Alas, I have fallen in love with calendars and planners. I really don’t know where I’d be without them. I resisted the planner for a long time (including in high school and college). Last year, I realized that maintaining my calendars and planners were important to developing a smooth running household (and life). I have experimented over the years with planners and styles of organizing but simplicity works best for me. And I’m guessing it might just work well for busy parents like you, too!
My Planning Strategy
This year I have flushed out my planning strategy. I thought I’d share because it’s an easy, effective way to keep up with your schedule that’s really easy to maintain as well. I recommend families use 2 calendars and 1 planner to stay well organized. Each has their own benefits and it allows you to triple check your schedule so you’re not double booking or forgetting appointments/commitments.
Phone Calendars
The first calendar I recommend using is your phone calendar. I use iCal. Since both my significant other and I have iPhones, we can share schedules as needed! My phone is always on me which makes it easy to schedule appointments and commitments on the go. I don’t keep detailed information in the iCal but I usually block off time for work schedules, meetings, appointments, extracurricular activities, etc.
Personal Paper Calendars
Many people just use their phones as their planner but I recommend having a personal paper planner as well. My paper planner is less portable than my phone so it often lives at home, occasionally it’ll be thrown in my bag but I typically use it primarily at home. I transfer my schedule from my iCal to my personal planner, add additional information as needed and then I add other important dates such as birthdays, holidays, days off, travel etc. I also use the monthly section of my planner to map out our household routines. For 2019, I chose to go with a beautiful Erin Condren Planner in the horizontal layout. After using different planner layouts throughout the years, I discovered a horizontal layout works best for my lifestyle so I am absolutely loving this personalized planner!
Wall Calendars
Lastly, I recommend a wall calendar. One that is posted in a place visible to the whole family. I transfer all the important information to the wall calendar from my iCal and personal planner. I think a wall calendar is a great addition especially if you’re a parent and/or have help at home. Plans are readily available for everyone to see. Anyone you may have helping can assist as needed to ensure you get to where you belong at the right time. This would be especially helpful for new parents as those first months are often a blur. As a nanny, I loved the family wall calendar. It helped me keep track of various appointments for the babies. I was able to make sure they were fed and changed (and hopefully happy!) before their appointment. It’s also a useful tool to have available while you’re on the phone making doctors appointments (or scheduling birth Doula prenatal appointments or postpartum Doula shifts!).
Having 3 different calendars can seem overwhelming but this system is simple to maintain. It allows for you to schedule appointments on the go, plan for the present and future as well as give your family the ability to look over the calendar independently (and not have to ask you 10 times over what’s the plan for today). We’d love to know if you are keeping any calendars or planners to help you with organization! Let us know your tips and tricks below!