May Bullet Journal Set Up

Spring is my favorite time of year by far. I love that new life is springing up all around. Daffodils are popping, trees are budding, babies are being born, birds are singing, and the grass is green. What’s not to love? Since April showers bring May flowers I couldn’t resist using flowers as a theme for my May bullet journal set up.

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PLANNING & SUPPLIES

May is proving to be a busy month so planning is 100% necessary. I find myself so grateful for the bullet journal method because I can adjust my layouts as my life and plans change.

First I perused my rubber stamp collection for something with flowers.  I was inspired by a gal in one of my facebook groups Linda Nielsen Schader. She created a darling weekly layout that I tweaked a bit. I have to admit being in the middle of a craft room makeover makes finding supplies challenging.

Then I wanted a title that would bring out the beauty of the flowers. I had some stencils however they didn’t offer the look I wanted. Next, I searched “May lettering” on google and found the perfect script. Not too fancy with just enough swirl. I printed it, traced it and colored it in with my Prisma colored pencils. I’ve owned these for years and LOVE them. These colored pencils have a soft core which means I could use shading techniques to make the flowers come to life.

MAY COVER PAGE

Do you love washi tape? Me too! Look at the cute little flower boxes that I made with washi tape. This cover page makes me so happy and it was incredibly easy. Have you used washi tape in an “outside of the box” way? I’d love to hear how.

CHANGE IS GOOD

Do you believe change is good? I believe it can be. Personally, there has always been something good that comes out of change whether I initially thought the change was bad or good. Part of it has to do with your mindset. Since January my weekly layout had included the hours of the day. I wanted to get in the habit of time blocking.

I gave it a good 4 months and finally switched to a new weekly layout I believe will work better. See what I mean about being able to switch up your layout midstream. If I purchased a planner that I didn’t like I’d have to suffer through something that doesn’t work for me or buy a new one.

NEW WEEKLY LAYOUTS

LAYOUT ADDITIONS

You may have noticed a new box or two on the layout. I’m finally following through on the habits I’ve listed for myself and that feels FANTASTIC! The notes box is a place I can write down random thoughts or questions I have for the week instead of just at the bottom of the layout like before. Here are the two new boxes.

• Prayer: In my head, throughout the day I’m talking to God. If God brings someone to mind, I say a prayer. When a friend shares a concern, I pray with them on the spot. I added this box to be more intentional about my prayers. Not only that, if I write something specific I can look back and see how God has answered.
• Questions: In December, I purchased a planner from Brendon Burchard called The High Performance Planner. Talk about intentional! I loved it yet I found it to be more than I needed. Brendon includes a morning mindset to frame your day. Since changing my mindset is something I value, I adjusted those questions to fit my needs and added them to my weekly layout. Here are the questions:
  • What am I excited about this week?
  • What situation might cause stress?
  • How would my best self handle it (the stressful situation)?
  • What did God show me about myself this week?

NOTE TO SELF

Three things I noticed after I completed my layout. First, if you stamp an image in a box where you intend to write you will have trouble reading it. Second, I was not consistent in going left to right when adding the days of the week. It might be a little confusing on where to look. You’ll see what I mean if you look closely at the pictures. Third, colored pencils leave a slight wax on the paper so a fine line marker that writes on a slick surface may be necessary.

What does the month of May look like for you? Are you making an intentional plan or letting the days pass you by? Share in the comments below.

Need some ideas for bullet journaling? You might be interested in these.

March Bullet Journal: Travel Theme

October Bullet Journal: Llama Theme