I have a google doc called “The Curated Life.” I started it years ago when we first moved to Atlanta just to keep track of all of the stylistic changes I wanted to make. How I wanted to dress and decorate for this new place and phase of life. In the last few months, I’ve added all of my ideas and goals for this little blog. But just a few weeks ago, everything got pushed a little further down to make room for one statement. One piece of advice my little sister gave me. It sits at the very top, in all caps:

WHEN YOU’RE A WRITER, IT HELPS YOU TO WRITE.

It’s so true and obvious; it’s amazing I even needed someone to give me that advice. But I did and I realized that in a way, I’ve been following it for my whole life. See, I keep a journal almost religiously. In fact, I keep a lot of journals religiously, all for different purposes. Because when you’re a writer, it helps you to write and when you’re a writer, you need something to write on.

For letters I’ve been writing to Ella. I’m hoping to give it to her either before she goes to college or after she becomes a mother.

All my writing goals and plans, whether it be Curated Life or one of my fiction projects.

Free writing. Everything from dialogue ideas to baby names.

I keep all lists pertaining to Ella in here. I first used it when I was pregnant and taking inventory of what we had and what we still needed. Now I write all of my questions for her doctor’s appointments in here. It’s basically the keeper of my Ella freak outs.

My actual journal.

I found this at HomeGoods and it’s just for my general goals and to-do lists.

This is for my spirit. I write what I learn from scripture study or hearing people at church. So whenever I’m not feeling great, it’s a great source for inspiration.

I wanted to do this post for a couple reasons. First, I love cute journals. If you’re going to have journals, why not have them be cute? But it was also a good reminder that writing covers so many areas of life. I always have a place to go, a place to get my thoughts down. And there’s just nothing like a blank piece of paper.