Start the New Year with a Vision Board! (Happy Rosh Hashanah!)

 There are so many beginnings in a year, one hardly knows when to start a new goal, project, or program.  There is the Jewish New Year (September), the Solar New Year (January), and the Lunar New Year (March).  So, how do we know when to actually begin again.  In my opinion, I think it is useful to learn from and celebrate all three.  

The Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) is the time when The Almighty determines who will have a happy, successful life during the next year.  We apologize for all of our wrong-doings (both intentional and unintentional) and eat special foods to welcome a Sweet New Year.  The Solar New Year begins on January 1st every year.  As with all holidays, we eat special foods, make resolutions, and try to be better in mind, body, and spirit throughout the calendar year.  Lunar New Year begins in March, and is the start of the Chinese Zodiac.  The characteristics of the Zodiac sign for the year determines who and what will prosper and how.

As a follower of Judaism, I have developed my own rituals that include elements of all three.  This Rosh Hashanah, I decided to develop a Feng Shui Vision Board for the upcoming year which will be posted on January 1st.  I learned about Feng Shui from a practioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).  She introduced me to the idea that various colors and the arrangement of color can influence the outcome of the future.  I must admit that I was a skeptic (and still am), but as life wasn't going peachy for me, I decided that it could not hurt any worse.

Let's start with the idea of a Vision Board.  It is widely agreed upon that if you want something to come to fruition, you must first envision the goal for yourself and commit it to paper.  You often see these based on jobs, projects, weddings, or even what you want your house to look like.  So, if you can visualize the goal, then you can achieve it.  Feng Shui Vision Boards do the exact same thing, but they look at all aspects of your life.

Each color on a Feng Shui Vision Board represents a different area of your life that you wish to improve upon.  

Purple = wealth and prosperity

Red = fame and reputation

Pink = love and relationships

Green = family and physical health

Yellow = spiritual well-being and health

White = children and creativity

Teal = knowledge and wisdom

Black = career

Gray = travel and helping people

I created this easy to follow template which can be found under the FREE Bullet Journal Printables tab.  After laying out my format, I decided to find clip art in each color that represented what I want for my life this year.  I also found quotes that matched my goals and included those in each box as well.  For example. if I wanted to get married, I would find a picture of a pink engagement ring to paste on the printable.  For knowledge, I found an image of a blue bookshelf with the phrase "Knowledge is Power."  And for spiritual well-being, I looked for a yellow Torah scroll.  I encourage each of you to take a few moments to ask yourself what you truly want from the year ahead and make an effort to put it down on paper.

Most Feng Shui practitioners will tell you that it is important to hang this vision board where you will see it often in the place where you want things to happen.  That is why this Vision Board always goes in the very front of my Bullet Journal.  I can easily envision what I want to take place in the year to make my goals come true.  Now, I am not exactly sure if this works, but I did revive my tutoring business this year, I have established my library, I have lost 10 lbs., and I have started a series of creative blog posts.  

I wish you all peace, prosperity, and creativity in the New Year!  L'Shanah Tova!

~ Melissa

Takin' What Their Givin' Cause I'm Tutorin' for a Livin'

Recently I have had two jobs, tutoring Latin and writing tutorials for a digital scrapbooking site www.scrappingartistry.com.  It is said that you never learn anything until you have to teach it.  Well, I have had quite a bit of help from Lisa J. at www.mymemories.com.  So far, we have learned to organize outside content, import outside content into the MyMemories Suite, and have learned the text-wrap tango.  What will we learn next?  Tune into www.scrappingartistry.com every Thursday for the next several months to learn a new technique to use when applying our art form.  Enjoy, make a memory, and take lots of pictures!

Saving the Day

For the longest time, I have been the crazy cousin at all family reunions, the park, playdates, and social events.  I love to take photographs, but until recently I had no place to display my art.  Now thanks to the art of digital scrapbooking, I am now able to capture the moment and save the memory of the day for posterity's sake (or just for my own personal delights).  Here is just an example of the what you can develop using the MyMemories Software along with outside content.  Now I have a beautiful memory that will last as long as I do!

Capture Your Memories with MyMemories Digital Scrapbooking Suite 3

Little more than 3 months ago, I discovered the website www.mymemories.com after winning an online contest that I entered on a whim.   I was given the MyMemories Suite 2 for making my very own personal digital scrapbooks.  Since then, I have embarked on the wonderful journey of digital scrapbooking.  I never even knew such an art existed!  But now I am hooked, constantly downloading digital freebies, and have turned tons of family pictures into lovely scrapbooks for family members.  And just when I thought my little hobby couldn't be better, MyMemories has come out with an upgraded version of the software!  Use the Coupon Code found at the top right hand of this page for $10 off the full software suite and $10 to spend in the store on products of your choosing.  Continue to follow this blog for more details, examples of scrapbooking pages, and lists of freebies weekly.  Always remember to live the Suite Life!