Oh So Pinteresting Wednesday - More birdseed feeders

Following up on a post waaaaaaay back in November 2011, here is another style of bird feeder I've found on Pinterest - Bird Seed Ornaments.  Some call them Bird Seed Cakes, but since you can make them in cute shapes using tins and trays and cookie cutters to decorate your outside trees, and it is the holiday season after all, I'll stick with calling them Ornaments.  Of course, we don't have too many outside trees ourselves, but I'm sure I'll find places to hang them!

Bird Seed Ornaments

Variation 1:  The first recipe for these that I found was from Critter Comforts, and is as follows.

What you need:

• 3/4 c flour
• 1/2 c water
• 1 pkg unflavored gelatin
• 3 T corn syrup
• Bird seed

Directions

1.     Mix the first four ingredients.  Then mix in bird seed, about 4 cups.

2.     Stir the mixture together.  For extra-messy fun, use your hands.  Beware, though, the corn syrup and the gelatin make it pretty sticky!  Fun for kids, though :)

3.     Scoop the mixture into the shape of your choice. Silicone molds and cookie cutters work beautifully. 

4.     Press the mixture in firmly and layer a loop of twine or ribbon in the middle for hanging.

 

5.     Let the ornaments air dry in a warm, dry spot in your home for at least full day.

 

Variation Two:  Stephanie Lynn at Under the Table and Dreaming has a variation as well.

Compared to the recipe above, this version doesn't use corn syrup or flour - nothing but the unflavored gelatin (and water to prepare it) and birdseed.  And of course, the molds or cookie cutters, and the ribbon or twine to hang them.

Directions:

1. Begin by mixing two envelopes of Knox Gelatin (approximately 4 tablespoons) to 1 cup of water.  If you're making a bigger mold, you made need to double or triple the recipe.  Obviously you need more seed mix to fill bundt pans or cake tins than you do for cookie cutters or muffin-sized molds.
2. Simmer on low until the gelatin has completely dissolved.
3. Add 2 cups of bird seed to the gelatin mixture, stirring until completely mixed.
4. Spray your mold with a coat of non-stick baking spray and scoop in birdseed mixture pressing lightly to pack down. 
5. Chill for at least 2 hrs in the fridge.
6. To remove, turn the mold upside down and apply a little pressure until the bird seed cake is released. For a larger sized mold, you may need to run a butter knife around the edges to help release.
7. Hang with a ribbon or twine and let the birds enjoy! 

I've only made the first version so far, but I want to experiment (i.e. play!) and see which one is easier, less messy, which one the birds prefer, etc.  Maybe after the new year when I've a little more time on my hands again...

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everybody! The weather has finally cooled off, it's Friday, and we've finished some larger projects at work, so I'm in a pretty festive mood right now.  Festive tidings to all! Or... BOO!  Or whatever one says on Halloween :) 

Right now, Zach is unfortunately working an evening duty, so I'm chattering away here and watching the trick-or-treaters come 'round. 

We've had some fun this year too - our first Jack-o-lantern!  Between one thing and another (mostly crazy work schedules) we've really only started celebrating Halloween since we got to Texas.  Was a harder holiday to make work in California (like I said, work schedules).  But since being in Texas, we've been able to have trick-or-treaters each year, and this year, a Jack-o-lantern too!  

 

To quote Calvin and Hobbes, "Ok, Jack, time for your lobotomy!"

   

And all done and lit!  Fun fun!!

 

And of course, with pumpkin carving, comes toasted pumpkin seeds.  My first time in years making them, so here's the recipes I found.  And my notes, so I don't forget next year :)

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Recipe from Simply Recipes

Ingredients

• Pumpkins seeds
• Water
• Salt
• Olive oil

Directions

1. Scoop out the innards of your pumpkin.  It's easiest to do this if you cut the top off, to get access.  If you're making a Jack-o-lantern, as we were, you're doing this already, so just set the goopy pumpkin insides to the side until you are ready to shift from pumpkin-carving to pumpkin-toasting.  I suppose if you're multitasking, you could start the seed prep-work as you carve, but we were both focused on the carving.  Seeds had to come later.  :)
2. Wash the seeds.  You'll need to do this by hand, in order to separate the seeds from the stringy bits.  Use the colander; it will help.   And yes, your hands will be pretty messy.
3. Measure the pumpkin seeds in a cup measure before you place them in a medium saucepan. Add 2 cups of water and 1 tablespoon of salt to the pan for every 1/2 cup of pumpkin seeds. Add more salt if you prefer your seeds on the saltier side.  According to Simply Recipes, boiling the seeds in salt water before you toast them lets the salt permeate the seeds, instead of just sitting on top of the shell (like it would if you simply tossed the seeds in oil and salt before toasting).  
4. Bring the salted water and pumpkin seeds to a boil.  Simmer for 10 minutes. 
5. Remove from heat and drain well.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F. 
6. Spread some olive oil on the bottom of a roasting pan or thick baking sheet (I used a cookie sheet with a lip around the edge).  I say spread "some" because I just drizzled the oil, but Simply Recipes recommends about a teaspoon or so. 
7. Spread the seeds out over the sheet in a single layer.  
8. Toss them a bit to coat them with the oil on the pan. I used our silicone basting brush to spread the oil around and cover the seeds.  Worked well, and I didn't have to risk literally tossing my seeds across the kitchen (which is probably what would have happened!).
9. Place sheet on the top rack of your oven and bake until the seeds begin to brown.  This is the tricky part, because it could be anywhere from 5-20 minutes, depending on how big your seeds are.  Smaller  seeds may be done in 5 minutes or so, but large pumpkin seeds may take up to 20 minutes. SO!  Keep an eye on your pumpkin seeds!   I set my timer for 5 minutes at a time, and checked regularly. 
10. When lightly browned, remove the sheet from the oven and let the seeds cool. You don't have to let them cool ALL the way down before eating, but you do want them cool enough you don't burn your tongue.
11. Enjoy!

Notes, References, etc.

As I said above, I used the recipe on Simply Recipes, but there are lots of other variations on toasted pumpkin seeds, as it turns out.  Do you boil them, do you just toast them, do you use olive oil or melted butter, do you toast them on high for less time, or longer at a lower temp... lots of variations.  What I particularly liked were the flavor variations people mentioned!  Here's a sampling:

• 101 Cookbooks - Toasted Pumpkin Seeds: 3 Ways.  The variations there are Sweet & Spicy Pumpkin Seeds, Black Tea & Butter Pumpkin Seeds, and Curried Pumpkin Seeds.
• 101 Cookbooks also has a Thai-spiced pumpkin soup recipe, and Simply Recipes has several pumpkin recipes, too - if you're cooking pumpkin anyway...  ;)
• All Recipes is always a good stop.  A basic recipe, but lots of helpful comments. 
• Michael Chiarello's recipe on Food Network.com.  Again a basic recipe, but there are some good tips in the comment section (I think food websites are the only ones where I read the comments anymore!)
• Food Network Kitchens, also on Food Network.com, has a bunch of variations - Italian, barbeque, Indian... definitely a few I want to try next time!
• Food.com lists some good optional seasonings too.  Chili powder, garlic powder, cajun seasonings...

My last comment is a reminder to WATCH YOUR TOASTING!  Mine did end up a little burnt :(  Probably should have stopped at 10 minutes, instead of 12.  It's like popcorn.  Light and salty and delicious if done right, but go just a little too long when cooking, and you end up with that burnt aftertaste, like you're eating charcoal. 

So, definitely worth a repeat, and some yummy looking variations I want to try, but also learned a lesson on toasting them.  Just wait til next year!  :D

Oh So Pinteresting Wednesdays: Race Medal Displays - The Projects

So, after all this, allow me to show you what I turned out for myself.

I made one for myself, and have supplies for a second very (well, fundamentally) similar one.  It's a basic shelf with a few picture frames slots and a flat surface below where I can add hooks to hang medals.  I was really searching hard for something like this, because I wanted a chance to show off pictures (I've got some great ones of me or me and friends/family at races or other runs) and I wanted the shelf for my (2!) trophies.  This one I found in Ross, of all places. 

 

I sanded it down a little, primed and painted.  My craft room has a lot of that teal color, but I wanted to be able to hang this wherever, not just in that one room.  I removed the hooks it came with and used mug hooks instead, measuring out staggered rows to fit in as many hooks as I could.  In some of the instructions I've seen, the writer painted the cup hooks first, but I liked the brass with the dark paint, so one less step for me.  I did have to use the drill to get the holes started, but after that, I could just twist in the hooks by hand.

 

Altogether, my supplies looked like:

• Primer (in stash)
  
• Paint - Rubbed Bronze (in stash)
• Mug hooks (Home Depot)
  
• Picture shelf (Ross)
• Lots of sandpaper

So, after lots of sanding and painting and drying time, the hooks are on the shelves, the shelves are on the wall, and the medals are on the hooks.  Look nice, don't they?  And it costs way less than one of the purchased ones, leaving me extra proud of myself :)

 

You can see better in the second picture the actual size of it all, more of the wall to put it in context.  There's a little wall at the landing at the top of our stairs which is the perfect size for this.  Oh, and Zach's medals are up there as well as mine - he's got bragging rights too!

Oh So Pinteresting Wednesday: Race Medal Displays - The Research

This week, my Pinteresting project involves my race medals.  Race swag accumulates like no one's business.  Bibs, medals, assorted other paraphernalia... little mementos of these events.  And of course, you want to show off the important ones.  I've always simply pinned my medals into the wall, stacked neatly in a column down a thin section of wall (like at a doorway or something similar).  But I've been thinking more about a neater way to do it.  More transportable (we do move a good bit, after all) and fewer holes in the wall.  And yes, maybe a little easier to add new medals to, since I'm kinda particular about how neatly things are hanging.  

So, after a bit of research via Google, etsy, and Pinterest, I found some ideas for DIY medal and bib number hangers.

At airplanes and treadmills (now Janelle Runs), she put together a joint bib/medal display.  I really like the paint effect, but I'm not big on the chalkboard paint.  I'm just not big on chalkboard paint in general, though.  It's one of those things sooooo-very-common on Pinterest that I just don't do.  Like burlap and mason jars.  Still, she gives very clear directions, which I definitely like.

Pavement Runner has directions for basic bib and medal displays (separate pieces, not a combination one like above).  She stenciled her displays, instead of the reverse stenciling (is that the right term?) like at airplanes and treadmills.

The girls at Southern Color have directions for a simple display - one number and a medal or two.  Seems like it would feel cluttered with more, but for displaying goodies from one particular race, I think it'd be a nice option.

Jenny over at Love Eat Run gave her directions for a photo display medal hanger.  I really liked this one.  And, as I've mentioned before, mile 11 pictures seem to work well for me, plus I've got some post-race pictures I really like too.  Yes, I definitely have some photos to display as well as the medals.

Liz Runs has another DIY option I really like.  She took a basic coat-hanger-with-shelf and added a few more hooks to make a simple display.  I like the shelf option here - an easy place to put a few trophies or a certificate, or an additional picture or two.

Running with the Girls has a different option altogether, though no instructions.  A gift from one of her running buddies was a medal display which looks like it was based off of a decorative small curtain rod.  A little different from the other options I've found, which focus on pegs instead.  Too bad there aren't instructions, but it was a gift, after all.  Found a similar one on etsy at Inspirational Piece - still no instructions, but a little bit bigger picture.

Finally, if after all this, you're still not sure you want to make your own version, there are numerous places online to find neat displays.  

• Gone for a Run has some lovely metal ones (my favorites are the I Run This Town series)  A nice point to this style is the extender bars - definitely a plus.  Gone for a run also has clips for the ribbons, to pin back extra ribbon as they are hanging on a display - a little more subtle than paper clips or binder clips!  The custom display option is there, as well.
• Sport Hooks (Heavy Medalz) has a whole bunch of Rock & Roll Marathon Series displays.  Yes I do have a couple of R&R medals (3 VB, 1 AZ, 1 San Diego) but I have a lot of other race medals too.  And yes, it would bother me to be hanging other medals on a R&R display.  I'm like that though - it would also bother me to have half medals on a rack labeled for full marathons, and vice versa.  Still, they are neat looking displays.
• Allied Medal Displays has some more very pretty, sleek metal options.  I really like their 50 States-50 Marathon designs (or 50 Half Marathons, too).  And the "give a girl the right pair of shoes" one too.  They also do custom displays.  Of course, custom = more money.  The eternal trade-off.
• In View Designs is more of the shadow-box style display, instead of wall-mounted racks.  A little different, but still pretty nice.
• Made 4 Medals has another different style of display.  This one might be easy to recreate, too.  I like this one, too, as it's a bit neater looking than simply hanging the medals.  Maybe one day I'll sit down and try to figure out how to do it.
• There are tons of etsy options (a quick search just now for "marathon medal display" turned up over 200 results). They have ones from metal workers, wood carvers, crafty types... you name it. 
• Running on the Wall is an etsy shop I particularly want to point out - TONS of varieties of displays.  They've got lots of different size and color and quote combinations.  Other sports are available too (triathlon, swimming, hockey, wrestling, custom...).  I particularly like their "13.1: Only Half Crazy" one :)
• Running Hutch has another purchase-able option - a belt or tie rack.  The one she found also has a shelf on it, for pictures or trophies.
• Anchors Aweigh doesn't list instructions or sells them herself, but this is her Top 10 list of displays, and I liked a bunch of them, so I wanted to include the link.  My favorites are the funny ones ("I got suckered into another one" and "Whose idea was it to add the 0.2?")  
• Anchors Aweigh also had another Pinterest idea for race medals - making magnets from them!  I tracked down two sets of instructions - from Everybody Loves VD and from Deemed Legally Fit.  I don't know if I'd do this, though.  Several of my medals have really pretty ribbons, and a couple are reeeeeally heavy, so would need a bunch of magnets to keep them up.  And then, I write the date and time of the race on the back of the medal, too, so that I can remember and see my progress.  So, don't know if I'd ever make the medal magnets, but still a neat idea.

So now that I see where I want to go with this, let's get started!   (To be continued!!)

Recipe: Flapjacks

No, not pancakes.  Flapjacks.

These are a British snack bar made with oats.  Think 'really filling granola bar.'  They are highly addicting.  And impossible to find in the States.

Oh, and just a word of warning - they are NOT a health food.

My sister and I each had summers abroad in England, and flapjacks were available in the dining halls.  For both of us, any money left on the meal account for the day was used to buy flapjacks.  A flapjack and an apple made for a really easy, filling yet portable lunch.  Perfect for a student tourist! So, when Anne sent me a recipe she'd found for them, I HAD to add a few ingredients to my next grocery list to give them a try.

And yes, am counting this as a Pinteresting post, since I've now pinned recipes for two flapjack variations to my boards :) 

There are a lot of recipe variations out there, but overall, these are surprisingly simple!  Like Rice Krispie Treats, but using Golden Syrup instead of marshmallows, and oats instead of the cereal.  The first recipe I found was at Smitten by Britain, but I also found recipes from BBC Channel 4 and from Chubby Hubby for reference/comparison.  All Recipes has a good version too, but like I said, there are tons others out there with a quick search, so find one that you like.

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) butter
• 6 tbsp. Golden Syrup
• 2/3 cup unpacked brown sugar
• 4 cups oats (I like the old fashioned oats, not the quick-cooking)
• Pinch salt
• Whatever extras you want to add (I added wheat germ, chopped almonds, and chocolate chips)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
2. Grease a 9" x 13" baking pan.  You can use a 9" x 9" pan if you prefer; it just gives you thicker bars at the end.  Optional: line the pan with baking parchment.  This is really to help remove the bars later, since they are rather sticky.
3. Place the syrup, sugar, and butter into a large saucepan over low heat.  Stir until everything is well mixed and it's a relatively even consistency (i.e., all the butter is melted and the sugar dissolved).  Note: make sure all the Golden Syrup is added (it's like using honey - tends to stick to the spoon).  If you don't have enough syrup in the mix, the bars will come out very crumbly.
4. Put the oats into a large mixing bowl, adding the pinch of salt.  Pour in the syrup mixture and stir together.  You want everything as evenly coated as possible.
5. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and spread evenly.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling. Be careful not to overcook, as they will end up dry and crunchy once they cool (you want them soft and gooey when cool).
7. Let the pan cool on a wire rack.  While still warm, cut into bars (I like rectangles, but I've also seen pictures of squares and triangles, if you have preferences).  They will set as they cool, so don't remove from the pan until completely cool.  They will crumble apart otherwise. 

Notes & Variations:

Store in an airtight container.

Corn syrup can be substituted for the Golden Syrup.  Golden Syrup just gives it a little bit of a distinctive flavor. Like I said, Golden Syrup has rather the consistency of honey, and if you're adding lots of extras to your batch, you might want to add a little more syrup to the butter-syrup mixture, just to keep things from crumbling apart.  It is found usually in the International Food section of the grocery store, or at a specialty store like World Market.

Like granola bars, you can add all sorts of stuff to these.  About - British Food lists a bunch of variations at the bottom of the page.  You can add nuts, dried fruit, dried coconut... whatever strikes your fancy.  I added 3 tbsp wheat germ, for sneaking in a little extra fiber.  And 1 cup chopped almonds, for a little flavor and crunch.

I remember the chocolate flapjacks particularly, so I poured a bag of semisweet chocolate chips on top, let them soften, and them spread them across the surface like frosting.  This is the closest I could come to the chocolate topping I remember :)  It was a little heavy-handed, honestly - in some places the chocolate was a little thick, even for my tastes.  Next time I make these (and I will!), I think I'll use just a cup or 3/4 cup of chocolate chips, instead of the whole 12-oz bag.  

Otherwise, though, great success!!

Fun with Scissors and Spray Paint!

When we first moved out here, Zach had some pretty long days, busy with all sorts of trainings and new duties and whatever.  Which meant I was left home alone to be crafty! That was 3 years ago now, so as kinda an anniversary post, here are some projects that I did soon after we moved here.  Yup, another 'finally writing it up' sort of project :)  I don't really have instructions for these, or step-by-step pictures, though, just a lot of chatter about what I did.  

First up, I finally got around to recovering my pin boards.  I've collected pins for years, as swaps at conferences, or as souvenirs from places I've traveled or events I've participated in.  I've got them from all over, and display them on fabric-covered cork boards.  I started with just one, but have expanded my original single board into a whole wall-full! 

The picture above (with the blue fabric) is from our place in CA.  After 3 and a half years in a VERY sunny area, even with blinds on the window, the fabric had faded a good bit, especially on the largest board.  So they were due for a rework.  Also, the colors in the room the boards hang in now did NOT match the pastel blue that worked so well before.  Definitely reasons to rework these.

So, first up, I undid the old blue fabric.  The fabric tucks under the frame around the cork, so just needed to be pulled away.  Once the frames were bare, I repainted them a nice satin-finish black.

I used white-on-white patterned fabric to cover the boards.  I have 3 sizes of boards, the small and medium size ones shown with my pins, and the large one with my necklaces shown further down the post here.  All the board frames were repainted with the same black paint, but each size has a different fabric on them.  Not really noticeable in a picture like this, but I like it in person.  I was hoping to find a black-on-white fabric, but the only ones I could find were cow splotches and large damask prints (too busy and too much black for what I want to display) or tiny polka dots (the right size, but if I didn't get the rows lined up just so, I'd have driven myself batty looking at it - yes I am that nit-picky).  So, white-on-white it was!

Yes, I realize that several of the boards have only a handful of pins on them, but they are also divided up by category, to a mild extent.  So, international pins are on one board, academic pins are on another, military pins are a third, Hard Rock Cafe guitars are another, and sports pins are a fifth.  The two bigger ones are the general pins from US travel (also knitting and Scouts, since those also included US places).  They're much more full now than when this picture was taken. We've been out and about!  :) So yes, there is a method to the madness!

The necklace organizer below was recovered at the same time and in the same way as the pin boards - new black paint and new white fabric.  I used it while we were in CA, but had never covered it, just left it as a giant cork board.  It was hanging in the closet after all.  Now that it's in the room instead of closet, I definitely wanted it to look nicer, so paint and fabric it was!  Even covered, though, mine's still pretty basic.  You can see all sorts of pretty ones on Pinterest, though.  Tons of variation!  The lace-covered ones for hanging earrings are really pretty, but as I don't have earrings... 

The accent L on my necklace board is just a little extra I added.  The letter is one of the 99 cent ones from the craft store (Hobby Lobby, I think), with 3 thumbtacks attached to the back.  This lets the letter act as one giant push-pin and I can position it wherever I wanted on the board.  Then the whole letter-pin was painted black to match the frame.  I just use clear push pins to hang my necklaces on the board.  So much neater than necklaces forming tangles in my jewelry box!

 

So, yeah, not too much in this post, just me being proud of my painting skills and (tiny) organizing efforts. And hey, 3 years in TX now - less than 3 to go!

Colorado Trip: Craft Time!

Of course there was tons of knitting over the week.  Goes without saying with Sarah and I!  But we also played with new projects!

One of Sarah's projects lurking on her to-do list (and mine too!) was to make bath bombs and bath melts.  She had found a Craftsy course ("Blissful Bath Bombs" by Alia Einstein-Diez) which covered melts, bombs, tarts, and other yummy good-for-your-skin bath stuff.  I've found similar things via Pinterest and had also been wanting to experiment.  So while the guys were watching bowl games on New Year's Day, Sarah and I played in the kitchen!

These are super duper easy to make - melt, mix, cool, refrigerate, done!  We actual made 3 batches over the course of the vacation, and used several different scents.  Because we can :)  The blue ones pictured below are peppermint scented.

Part of why we made so many batches, besides giving us a chance to try out a bunch of flavors (scents), was that we learned a little each time we did them.  Our first batch was pretty soft, was hard to remove from the mold (especially the more detailed shapes), and would actually start melting in your hand.  So a few of the things we learned:

• The more solid the melts, the easier they are to pop out from the mold.
• Using a liquid scent and a liquid colorant made them very soft.  There is dry colorant available too, but what we had was liquid.  Cut down a little of the oil to help things solidify a little better.
• Tapping helps the air bubble rise up.  It's like how workers set concrete, you know?  The vibrations help the air bubbles rise in the mixture, so that the brick (or melt, in our case) is more solid.  We had laid our silicone molds on a cookie sheet, so tapping on the sheet for a few moments after pouring helped vibrate our trays enough for the air bubbles to rise up.
• If the melts are still soft, just keep them stored in the fridge until ready to use.
• These also work well in the shower.  Just rub over the skin as you would a bar of soap!

Of course, pets rule the house, so someone had to come supervise.  Since what we were making wasn't really edible, Frank (a German Shepherd) wasn't too curious and was more interested in the football games with the guys.  Buddha (the pibble) took over kitchen management :)

 

Like I said, I'd seen variations on this on Pinterest, too. I like the instructions Sarah had, though, since they had so many variations all in the same workshop. 

If you're interested in what's out there for free though, here's what I've found:

• Porphyrogene has an organic Bath Truffle recipe, similar to the bath melts we made.  I'm curious how the honey helps; I've heard it's good for your skin.
• TLC has a Bath Bomb recipe, though theirs look much neater than ours do!
• Of course, a Martha Stewart version - Bath Fizzies
• Martha actually has another bath fizzy variation too.
• Also along the same lines, but not quite the same, a Detox Bath recipe.

Zach had his crafts going too.  He is branching out with his chain maille work, not just armor, and has made some absolutely beautiful pieces.  So, am taking the chance to brag on my guy again :)

This one was my Christmas gift.  That is a quarter next to the chain in the in-progress picture.  Very very tiny links!  This one was one he designed mostly himself, and I love it.  The flower is a kit (yes, he made the flower too) and then he made the chain and attached it all.  There were several measurement sessions with "Close your eyes!  Can't look til Christmas!" as he was determining where he wanted the chain to reach.  It's a silver clasp, a silver colored flower, and brass chain, if you want materials.

 

This second piece was the one he was working on while we were in CO.  It's the same weave as the other necklace - Byzantine weave - but it's called Graduated Byzantine because every couple repeats, you change the size ring you're working with.  So, the larger, heavier rings are centered in the front and decrease around to the clasp at the back.  This one's all in copper.  Aren't they both gorgeous?

 

Wordle!

So, Wordle is a (free!) website where you can make your own word-art picture-things.  They call them 'word clouds.'  I call them geeky fun! 

With starting up grad school soon (less that a week!!), I've been looking at planners and how to balance classwork and work and chores and workouts... you know, juggling life.  At the moment, Life is balanced between several notebooks - my main planner, my food journal and my workout journal (still trying to get those last stubborn pounds!), and a small notebook for notes, to-do lists, positive thoughts, etc.  I record a lot on my Google Calendar too, since that syncs to my phone very well, and I love being able to turn on and off the different layers in my calendars, but my phone won't cover everything I want my "paper brain" to do.  I do record a lot of my workouts via my phone, but I'm not crazy about the food journaling apps I've found (including WeightWatchers, even though I love their online site).  Just not as user-friendly for me.  And I've yet to find a good to-do list app that would act as my homework checklist, chores checklist, etc.  I like Evernote, but it's not quite as editing-friendly as I'd like.  I use it a lot, but for other things.  The daily jotting-down of lists really does end up on paper a lot for me, which is fine. I just want it to be all in one notebook, not in three smaller ones.  

After a lot of playing around in Word and Excel (not a Photoshop guru, to make a pretty, fancy set-up), I designed both monthly pages and daily pages that I liked.  There are places for my meals (food journal), my exercises, my daily agenda, things to remember looking ahead, homework or planned school reading, daily chores...  Yes, I'm in a highly dorky, happy place :) 

And before you even ask, yes I love my office supplies;  the above Nerd Girl Quirk is pretty accurate (this one's #111, though the number was cut off).  And since I've already found my perfect ball point pen (Pentel RSVP, if you are interested), I'm working on my perfect planner!

So, what does that have to do with Wordle?  Well, the new planner needed new dividers, so I designed "word clouds" to be the focus of each monthly divider.  Because I can!  The more your repeat a word, the larger is it in the word cloud, so the month on each page is repeated 15-20 times (depending on how many other words I was using), then the more major holidays or attributes of the month (ex, "spring" in April) were repeated 3-6 times, and minor descriptors, characteristics, associated words, and random holidays were repeated just 1-2 times.

For this set here, the font is Berylium.  I adjusted the color palettes to match the calendar pages I'd designed (which in turn, had their color schemes determined by the word art I was using as their headers, found on a free calendar online).  If you're playing with the colors, there's plenty of options, and just keep clicking Recolor until you find one that you like.  The format is Half-and-Half on most of these.

I also made one with my name and words about me (hobbies; places I've lived; stuff I love, etc) for the cover page in my planner, but since that one's pretty personalized, I'm just going to leave it up to your imagination.

Oh, and if you like playing with these, there are others like Wordle.  Tagxedo is one that lets you make shapes too (or rather, fill in pre-designed shapes).  These are pretty, but I liked the general cloud from Wordle better.  I found these two through Pinterest, but you can find some others if you search a little.

And as a final nerdy note on this post, when I was looking for the above Nerd Girl, she also has a Nerd Girl Quirk for Wordles, #215, which I didn't find until I was in the midst of writing this post :)