LSNED - week four

I'm back with the final week of Shimelle's Learn Something New Every Day class. This year I followed along with Shimelle's prompts and am sharing my thoughts and lessons each day here in a weekly round-up post. Some days my lesson is directly related to Shimelle's prompt and other days it takes a totally different course. (See my Week One lessons here, Week Two here, and Week Three here.)

22nd - Another New Skill Saturday and Shimelle informed us that the second most used search function on the Internet is YouTube, which has videos on just about anything you might want to learn. While scrapping with a friend that day I unfortunately learned that picking up Cutter Bee scissors at the wrong angle can result in a painful stab wound (which is all healed up now).

23rd - Shimelle asked us to think about when we say yes to spending time with friends or trying something new as opposed to saying no. She also encouraged us to think about when we raise our hand to volunteer for a project and asked when we raised our hand and what was the result. I most recently raised my hand to volunteer to write the curriculum for our upcoming ladies' retreat (only one week away!), and while I've had moments of wondering if I could complete this project, I've been reminded several times that I just need to work consistently one step at a time to complete a big project.

24th - Shimelle encouraged us to remember those lessons we've learned and shouldn't forget. As I look at my weekly schedule, I often feel overwhelmed and wonder how I will fit in everything I've planned and want to do, however I just need to remember that the best way to accomplish a lot is to  prioritize and then simply do the next thing on the list!

25th - Shimelle encouraged us to think about lessons that are hard to forget. She also suggested we journal using the prompt Happiness is.... and see if any lessons come to mind. This prompt reminds me that happiness is often right in front of us if we just open our eyes enough to see it.

26th - Shimelle encouraged us to just focus on creating today, just taking time to play. . .which was perfect for me as I had a dear friend over to scrap. I spent some time playing with my washi tape, this time creating cards inspired by this post over at Write.Click.Scrapbook. My lesson for the day was really a confirmation of something I learned earlier - washi tape is so much fun to play with!

27th - Shimelle encouraged us to do some forward-thinking, especially if our schedules are full and we are needing a break. She talked about how looking ahead and knowing there's a break or something fun coming up can help us get through the busy times. While I am looking forward to the upcoming ladies' retreat, I also know that I will feel a sense of relief and accomplishment when that big event has passed.

28th - Shimelle encouraged us to look for funny lessons, things that allow us to laugh at ourselves. I didn't really have a particular lesson for this September, but a general lesson that Robbie and I have learned over the years when we travel (or just try to find a new store) is that it is always ok to turn around. We simply laugh when we realize we've missed an exit or passed the place we were looking for and say that we have become expert turn-arounders!

29th - On the final New Skill Saturday of the month, Shimelle encouraged us to plan to continue our learning throughout the year. We spent part of the day playing games with a teen that I am mentoring, and I was reminded that we have quite a few games we haven't played at all or at least for a while. My lesson for the day is a reminder that playing board games is a great way to build relationships and spend time together.

30th - Shimelle encouraged us to think back on the month and sum up our experience with LSNED. For me, rather than a daily exercise, it's meant taking time once a week or so to sit down, read the prompts, look back over my calendar and ponder the lessons for each day. While I enjoy the idea of reflecting every day, this month simply did not lend itself to that kind of activity. Which leads to my final lesson that it's ok to adapt scrapbooking projects and classes to fit my life as long as I'm still having fun.

And it was definitely fun recording these lessons for September 2012! We are well into October now, and I am working steadily to complete all the final details for the ladies' retreat next weekend. What are you up to this month?