as host your site through them. (This make is hassle-free to manage and maintain both.) We’ll talk about what a “host” is in just a minute.

Select a Hosting Service

After choosing a domain name, selecting reliable hosting services will be one of the most important decisions you make.

Web hosting is comparable to renting physical business space. The hosting service provides a place for your files to reside online.

There are two hosting services that I highly recommend.

Bluehost
Orange Geek

More about Bluehost

Bluehost is one of the small handful of hosting companies that WordPress recommends, and at a cost of just $3.49/ per month, it’s nearly impossible to beat their level of hosting, customer support, and uptime reliability for the same inexpensive price.

More about Orange Geek

Orange Geek is an all-inclusive hosting company whose mission is to ensure that your hosting experience is simple and carefree by managing every technical aspect of your blog. Whether you’re just starting out or receiving millions of page views, Orange Geek has a solution to fit your needs.

Use promo code simpleasthat to recieve a 10% discount on the initial term.

Step 3. Build Your Online Photography Home

Now that you officially own your domain name and you have WordPress installed, it’s time to start building your online photography home. Much like building a home, you’ll need a plan, a blueprint. When it comes to web design, this is called a theme or template.

Using a theme is an easy way to make your blog look professional and unique, but with all the options available out there, it can be overwhelming to choose one.

3 Tips for Choosing a Theme:

Design. Visitors to your blog will first notice the overall appearance of the site, before even taking a look at the content. Choose a design that is visually appealing.
Keep it simple. Choose usability over fancy design elements. It shouldn’t be complicated for readers to get around your site.
Since this is a photography blog, you really want your photos to shine. Choose a theme that will showcase your images beautifully.

There are free themes out there as well as themes that you pay for. The biggest benefit to using paid themes is the quality and available support. I personally love the paid themes available from StudioPress. These StudioPress themes that would work so well for a photography blog:

Step 4. Use Social Media to Bring People to Your Photography Blog

Once you’ve established your website, it’s time to tell people all about it and invite others to come enjoy your photos!

You’ve poured time and money into establishing your blog and you want to make your investment worth the effort by making sure people see your work and visit your site.

The best way to get the word out about your new blog is through social media. Using Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter to get the word out is key to growing a following.

If you’d like to separate your personal accounts from your blog accounts I recommend starting social media accounts under your site name. Choose your username and get those set up as soon as you can.

Keys to Using Social Media to Drive Traffic to Your Blog:

Consistency. It’s important to establish some sort of routine when it comes to social sharing and posting on your blog. It’s also important to post in your voice or “style.” A consistent look or feel to your images helps people recognize your work as it comes up in their feeds.
Hashtags. Hashtags on Instagram and Twitter are an important tool for getting your work noticed. Using hashtags is an easy way to get more eyes on your post, as it makes it easier for people who don’t follow you to find your content.
Useful, Shareable Content. There are a lot of photography blogs out there. You need to make sure your content stands out and is shareable. Sharing quotes to accompany your images. Sharing images that your readers respond to and enjoy. Find out what your community likes and share more.

When is comes to social sharing, a couple of tools have made things much easier for me.

Tools for Streamlining Your Social Sharing:

Tailwind. A large percentage of my site traffic comes from Pinterest, so I’m very deliberate about maintaining my Pinterest profile. I use Tailwind to schedule pins and keep my blog content cycling seasonally. I’ve tried several Pinterest schedulers and have settled on Tailwind because of the different options available and because it’s easy to use. I feel like using Tailwind has really upped my Pinterest game, and I can’t say enough good things about it!
Hootsuite. I also use Hootsuite as a scheduling tool. You can use it to schedule posts on Twitter, Facebook and even Instagram.
Facebook Scheduler. On my site Facebook page I use the built-in scheduler Facebook provides. It’s a great tool and allows me to schedule a lot of posts ahead of time and step away from social media when I need to knowing fresh content is still going up on my page.

Step 5. The Best Tools to help Grow a Photography Blog Community

So you’ve set up your blog, and you’re sharing your work on social media. Now what?

The benefits of building a supportive online community are innumerable. With effort you can build a supportive and caring community focused around your photography niche.

4 Tips for Building a Thriving Community:

Interact and engage with your audience. When people comment on or like your posts make sure you respond and take the next step to follow them and interact on their account. Keep in mind that there’s a real person behind each profile photo online and these people appreciate your acknowledgment and any helpful information you can provide for them.
Join conversations online with other photographers in your blogging niche. Don’t just focus on getting people to follow you; also focus on following people yourself. Provide support to other bloggers by sharing their content and commenting and interacting with their social media posts. Networking with other bloggers can forge valuable online relationships. There is so much to be learned from each other.
Be relatable. Be real and share snippets of your life with your audience as is appropriate. Ask questions. Initiate conversations.
Use a social media scheduler. Tailwind is a tool I started using last year mainly for Pinterest Scheduling and I’ve been so impressed with the services they offer and the resulting growth I’ve experienced in my Pinterest following. When they introduced their tool for Instagram it only made sense for me to give it a try based on the positive results I’d seen with Pinterest. Read more about the benefits of scheduling your Instagram posts.

I hope you benefited from these early steps to starting a photography blog, and even more, I hope the online space you create becomes as fulfilling for you as Simple As That has been for me over the years. As always, thank you for being here!

My Top 5 Planner Essentials

Monday, January 2, 2017

My Top 5 Planner Essentials – It’s the time of year for fresh starts, new goals and

…cute planners!

I’m using this Mini Happy Planner for 2017. I love all the bright colors, inspirational quotes and its compact size. I like being able to carry my planner with me in my purse and this one fits perfectly.

A goal without a plan is just a wish. –unknown

My Top 5 Planner Essentials

When you’ve finally decided on a planner that is the right fit for you there are a few other essentials that you might want to consider to go with it.

With so many planner products out there, which ones do you really need? I love anything to do with planners, but I like to keep my everyday essentials to a minimum.

Washi Tape

Washi tape is fun for highlighting dates in your planner or making your own page tabs for easy reference to a particular planner page. It’s versatile and comes in so many colorful, coordinating patterns and colors.

Quality Pens

I think one of your most important investments, besides your planner itself, should be a set of quality pens. I have a handful that I rotate through regularly. My current favorites are these colorful Papermate® Inkjoy® Medium Point Gel Pens!

While I love writing in pen I do pencil in a lot of things in my planner just for the ease of being able to erase should my schedule need to be rearranged.

Stickers

Stickers are some of the funnest things to buy for your planner. There are so many cute ones out there. You can buy date stickers, letter stickers, sticky notes, emoji stickers. The list could go on and on.

Stickers are a quick and easy way to add notes in your planner, highlight special dates and pretty things up. If you’re looking for a sticker set to try the Happy Planner value packs are a great place to start because they come in a variety of themes and you get so many stickers for the price.

Stamps

Another thing on my list of planner essentials are stamps. I love that they’re reusable and are such a great way to personalize your planner with a really polished look.

I have several sets of clear planner stamps. The sets I have fall under travel, appointment, school and work themes. I just love how little they are and who doesn’t love stamping!?

Planner Tote

Now that you’ve started to collect a few supplies for your planner it’s important to keep it organized and accessible. I find that when my planner essentials are all in one place I’m more likely to get them out and use them on a regular basis.

I love my planner tote for this very purpose. I picked up this inexpensive organizer at Michaels and in it I keep everything I need when updating my planner. I can carry it with me around the house wherever I am so I can quickly add things to my planner from anywhere.

Make a fresh start in the new year and plan for a great 2017! Michaels has a huge selection of planners as well as all of the accessories you need to personalize your own.

Whether it’s planning the family schedule, cleaning out your pantry or getting the kiddos ready to head back to school, Michaels has everything you need to help you get organized this year.

Looking for more organization inspiration? Make sure you visit Michaels’ blog, The Glue String, to see the rest of the Michaels Makers’ organization project ideas.

An InLinkz Link-up

Quick and Easy Doll Sling Tutorial

Monday, January 2, 2017

I hope all of you lovely readers had a fantastic Christmas and Happy New Years! This is Jennie again from The Lovely Little Nest with another fun project. If your little girl is anything like mine, she loves dolls, and maybe received one for Christmas! I have a quick and easy doll sling tutorial for all of you. It takes only one piece of fabric and as little as 30 minutes to make.

Supplies:

12″ long piece of muslin as wide as the fabric (at least 45″)

Fabric scissors

Thread to match fabric

Sewing machine

Doll Sling Tutorial:

1. Start with your 12″ x 45″ (or wider) rectangle and fold it twice into quarters. On the open end and side, cut out a shape similar to the picture above, so that it’s less bulky when tying the ends in a knot.

2. When you open your fabric it should now look like the image above. The next step is to do a rolled hem along the two raw edges to prevent fraying. To sew a rolled hem, you fold about 1/4″ of the edge of the fabric over, and then fold it over a second time, so that the raw edge is no longer visible. You can do this as you’re sewing the hem on the machine, but with a few curved edges on this project, I suggest you do it ahead of time and pin in place.

3. Sew a line down your pinned hem to finish the edge.

4. Now all you have to do is tie it in a double knot and it’s ready to play with! I fold it in half lengthways and then tie it in a knot while it’s over one of my toddler’s shoulders (open sides up) to make sure it’s tied small enough to hold her doll in place. The doll can either ride in the sling sitting up or laying down inside like a kangaroo pocket.

And there you have it, a quick and easy Doll Sling tutorial. Now her hands are free to do other things, and she can still carry her little baby around absolutely everywhere.

I hope your little Momma-in-training enjoys this as much as mine.

5 Ways to Prepare This Year for NEXT Christmas

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

5 Ways to Prepare This Year for NEXT Christmas – because an unrushed holiday season with less stress and more calm starts here!

Did you panic just a bit when you saw that the title of this post contained the words “NEXT Christmas”? Yes, my friends—we’re going there.

Believe it or not, an unrushed holiday season NEXT YEAR can begin now. Every year I do several things in preparation. It keeps a few items off my to-do list come next November, and all year long I get to enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that I’m already ahead of the game. 😉

5 Ways to Prep This Year for NEXT Christmas

1. If you do a holiday book countdown, re-wrap the books before you put them away. After Christmas when I’m packing up our decorations (and while the holiday wrapping paper is still handy), I wrap each book before I store them. When I pull them out the next winter, they are ready to go. Even if your family doesn’t do a book countdown, maybe there’s a similar tradition you can prep in advance.

Also worth noting – If you’re still building your holiday book collection now is a great time to purchase 1 or 2 new books for next year. Many of our favorite Christmas books are on sale 20 – 50% off right now.

2. As you’re packing up, sort through your Christmas books and decor, getting rid of items that are looking worse for the wear and donating anything the kids have outgrown. I also like to leave at least one box out for a few days, because there is always that one item I didn’t catch on my initial walkthrough.

3. Check after-Christmas clearance for holiday wrapping paper and possible stocking stuffers or gifts for the following year. (Just make sure you hide them well!)

4. Go through your gift list (I keep one on my phone) and cross off items you purchased that year. Evaluate the gifts your family gave and received, and continue to brainstorm new ideas throughout the coming year.

5. Keep a running holiday card list. After Christmas I print out an updated version to store with our holiday decorations. Inevitably, we get a few cards returned, etc., and I make note of new addresses so I start with a current list next year.

Putting It Into Practice

If you don’t already have an accessible gift list that you can refer to all year, create one now. I suggest either the Notes or Reminders apps, but a back page in your journal or planner could work just as well.

Second, can you think of one tradition you can prep ahead this year when you’re packing up Christmas?

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5 Tips to Make Your Family Travel Dreams Come True

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Have you ever seen a friend’s travel photos on Facebook and thought, “I wish we could afford to travel…”

Have you read someone’s travel bucket list and wondered how in the world they make it happen?

I definitely have.

With my husband in medical school and four children to provide for, we don’t have a lot of disposable income, but over the years, as our family has become more clear about our values and priorities, we’ve found ways to make travel opportunities happen.

If you’re still a skeptic (like I have been in the past!), I challenge you to push back on your own assumptions. You might just find that family travel is more attainable than you thought.

A few years ago we lived on a tiny, Caribbean island named Statia, located in between St. Kitts and St. Maarten. We spent many of our evenings on the beach, watching cruise ships pass by.

At the time, my husband had only just begun medical school, and we knew we had a long road ahead of us. A family cruise wasn’t in the cards for us financially.

But the kids were fascinated, pointing out the people and the pool slides we could barely make out on the decks of those magnificent ships. With our toes in the sand as the sun set beyond the ships, we wondered what their view was like and what other places they would see before heading back to the mainland.

We told the kids that when we finish medical school, we would go on a cruise. It has become a family goal, a dream—the grand prize at the end of this medical school journey that we’re all working toward.

When difficulties bombard us (a dad who’s so busy we don’t see him much, long night shifts, another move, etc.), we remind ourselves of this goal. It’s not necessarily our most fanciful travel dream, but it holds so much meaning to us because of where that dream was born.

Only two more years and it’ll finally be our family floating by on that cruise ship. 😉

Although there is something beautiful about a dream, Randal and I also didn’t want to spend our whole lives talking about the travel we would “someday” do. We decided to re-think our definition of “travel” and our other family priorities so that we could seize some opportunities to experience the world around us—even while right in the middle of these years of education and raising a family.

5 Tips to Make Your Family Travel Dreams Come True

1. Re-think your definition of travel

Does travel really have to be as exotic as a biking tour of Italy or a dip in a volcanic hot spring in Iceland? Or could it be closer to home? Do you have to fly and book hotels, or could you simply pack up your sleeping bags and drive as far as your minivan can reach?

In the last couple of years, we’ve road-tripped to Yosemite and to the Pacific coast, explored Sedona, Arizona, partied it up in Disneyland, hiked in Banff and Waterton national parks, and explored the Icefields Parkway. (Need a few road-trip tips? Check here.)

I think sometimes we pine away for exotic destinations while forgetting that to someone else, our own backyard IS an exotic destination. Discover your corner of the world, as well as what lies beyond.

2. Focus and prioritize

We have made family travel a priority. We try not to buy a lot of “things,” but instead save our money for experiences. For the last two Christmases we opted for 1-2 small presents and put the money we would have spent on gifts toward a family trip.

If you too would like to emphasize experiences over things this year, here’s a list of alternative gifts for the holiday season.

3. Set goals

If you take your travel dreams seriously, they’re so much more likely to happen. Come up with a family travel bucket list and make a plan: How will you save for this trip? When is a good time to go? What can you decide NOT to spend your money on so you can put it toward your travel goals? Get specific, and get the whole family involved in attaining your goal.

4. Think creatively about how you can reduce your expenses

Try renting a recreational vehicle from outdoorsy.co and cruising around for a week.
Use a website like Kayak to search the internet for the best airfare.
Reserve an airbnb or vrbo instead of a hotel room. You’ll likely get a better rate and a more authentic experience.
Rent your home out on airbnb or vrbo while you’re away.
Travel to places where your currency will stretch further.
Accumulate reward points with a credit card, hotel chain, or airline.
See if you can work remotely so you don’t have to use so much vacation time.
Or use your skills in the area you visit, to bring in a little extra income.

5. Seize un-conventional travel opportunities when they come

Consider longer-term opportunities, like working in another country or volunteering for an organization you care about. Our family spent a year in the Caribbean because of my husband’s education. My cousin and her husband recently lived in the Dominican Republic for a year to do volunteer work with their four children. They put their house up for rent, did school via the internet, and had an amazing experience.

Don’t be afraid to do something out of the norm in the name of adventure and seeing the world with your family.

I hope these ideas bring your travel dreams that much closer to reality. We’d love to hear—What has your family done to prioritize travel?

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Lao Tzu

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12 Quotes to Inspire you on Your Photography Journey

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Because life’s little moments are meant to be captured – 12 quotes to inspire you on your photography journey.

Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or someone capturing life’s moments on your phone camera, these 12 quotes will inspire you to capture the little moments and see life with new eyes.

Use these image quotes for inspiration, as gentle reminders, or to invite others to capture the simple moments with you.

Pin your favorites to an inspiration board, share them on Facebook, post them on Instagram, tweet a message to your friends, or just enjoy them on your own.

We hope they help remind you to use your camera to help you see your life more vividly —and to capture meaningful images in the process.

(Click on each image to open in new window and download full-size.)

Moments Matter Photo Challenge

Since my photography journey began some 14 years ago, I have grown so much. I’ve learned about f-stops and the ins and outs of exposure –yes. But one lesson photography has taught me stands out above the rest.

While capturing the simplest things I have learned to appreciate my life as it is *right now,* instead of wishing for better days ahead. I’m so thankful for the way my camera offers me gentle reminders to slow down, and enjoy life’s moments as they happen.

Join us using Hashtag #MomentsMatter2017

I’d love for you join our free, 30-day Moments Matter photo challenge, starting January 1st.

For 30 days, I’ll share a photo prompt, as well as a photo example as an inspiration point in the private Moments that Matter Facebook group. My hope is that each prompt will inspire you to capture an everyday, meaningful moment and that by participating you’ll kickstart a year of purposeful photography in 2017!

I look forward to rubbing shoulders with you as we tag our photos with #MomentsMatter2017 on Instagram and build each other up, as both moms and photographers.

Together let’s hone in on the moments we truly want to hold on to and use our cameras as a tool that helps us see more clearly the things that matter most.

Click here to join the Moments that Matter Facebook Group

“The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.” – John Kabat-Zinn

“A photography is the pause button of life.” – unknown

“A camera is the save button for the mind’s eye.” – Roger Kinston

“Photography is a love affair with life.” – unknown

“A photograph is the pause button of life.” –unknown

“We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.” – Katie Thurmes

“My life isn’t perfect, but it does have perfect moments.” –unknown

“One day all your children will have is pictures of you. Make sure your in them. No matter what your hair looks like, you make up or your body, they won’t care about any of that, they’ll just want to see you. Do it for them.” –Unknown

“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.” – Dr. Seuss

“Don’t look for new landscapes, use new eyes to see what is already there.” – Gerald Causse

“If you don’t think photos are important, wait until they’re all you have left.” – Missy Mwac

“There are always flowers for those who want to see them.” – Henri Matisse

“Photography is the beauty of life captured.” – Tara Chisholm

“Collect moments, not things.” – unknown

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Hand-lettered “Collect moments – not things” printable 2017 calendar

Monday, December 26, 2016

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you are enjoying the holidays.

I’m just stopping by today with a little gift for you. I created a printable 2017 calendar for you to download. I have been very inspired by Rebecca’s posts this year, especially when she has been talking about focusing on the things that matter, like spending time with family and holding on to the memories you create together. She has been using the quote “Collect moments – not things”, which I really like. I thought it would be fun to incorporate that quote, with her permission, into next year’s calendar.

The calendar is hand lettered and hand-drawn. It’s illustrated in pale feminine colors and comes in two sizes, letter and A4.

DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF THE 2017 CALENDAR HERE:
LETTER SIZE
A4 SIZE

Note: This calendar printable is for personal use only.

I think it turned out beautifully and I hope you like it.
Have a safe and happy New Year. I look forward to seeing you in the new year.

Annika

2016 Year in Review Printable For Kids

Saturday, December 24, 2016

2016 Year in Review Printable for Kids – this free printable year in review sheet gives children a chance to reflect on their favorite memories from the past year and look ahead to new goals and adventures in 2017!

Want to download our FREE 2016 Year in Review Kids Printable? Become an exclusive Simple as That member and get instant access! Click here to join for free.

At the close of the year I enjoy thinking back on the experiences that have brought me joy and the ways that I’ve grown through my experiences. I want my kids to see the value in this end of the year reflection and so I put together this simple Year in Review sheet for them.

Kids grow and change so quickly, recording the details that make them unique at whatever age they are is important. This fill in the blank printable is an easy way for them to do that. My kids especially loved that they could illustrate their yearly story with the boxes provided. These are our favorite coloring pencils for creative projects just like this one!

Here’s a short video of one of my girls filling out 2016 Year in Review Printable. We printed them out for everyone and made a family activity of it.

Use this 2016 Year in Review Printable for Kids as a jumping off point for some family discussion. Take the opportunity to talk with your kids about the past year (the ups and the downs) and things they’d like to improve on or change in the coming year. What a great time to pull out some photos and look through them and reminisce together.

We had so much fun with these 2016 Year in Review Printable, I already have plans to make this a yearly tradition. It will be so special to look back on them as the kids grow! What kind of New Year traditions do you have in your family?

Want to download our FREE 2016 Year in Review Kids Printable? Become an exclusive Simple as That member and get instant access! Click here to join for free.

MORE SIMPLE INSPIRATION

Free Printable 2017 Calendar

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Simple Ways to Organize Kids Craft Supplies

Capture the Moments that Matter Most in 2017

Friday, December 23, 2016

The baby’s messy face after dinner.

Your 6-year-old’s first attempt at riding a two-wheeler.

Your teen’s expression when she passes her driving test.

A family selfie on the way out the door to church.

Sandwiched between the tedium of everyday living are a million joyful moments that are so easy to miss if we’re not looking for them.

Renew Your Perspective

Several years ago, knee deep in the diaper stages, I found myself wondering why I wasn’t feeling more fulfilled, more grateful to be caring for the little ones I’d imagined having all my life.

At about the same time, my husband gave me my first dSLR camera, and I began noticing that even the simplest moment could be transformed into a magical image that took my breath away.

I quickly discovered that seeing my normal, sometimes mundane life through that camera instantly heightened my awareness of the brief but brilliant moments that matter most.

As I continued to seek out photo opportunities, I began to see my life in clearer focus, and I gained a deeper sense of appreciation for the simple joys scattered throughout the average day.

If you want to use your camera (whether it’s a phone or an SLR) to help you see your life more vividly this year—and to capture meaningful images in the process—you’re in the right place.

Moments that Matter Most: Join The #MomentsMatter2017 Challenge

I’d love for you join our free, 30-day, #MomentsMatter2017 photo challenge! We’ll be running these challenges multiple times throughout the year and our next one starts JUNE 1st!

For 30 days, I’ll share a photo prompt as an inspiration point in the private Photography Facebook group. My hope is that each prompt will inspire you to capture an everyday, meaningful moment and that by participating you’ll kickstart a year of purposeful photography in 2017!

I know how many photo challenges are out there, but what sets this one apart is that each prompt is designed to help you take photos that capture the important but easy-to-miss details that give our regular days meaning and significance.

I look forward to rubbing shoulders with you as we tag our photos with #MomentsMatter2017 on Instagram and build each other up, as both moms and photographers.

Together let’s hone in on the moments we truly want to hold on to and use our cameras as a tool that helps us see more clearly the things that matter most.

Click here to join our private Facebook Group

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Starting a Photography Blog: 5 Simple Steps

Step 1. Determine WHY You Want to Start a Photography Blog

Step 2. Set Up Your Website

Step 3. Build Your Online Photography Home

Step 4. Use Social Media to Bring People to Your Photography Blog

Step 5. The Best Tools to help Grow a Photography Blog Community

Supplies:

5 Tips to Make Your Family Travel Dreams Come True

1. Re-think your definition of travel

2. Focus and prioritize

3. Set goals

4. Think creatively about how you can reduce your expenses

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you are enjoying the holidays.

DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF THE 2017 CALENDAR HERE: LETTER SIZE A4 SIZE

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DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF THE 2017 CALENDAR HERE:
LETTER SIZE
A4 SIZE