Roses are red, violets are blue; we’ve all heard the old adage. February rolls around and that emotion of love being in the air, the commercial value of roses increasing and over all a sense of elation, love, adoration takes over. It may be a strongly hallmark holiday, but I believe that we can take from the month what we wish. I appreciate a good rose, and sentimentality and emotion makes me feel joyous, so here I am with my February journal setup inspired by roses and lace.
Two items inspired my setup this month. A piece of wrapping paper that my friend gave when she gifted me something for my daughter three years ago, and a piece of pink lace that I had leftover from a bridal shower I threw about nine years ago. This is what I’m talking about when I refer to the sentimentality. I hold on to these little tokens of memories and I truly love that I do. In my opinion there is no better place to store these tokens than my bullet journal; my catch all.
Cover Page
My February cover page is the epitome of a maximalist bullet journal spread. I pulled out all the stops with my collaging and gathered together all of my tools to create a mood board/cover page/quote page and I absolutely love it. It feels visually satisfying and it marks the beginning of the second month of the year with such definition.
As someone who is not naturally inclined towards drawing, the beauty of collaging is that it allows me a creative outlet while also giving me the confidence to continue creating. The added advantage of being able to hold on to core memories is simply a bonus.
My February quotes read “In February there is everything to hope for and nothing to regret”, and “February the border between winter and spring”. A welcoming of the month that will mark the beginning of a seasonal change.
Monthly Calendar
After an extremely hectic January I was determined to have a wall to wall calendar for my February setup. I wanted a large calendar with space to manage my social calendar, my kids social calendars, schedule my content and household tasks and events. Each box is 7×6 grid spaces and I’ve included a section to add my monthly measurements as well as three main goals for the month.
Currently and Monthly Check In
The currently spread is a really fun addition to my journal this year. I essentially take a snap shot of what my life is in the current moment. What am I currently reading, watching, listening to, eating, enjoying etc. What habits make me happiest right now, what moments mean the most to me during the day. Anything of significance that offers me and idea of who I am. Something enjoyable to look back on.
The monthly check in has become a permanent part of my journal now for the past few years. It is a space for me to check in at the beginning of the month and ask myself how I feel emotionally, physically and spiritually. What feels off, what needs adjustment, what feels good, what’s working and what isn’t. This is the spread where I can reflect on all of that.
Trackers
The spending tracker has become an active part of my journal in recent months and its a great space for me to sit down and record all of the places where I am spending money; on the kids, myself, the home, etc. It holds me accountable and encourages me to pay attention.
I am also diligently tracking my health as well as habits and mood, and I really enjoyed this setup in January. I note down my workouts, steps, water consumption and sleep. As well as any habits that I have chosen for the month and my mood. Looking at the correlation across the trackers and seeing what affects what is really a satisfying experience.
Memory Keeping and Gratitude
Two new(ish) spreads that I have created for this month are a memory keeping setup (sort of like a one line a day) and a gratitude wall. I found that in January I was recording a core memory of the day rather than writing down a gratitude and I had been wanting to include a gratitude wall in my journal for a while, so this month was time. The gratitude spread is a chance for me to practice my lettering and put down one word everyday that signifies the positivity of the day. In the end I’m hoping to have a beautifully put together graffiti wall of sorts.
Weekly
My weekly setup this year is inspired by @simplebujos on Instagram. A space for me to record my priority tasks for the week along with events, workouts, meal planning for the week and tasks. It is an information heavy weekly spread and I really appreciate that.
The second spread is a space for me to record my food consumption, my kids food log, and a space for me to plan out their school lunches.
I like having these sections created for myself so I can plan ahead, but also record details of things past, something useful for my future self.
Final Thoughts
Overall I’m really excited to use my February journal setup. It is a lot to maintain, and a lot of information gathering and tracking, but my personality really appreciates that; the data logging aspect of these spreads really clicks with my brain.
I loved using my journal in January and I hope and pray that month two of 2023 serves me just the same.
Are you ready for February? What planner system are you using this year?
Check out a full video on this setup over on my YouTube channel
Mums The Word 