I know. I know. Most of you are groaning and thinking, "Just use an eCalendar on your phone or iPad." Honestly, I wish I could. It would be so convenient. I have tried two different versions. Either it is too slow to load and bring up the correct date or the monthly view is so small, I only get to see a dot indicating I have something scheduled at some point in time during the day. I have also been frustrated in that I will enter an appointment on the iPad and it won't show up on my phone calendar and I do the embarrassing "double-book" and have to make rescheduling phone calls hours after the appointment was first made.
So I rely on the old-school paper versions. Even with that, I have to search for just the right layout. I like to see the whole month at a glance followed by the weeks of that month for my appointments and activities. I have tried a larger calendar with only monthly pages, but those don't fit in my purse or tote easily. I have tried smaller calendars that fit in my bag of the day with only weekly pages, but then I can't get the overall picture of the month to see if I have booked three consecutive weekends without family time.
On top of all that, I don't want to spend a lot on something that I will only use for a year. I have seen day planners from $.50 all the way up to $120! I understand for many people, myself included, their lives would fall apart without an organizer/day planner to keep everything neat and tidy, but spending half the weekly grocery budget seems extreme.
I have consulted my friends, my sisters, my family, and sometimes total strangers (if they are shopping for day planners beside me) for the best layout or calendar they have used. I have received many different answers. I know I can't use the same style organizer as someone who has no children and works outside the home. Also, someone who doesn't plan their weekends because that's their time away can get away with the small unlined squares that denote Saturday and Sunday. As someone who must schedule around two different ball teams with games on the weekends, those little blank squares just don't cut it!
I am trying to keep track of the activities for our family of four, as well as plan weekly menus. From a previous post, you all know I homeschool, that is even more information I need to log and keep on top of. If a calendar could have a spot for each of these items, that would be super!
While I was at the Great Homeschool Convention I attended a few weeks ago, I told my sister (and fabulous hostess) once again of my day planner search. She grabbed hers from a couple years before and said I needed to check it out.
It has most of the things I was looking for: homeschool subjects for each day, store lists tucked in the front, and even a space for weekly menus. While the weekend spaces aren't giant, they should work for us. I placed my order. After weeks of waiting (this high-speed world has spoiled me, I'm used to getting orders within a few days), it finally arrived. I have never been so excited over a day planner. But, the first month is JULY!! I have to wait 2 and a half months to use it!
