Weekly Planner Update | Small Big Wins & A Valentine’s Weekend

This week flew by like, blink-and-it’s-Sunday kind of fast. But in the best way possible.

Work-wise, I’m still right on schedule with my projects (what?! who is she?! ikr!). In fact, one of the brands I work with asked if I could take on more projects, with additional compensation, of course. I had to think twice because, as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been either just on time or slightly late with some deliverables lately. But the past few days? I finally feel like I’m back to my usual routine. So I said yes… with the condition that I officially start next month so I can get ahead on everything else I need to do.

Still. A small big win. And I’m very grateful.

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This Week’s Happy Planner Layout

For this week’s spread, I kept things floral and feel-good. I used a gorgeous floral washi tape from Simple Stories paired with stickers from my Happy Planner Happy Memory Keeping sticker book.

I added floral corner stickers and layered in sentiments like:

• “happy”

• “make today count”

• “this is what it’s all about”

And my favorite square sticker that reads:

“stay humble, be loyal, smile often, travel light, keep learning, be kind, give grace, work hard.”

It felt very aligned with how this season is unfolding... steady, grateful, and grounded.

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Catching Up (And Actually Getting Ahead!)

Last week was officially my catching-up week. For the first time in a long time, I finished projects in advance. No cramming. No creative panic at 11:47 PM. Just… done.

Here’s what I wrapped up:

Mother’s Day / Mom’s Birthday Project for Polkadoodles

I finished a sweet project using colored digi stamps (just sharing the colored images for now since it hasn’t been published yet!).

Bee Happy Weeklies – Week 7: Celebrating Women

For this prompt, I created a Project Life spread dedicated to my “Bee Happy women," the kind, supportive, creative souls who cheer on our crafting and our budol moments too! 

These are the women who celebrate new supplies like milestones, enable the “one more paper pad” decisions, and remind you that investing in your hobby is self-care. 

And this spread goes out to everyone else who’s not in the photo — you ladies know who you are. 

Here’s to strong, inspiring, craft-loving women who support not just our creativity, but our happy mail deliveries too!

Kat Scrappiness Bookmarks – Crafty Quokka Collection

I made bookmarks using Crafty Quokka products and I love how they turned out. They honestly made me want to read an actual book. Like… a real one. With pages.

But I’m trying to avoid buying more books right now since I might not be able to take them home if I accumulate too many. Also, I don’t want to fill our Manila home with books that aren’t necessarily special keepsakes. So for now… admire from afar, and... Kindle.

Bee Happy Weeklies – Scrapbook Page Prompt

This week’s prompt was Scrapbook Page, and I made one for Lucky’s birthday. Yes, I scrapped his birthday before Ton’s and mine. Priorities. hahah!

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Valentine’s Weekend in Bahrain 

Ton and I went to Bahrain for the weekend. Before heading there, we met up with a friend for drinks and snacks.

Then once we arrived, our first stop was Bahay Kubo for a late lunch/early dinner. We ordered liempo, pork BBQ, and lechon kawali, leche flan, and later that night I realized it was the exact same spread we ordered on Valentine’s Day last year, based on the "on this day" I saw on Facebook, except for the leche flan.

If it ain’t broke, right?

We stayed at our usual favorite, Fraser Suites. I know I’ve shared photos of their rooms more than once here, but this time the unit was slightly smaller, and honestly, I liked it more. It felt cozier while still having almost the same layout. The only tiny issue? The layout was slightly different from what we’re used to, so we kept opening the wrong doors thinking they led somewhere else. Everything looked the same but… not quite. 

We were also surprised with a complimentary fruit platter from the Quest Relations and Quality Manager, Jenifer Fernando. And when we booked, they noticed we’re repeat guests and messaged us saying they’d be giving us complimentary breakfast.

It was our first time trying their breakfast, and it was actually good. I’m not really a fan of hotel breakfasts here in the Middle East because they don’t compare to hotel breakfasts back home, but this one was ok.

We also had a massage (as usual) and it was amazing.

On our way back to Al Ahsa, we ate again at D’Oro Pizzeria. Yes. Again. You read about it in last week’s planner blog too. I’ve been slightly addicted to their pizza lately. Maybe one more visit and I’ll finally get sick of it. Or maybe not. 

To cap off the weekend, we met up with another friend who really needed someone to talk to. Sometimes the best way to end a love-filled weekend is by extending that love to someone who needs it.

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All in all, it was a productive, heart-full week - creative wins, small DT growth, good food, cozy stays, and meaningful conversations.

And for once, no cramming. Hehe

Here's Lucky btw: