Review ~ The Master Plan...

I am a bit of a stationery addict!  Over the years I've amassed dozens of diaries, planners and organisers in the hope I would find 'The One'.  It never happened.  I would use one, trying it for a while but something was missing and I couldn't pinpoint what it was.

 

I tried a day to a page diary but wasn't really busy enough to fill it.  Next was a week to an opening.  A little better.  But since becoming a part time worker with a little one attending kindy, taking on a P&F Secretary role and blogger with a Facebook page I needed something that I could group those roles and see them at a glance. 

 

And then I found it.  The One...a horizontal planner.  The Master Plan.  I.love.it.

 

 

 

The horizontal planner lets me see in columns what is coming up for the week for each role.  This year with the addition of an extra column I was able to add a Projects line, which is fantastic and allows me to write down specific projects I'm working on. 

 

Use it to keep track of after school activities, play dates and appointments.  Being A5 size it's portable, pop it in your handbag or keep it at home as part of your Family Command Station.

 

I love that this year the pages are white which means if I have to use white out it doesn't stand out (I know, OCD much).  I'm also this year using my washi supplies and cards to brighten up my week ahead.  

 

The Plan is a 15 month calendar commencing in September & while I start using mine at the beginning of the year, I use the extra pages to write notes etc. There's also a removable notebook included. 

 

 

 

 

The menu planning section is a favourite because as you know we love to menu plan, 5 years and counting and saves us so much money and time.  Being able to see at a glance what's for dinner prompts me to get the meat for that night out of the freezer ready to go.

 

Even if you have already bought this years diary, it's never too late to change to the perfect planner.  When you make the switch you'll be buying it every year, trust me!  This is my second year and I haven't looked back.  The hardest part is choosing the colour.  I love the Mint, my signature colour for the year.

 

 



Thanks to the lovely ladies at Sweet Creations for sending me The Master Plan in mint to review & keep.  As always the opinions are my own. 

 

Annabel from Milestone Press has also kindly given me a copy of The Master Plan for one of you to win and love.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

  

Giveaway details

The Giveaway will run here on the Because Everything Counts blog page.

It will run from Tuesday 28 January and end Tuesday 4 February 2014.

Entry is open to Australian residents only.  One entry per person.  This is a game of skill and the winner will be chosen based on the answer given.

 

Comments require approval by me before publishing.  This reduces spam comments.  All genuine responses are published. 

 

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Five reasons to love Cinque Candles

I have never really been a burner of candles or incense.  The ones I've tried have smelt fake.  Full of chemicals.  I found the smell of incense to be too intense.  But recently I've been converted.

 

I can't remember how I found this particular seller but I'm in love.  The seller is Cinque Candles.

 

Cinque means five.  Elisa, her husband and their three gorgeous children make up the Cinque family.

 

Five reasons I'm in love with Cinque Candles

• The packaging is gorgeous
• The scents are omg delicious and subtle
• The jars, candy bowls, vintage tea cups, travel tins
• The price
• They match any décor

I really could go on.

 

 

Check out this gorgeous packaging. 

 

Right now I'm burning the Green Tea and Lemongrass, the air is lightly scented which I love. 

 

The beautiful range.

 

Cinque reasons to love Soy candles;

• CLEAN BURNING -- Soy wax is non-toxic and burns cleaner than paraffin wax with no petrol-carbon soot....
• LONG BURNING -- Soy candles burn slower and cooler than paraffin wax, creating a longer burning candle.
• RENEWABLE RESOURCE -- Soy beans are a renewable source.
• BIODEGRADABLE -- Since soy beans are vegetables, soy wax is naturally biodegradable. Soy wax is also easier to remove from materials and surfaces. Which means, once you have finished burning your candle you can simply wash your glassware in warm soapy water to clean, and continue using it.
• Soy candles are simply better for you, your family and the environment!

You can find Cinque Candles here

Oh and Cinque celebrates its first birthday in five days so pop on over and say hi.

This is not a sponsored post, I was not gifted product.  I purchased them myself and reviewed because I love sharing beautiful things.  Photos and information on the soy candles are taken from their Facebook page.

 

 

 

My first Bloggers event

From the time I started Because Everything Counts I have been a little envious of my Eastern states Sisters who got to attend fabulous Blogger events, meet other bloggers and even more so when goodie bags were included.  So I was super excited to receive an invitation to my first event from Blogs and PR for a WA bloggers meet and greet.

As we live a few hours from the event location hubby and I decided to make a weekend of it, child free and with a little shopping for good measure.  If that didn't make me nervous enough (it was our first time leaving Miss M), the idea of walking into a room and meeting a group of ladies who I've either followed their blog or meeting others for the first time was enough to make me a bundle of nerves.  It felt like the first day of school. I am actually a shy person to begin with.

What eventuated was a lovely few hours of chatting, getting to know each other and our blogs.  Each one of us were asked to stand in the front of the group ~ nerves in overdrive ~ and introduce ourselves, our blog and choose from a lucky dip.  My lucky dip was a Mothers Corn Kids Soup Bowl, yep that's right, it's made from corn.  Very cool.

Thanks to the wonderful Yvette from Little Bento Blog and Annaleis from Teapots and Tractors for organising the meet and greet.  Thanks too to the fabulous bloggers who shared their stories.  For the full list of those who attended head to my facebook page and check out the Blog Rolls.

A final thanks too to the amazing sponsors who contributed so generously to our goodie bags

2kool4skool
Kambrook
KiddiKutter
ImogensAngels
Suz E Bee candles
Sunraysia Australia
Missy and Moo
Name Your Dummy
Kidsberry Store

and to The Wembley Hotel for hosting us.

Why were we lucky to receive goodie bags? Well the idea of Blogs and PR is to connect bloggers with brands. I'll be writing reviews of the items I received or sharing the brands pages. I also look forward to working with more brands. The direction of the blog may change a little in that there will be advertising in the future.  But I can promise you the reviews will be written with honesty and the blog won't become just a billboard.

I'm so glad I overcame my first day nerves.

x Bec

Review ~ Funky Elephant

When I received an email from the lovely people at Funky Elephant I was super excited as Matilda loves to craft.

What arrived in the mail was a gorgeous box addressed to Matilda, I popped it to one side and got on with getting her ready for Kindy and well life got in the way.  So when I set aside some time to open the 'trunk' I wish I had done it sooner.

It's fantastic!

This particular trunk came with everything to make three activities.  Inside the lid are the instructions on what you need for each activity (all included in the trunk), a step by step guide, some general info ~ this one talked about role play.  It also had a cute little rhyme.

 

 

 

 

I laid out the protective sheet so we could get our craft on. Matilda loved everything about the trunk, she loved that it was addressed to her, that she could unpack it and could lay out all the items she needed based on the picture on the instruction card.

 

 

The finished product ~ for today that is...

 



 

What I loved about the trunk is that it's something we can go back to, these two little people are just a small sample of what we can do with what's inside the trunk.  The play can last days or even weeks. 

 

As hubby suggested, Funky Elephant trunks are perfect for time poor parents who can't travel from shop to craft shop gathering supplies.  Just subscribe and forget about it until the trunks start arriving and then get crafting. 

They're fab too for Grandparents who are looking for the perfect gift that's not another soft toy!

Now, for all the details;

The trunks are tailor-made for 3 to 7 year olds. 

They work on a subscription basis, from 2 months to 12 month subscriptions.  And they have a siblings option where they add extra materials to a trunk. 

Funky Elephant Trunks are available online

 

I'll definitely be adding this to the Christmas/Birthday wishlists.

 

 

I was not offered nor accepted money for this review.  The honest opinions are my own.