How I Use My Cleaning Pages, and December 2015 Dailies {Free Printable}

The trouble with cleaning checklists, at least for me, is that they always make me feel so... defeated. See, in this stage of my little life, I don't always use the kitchen every day (or even every week!), there aren't any "kids rooms" to clean, and honestly, vacuuming every other day just doesn't need to happen. But then those unchecked boxes stare at me whispering, "Fail. Fail. Fail."

I dislike unchecked boxes.

So, instead of using a to-do list, I use a "cleaning record" system. This way, I have a list of what needs to be done, and a record of the last time I did it. I can see what hasn't been done in a while, and decide if it warrants some actual action on my part (ie, "is it bad enough?").

I copy-catted a DIYFish style chart, added in the cleaning tasks that should be done at least monthly, if not weekly, and folded it so it fits in the binder. Most daily tasks (like "start laundry" and "feed the turtle") go into my daily pages or are part of a routine, so I didn't need to add them here.

If I've done a task to completion, I put a dot in the box. For times when I just spot sweep or spot mop (or if I don't worry about moving furniture to sweep or vacuum), I put an "S" in the box- which usually means that I'll need to do a more thorough job later on. 

We have one bathroom upstairs and one downstairs, so if I get to one bathroom but not the other, I'll put a "D" or a "U" for "downstairs" or "upstairs." If I've done both, then I'll mark it with a dot. 

So, at a glance, I can see that I haven't done the entryway in a while (and it desperately needs to be done!), and I haven't dusted at all... but instead of feeling guilty, I can decide that whether or not it needs to be done. If not, no worries. 

My little chart also shows me that most of the time, I tackle a bunch of tasks all on the same day (mainly on my day off). It works well for me right now, but during the busy summer season, I may want to try to get one or two small chores done a day so that I can keep on track. 

Do you keep a cleaning list? What's your system?

In other planning news, I started actually using a schedule (I know!), so the daily printable pages for this month reflect that. And with December being such a busy month for most of us, I figured you wouldn't mind too much. 

For the PDF printable pages (for December 2015) click here! 

A note about printing: These pages are 8.5 x 5.5 sized, so they should fit in Martha Stewart small format binders, A5 size binders, and Classic size binders. You may need to trim a little.

You will want to print these double sided, flipping on the short end of the paper (or top-to-bottom printing). They'll look a little crazy at first (i.e. the pages don't seem like they're in order) but it should work just fine. After printing, cut the pages in half, and three-hole punch the edge you cut.

Oh, and if you're looking for monthly calendars for 2015 (coming before we know it!) my calendar pages are also available as a free printable!

Happy planning!

November Daily Pages {free printable!}

Just a quick-ety quick post today for my planner peeps. (I know, I've been a little "planner post" heavy this week. Gotta get ready for November, though!)

Because I was makin' 'em for myself anyway...

Download my 2014 November daily pages by clicking the link below, if you'd like.

November 2014 Daily Planner Pages

A note about printing: These pages are 8.5 x 5.5 sized, so they should fit in Martha Stewart small format binders, A5 size binders, and Classic size binders. You may need to trim a little.

You will want to print these double sided, flipping on the short end of the paper (or top-to-bottom printing). They'll look a little crazy at first (i.e. the pages don't seem like they're in order) but it should work just fine. After printing, cut the pages in half, and three-hole punch the edge you cut.



Happy Planning!

How I Use My Calendar Pages: Planning Binder {Free Printables!}

Well, I shared a bit a while back about how I use my daily planning pages in my planner.

I typically only print one month worth of daily pages to put in my planner at a time, otherwise my planner gets too thick. So how do I plan future stuff?

Well, in front of my daily pages, I have a section that I call "Calendar." I keep a calendar of the year, one month on two pages, to write down appointments or reminders or tasks that are more than a month out.

Typically, I check my calendar nightly when I plan for the next day, or at the very least, I'll check it weekly.

I originally tried to do a month-on-one-page format, but that just wasn't enough room to write stuff down. I don't have quite enough appointments, generally, to fill up my calendar, but I'd rather have a little too much room than not enough!

This was taken before I wrote everything in for October. Look how nice and clean the month looks! <Sigh> It's much messier now.

And, because I love you and I had to make calendar pages for myself anyway...

Free Printables!!


These pages include Calendar-on-Two pages for the 2015 Calendar Year. There are two styles to choose from- I messed around with both fonts before choosing one. 

A note about printing: I use a small format binder (or Desk size, or A5 size- it uses 5.5" x 8.5" pages).  I do not print these pages two-sided. I like having the back sides blank to add notes or doodles, to tape papers on, or just about anything. I then cut the pages in half down the middle and hole punch them. If you have a larger binder (a standard 8.5"x11"), you could still use these if you hole punch at the top of the page, but you'll have that gutter area in the middle.

 Here's the first style:

Click Here for the Style1 2015 Monthly Calendar

And here's the second style:

Click Here for the Style2 Monthly 2015 Calendar

Enjoy, and Happy Planning! 

Personal Daily Planning Pages: October (free Printable!)

We've talked about my planning binder before...

A Look Into My Planner

Planning Binder: Daily, Weekly, Monthly Pages 

and most recently,

Changing with the Seasons: My Summertime Planning Binder

and here's the thing. I learned that sometimes you've got to redesign and rethink the pages you're using. Figure out what works and what doesn't. And that's really the benefit of custom pages, right? You can change them. Unlike in the rest of my life, when it comes to my planner, I thrive on change. I need to mix things up every once in a while. Sometimes I need more structure, sometimes I need less.

I liked using "blank date" pages because 1) I could just print out a whole bunch and fill in the dates later, and 2) if I skipped a day (or week, or month), it didn't matter much.

And for a season, that worked for me.

But this season, I realized that if I was actually planning on using the pages every day (and I was), it made more sense and saved some time if I just dated them. And, well, I wanted something completely different. I get bored! And if I'm bored with my pages, I don't use them.*

Here's what I'm using now, and here are some examples of how I'm using them:

Blank pages. I tried using a one-page spread for my daily planning pages, but it just wasn't quite enough room. Close, but not quite. So I went with a two-page spread, and while I know that I won't fill in every little line, it gives me lots of room to be flexible.

And here's "today." (Okay, so it was "today" at the time I took the picture.)

I usually end up listing my "to do's" at the top of the left-hand page:

Here, I used two columns- one for my household tasks (which I usually do in the afternoon, so I hadn't gotten a chance to get them done, yet), and my "online" tasks.

I've also divided up tasks by morning, afternoon, evening; or I've put the high priority in one column and the lower priority in a different column... it's nice to decide how to organize my tasks based on what's going on that day.

And here's a different day. I don't usually use the whole page for my tasks list, so I can use the rest of the page for notes or reminders, or for prayer requests I'd like to remember. There's no set"spot" for anything, so I can shift everything around based on what my day looks like.

The right-hand side of my day usually looks a little like this. I debated if I should include a full schedule section, but I don't need a daily schedule often enough to really justify using the space. If I do have appointments to remember, I'll write the time and details on this page.

I also like that these pages give me flexibility to include some journaling if I'd like, and again, I don't use the whole page most of the time.

One of my new favorite uses for my daily pages is my blessings list. My small group started reading "One Thousand Gifts," and I was really challenged to make daily gratitude a habit. And where better than right in front of my face! On this particular day, I didn't need to have my meal plans because we were eating at Camp (I know, we're blessed), so I just started my list at the top of the page.


So there you have it! My current daily pages.

And, because I'm creating them for myself anyway, I figured that I would share the fun:

Pre-dated October 2014 Printables. For you! 

If you'd like to download my pages for October, go ahead and click here.

A note about printing: These pages are 8.5 x 5.5 sized, so they should fit in Martha Stewart small format binders, A5 size binders, and Classic size binders. You may need to trim a little.

You will want to print these double sided, flipping on the short end of the paper (or top-to-bottom printing). They'll look a little crazy at first (i.e. the pages don't seem like they're in order) but it should work just fine. After printing, cut the pages in half, and three-hole punch the edge you cut.


And if you don't want my pages, that's just fine! Remember, it's all about what works for you. If this format doesn't work for you, go find one that does!

Happy Planning!


*I've found that there are two kinds of "bored" when it comes to planning pages: sometimes the boredom is easily solved by changing a font or mixing up a color, and sometimes "bored" actually means "doesn't work for me anymore."

If you're feeling bored with your pages, I'd recommend that before changing everything (or printing every single pretty printable you find online... been there), you figure out what the problem is. Too much structure? Not enough structure? Sections that don't fit your lifestyle right now? Not enough space? Too much space?

I know it's tempting to just overhaul the whole thing, but if you put a little extra thought into it, you'll be more successful at finding a planner that you actually use- one that works for you.

Changing with the Seasons: Summertime Planning Binder

Camp works in seasons. There's summer season (which is busy, busy, busy), fall retreat season, winter season, spring retreat season... and then we're back to summer. Each season has a different feel, a different need of organization, different structure.

This past year, I've been reminded that my planner has to change with the seasons, too.

My planner did not work for me this summer. I barely looked at it. And my life this summer felt... rushed. Disorganized. Unintentional.

So, a la Homemaker's Daily, I decided to figure out what was going on and how I can improve my planner for the summer season.

The Good:

1. Dummy-and-crazy-busy-proof. Writing my pages to include my morning schedule (even the "duh" stuff) helped remind me of my routine even on those days when I'd forget to eat. Because summer.

2. Open-ended Daily pages. The only things on my daily pages were my routines (morning, end of the workday, right after work, and evening), and a section for appointments and a section for tasks. I scribbled stuff indiscriminately on the rare occasion that I used my planner, and it worked pretty well to have a lack of structure.

The Bad:

1. Too much time at work meant little time for personal tasks. I spend a lot of time in my office during the summer, and very little time at home. I guess I sort of felt like it was a waste of time to write, "Fold laundry" in my planner if it was the only thing I could accomplish on that day. In the fall, I wrote down work tasks that sprung into my mind before bed into a "Work" section in my planner, but there's just too much going on in the summer to do that- and transferring it to my work planner is a hassle.

2. No room on my desk. With all the summer stuff going on, post-it's galore, my work planner open on my desk, and an average of 3 coffee cups sitting there at all times, there wasn't much room for my personal planner to be out and open as well.

3. No meals and few finances to note. The only personal planning I really needed this summer was my calendar (barely), my blogging notes, and a daily tasks section. There was just too much in my planner for the summer season.

4. Too many notes in too many places. Since I was writing down most of my daily/work tasks in my work planner, it didn't make sense to also make notes in my personal planner unless it was a definitely personal task/reminder. And to make matters worse, I also have to keep a digital calendar online so my co-workers have access to it. There were notes in tons of places- too many to keep track of!


The Plan:
Next summer, here's what I'd like to change.

• First, I don't think it's good for me mentally to be so focused on work stuff. I need to take care of my home in the summer, too! Of course, that doesn't have anything to do with my planner. But it's a change, nonetheless. 
• Next summer, I'll go ahead and simply remove the sections that I don't need for the summer- putting them into a file in my office for when the off-season rolls around again. There's no sense lugging around extra paper that I don't need.
• I also need to do some prep before June 1 hits. Removing sections is one thing to help me get ready for the summer, but I've also got to make sure I have calendars ready to be used. I didn't even have my calendar pages created for the summer! Ah!
• And, to solve #2, #4, and a little of #1...

These Post-It Notes.

Using a post-it in my personal planner makes it really easy for me to transfer it over to my work binder without re-writing, which makes it easy for me to see the day's tasks (at work AND at home) all on the same page. I'm an "out of sight, out of mind" kind of person, so even though I can't clean the bathroom while I'm at work, I can remember that cleaning the bathroom is on the docket for the day.

Regular post-it's are a little too small, so I love these ones.

And now my personal tasks are in my work binder. Ta Da!

I actually started using the post-it idea in late August, when I was so overwhelmed and out of whack that I decided that I HAD to do SOMETHING to bring back my organization! Had to!

Of course, now that I've got summer stuff all figured out, summer's over... time to plan for the Fall!



How do you stay organized and on top of stuff during the summer? What worked for you this year, and what will you change for next year?

Planning Binder Updates!

Because I get bored and need to mix things up, and because a functioning planning binder has to work for you!

Here are a couple updates I've made to ye olde planning binder recently...

New tabs! I decided I needed to organize my stuff better- so I included a Meals section to help with meal planning and to hold menus and recipes, and a Cleaning section for my Confident Mom household tasks pages. I also added a Blogging section for all my blog post brain dumps, and an Emergency Info section for prescription information, allergies, and our health insurance information. More tabs, for me, means better organization!

The Cleaning section has my Confident Mom pages, printed two to a page and cut in half.

Colorful Daily Do's pages. I'm working on eating healthier, so I added a food log section, and changed the sections to have rounded edges, cuz that's how I roll.

Finally, I decided I needed to prettify a bit more, so I took my plain binder divider pages and covered them with scrapbook paper.


Ah, updated binder!

{Seven Quick Takes/Five Favorites} Marshmallows, Chuck, and Impossible Pie

Linking up with Conversion Diary and Moxie Wife! 

(and can I just say, I've had so much fun linking up with other blogs this past month. Omigoshsomanynewblogsonmyblogroll.)

1

So, last weekend (was it only last weekend? Feels like longer...) we had a Marriage Retreat here at Camp. Poor Zeke wasn't feeling so great, so we didn't go to as many of the sessions as I would have liked. 

(I was pretty disappointed... and then crabby at Zeke... and then understanding.... and then got a sore throat myself and wanted him to make me tea. These are known as the Four Stages of Being Cranky With Your Husband Because He's Sick and Is Preventing You From Doing Something You Wanted To Do.)

Aaaanyway. 

I did help out with the activity on Saturday evening, and my goodness. Hilarious. 

Okay, so the couples played "Minute-to-Win-It: Couple's Edition." There were, of course, the golfball stacking challenges and the moving M&M's challenges... 

Funny, and sweet to see couples all focused and working together. 

But then. Oh, but then. 

The couple who planned this activity modified one of the games... and oh my goodness. 

Okay, so here's the premise. The couple had to try to eat as many marshmallows as they could- alternating who ate the marshmallow each time. The challenge was, they had to start with the marshmallow between their foreheads, getting it into their mouth without using their hands. 

So, so, so funny. The couples either looked like they were very, um, amorous (cough, cough), or like they were trying to bite each other's faces off! The pictures are priceless. And proooobably shouldn't go on Camp's Facebook page. 

Try it. It's so funny. Minute-to-Win-It? Best party game ever.

2

Sweet heaven- Impossible Pie. 

I found a recipe for this on a blog that I now can't remember the name of and can't find. (I totally freaked out in a comment on said blog, so if it's yours, let me know and I'll link to ya.)

So, I live at Camp, right? We've determined this? 

Well, we get lots of leftovers- and I try to use leftovers as much as I can so I don't have to actually, you know, buy food.

I love this recipe. Love love love love. 

3

We've been watching lots of Netflix (we don't have TV, because we live at Camp, as we've previously established)- and we have really been loving "Chuck." 

Minimum wage computer geek suddenly thrown into the CIA? Priceless. 

4

Simcha's probably one of my favorite people to read- I've been wasting way too much time on the internet by looking through her archives. And Haley's, too!!

A couple oldies, but goodies...

So Long, and Thanks for All the Intersex Fish 

My Unplanned Pregnancy, Or Why We Stopped Using Birth Control for Good

5

I've been in an "I'm-lost-and-don't-know-what-I'm-doing-next" stage lately. You know, like, my husband has no clean underwear in his dresser, but there's like 78 pairs in the dryer! My planning binder is collecting dust, I've had no idea what's for dinner this week... ugh. Gotta get out of this rut! 

So I cleaned the toilets today (because that's what Confident Mom told me to do today- planning binder back in service) and man. I love cleaning toilets. Is that strange? I dunno, it's just so... satisfying. 

6

A not-so-favorite?

Here's what it's doing outside today.

Snowing, then sorta-kinda melting. 

It's going to get cold again tonight, which means ice. Lots and lots of ice. <Sigh>

7

And we'll finish up these quick takes with a Tucker Turtle comparison...

Two years ago, at our wedding

Yesterday

Oh my goodness my cutie is HUGE!

Happy Friday, friends. Hope it's a good one!

Conquering Cleaning-Schedule-Phobia, At Least For the Time Being, Anyway

Confession time.

I have cleaning-schedule-phobia.

I like the idea of a cleaning schedule. I've tried a bunch of them. You know what? I usually stick to the schedule for... like... three days. And then I'm over it.

But! I've learned some stuff about myself in the process.

1. I get bored easily.

2. I get overwhelmed and defeated when I feel guilty.

3. If it doesn't apply to me, I don't use it.

4. I have to write down my tasks for the day, or I'll forget. 

Schedules that plan Mondays for the kitchen, Tuesdays for the bathroom and so on don't work for me.
#1 I get bored! I need to mix things up! 
#2 If I miss a Monday, I feel guilty that my kitchen didn't get clean, so I do that on Tuesday. Which means that on Tuesday, my bathroom doesn't get clean and then... eh, forget it.
#3 I have two kitchens- do I clean both of them on Monday? I can't customize the plan easily, so I'm out.
#4 The schedule doesn't change, so I forget what I've gotta do unless I look.

Abandon cleaning schedule!

And then, of course, I feel like I'm flying by the seat of my pants and get all grumpy.


Solution?

The Confident Mom!

I'll be honest, I tried the Confident Mom plan last year, and it didn't go so well. At the time, I was living in a tiny little apartment, and the detailed plans were a bit of overkill. It wasn't too easily customizable, but I did like the fact that while the plan covered everything that needed to get done, it wasn't rigid and I didn't get bored with it. I didn't write things down, though, and checking the plan several times a day wasn't great.

This year, though, The Confident Mom has a plan that's easily customized (!!!) so I can move stuff around more easily. If I know I've got an event on a certain day, I can lighten the load for that particular day by moving tasks around. Now that I'm in a bigger home, the tasks fit my lifestyle better, which is great. The only thing that was missing was #4- I have to write stuff down.

Cue the Household Planning Binder!

Here's what I did. I made a new section in my planning binder and labeled it "Cleaning." Then I edited the Confident Mom schedule as needed, and then printed them off two to a page (one sided). I cut them in half so they fit in my planning binder, and put them in my new "Cleaning" section. I edited and printed 4 weeks at a time.

Then I organize the tasks outlined by the Confident Mom into my Daily Do's page (writing down the things I've gotta do! #4 conquered!) and I get to determine when I'll do each task during the day.



So far, so good. We'll see if this plan helps me conquer my cleaning-schedule-phobia!

The Page with the Pages! (Daily Do's Household Binder Planning Pages)

Wow! My previous posts about my family planning binder were a hit!

The pictures I took of my planning pages are kind of blurry and not very user-friendly, so I thought I'd give you guys versions of my planning pages in JPEG format- so you can see them better and perhaps even print them! Martha Stewart is coming out with family binder planning pages- her 2013-2014 Monthly Calendar pages go for like, $30 a set. Crazy. You are welcome to use my templates for free!

Remember, though- if my templates aren't what you're looking for, make your own! To have a planning binder that works for you, you've gotta Make it Yours, Make it Flexible, and Make it Routine!

To see more about how I use my binder, click here.

Here's a copy of my Daily Do's Pages (I have these printed double sided).

And a copy of my Weekly Do's and Week at a Glance pages. I printed the Do's on one side and the Week at a Glance on the other. Of course, my Weekly Do's may be very different from your chores each week (cuz not everyone has two kitchens. I do. What what?)

My Month at a Glance Calendar Page:

And some of my Miscellaneous pages (namely, Budget Tracker, Grocery List, and Shopping List):

Of course, these are just the basics. Like I said, Make it Flexible! My pages have really changed- they don't look anything like they did back in June. I'll most likely be adding pages as the life of my family changes- so stay tuned for more! I'll post new pages as I create them!



Would any of these pages work well for your family? What type of organization do you use?

  .

My Planning Binder: Miscellaneous Pages

My planning binder includes a couple of "catch-all" sections. Eventually, I think I'll change some of these to make more organizational sense, but for now, this is working for me. Remember, your planning binder's got to be flexible- it's good for changes to happen! It's all about making your binder fit you and your life.

Here are some of my most-used pages in my Miscellaneous section:

My Budget Tracker: 

 This page is simple but effective. I use this page to write down anything we spend, and then later put the information into my budgeting spreadsheet on the computer. That way, we can see where our resources are going. I also like to keep receipts, but this kind of eliminates that need (as long as I keep it updated right away!)


My Shopping List: 

Another simple one. I like carrying my shopping list with me because our life is so spontaneous sometimes that going home to get a list isn't practical. And this way, I can add things as I notice them. Having an estimated price also keeps my budget in check- if something costs a lot more than I anticipated, chances are that I'll rethink the purchase. 

My Grocery List: 

Just a pretty plain grocery list, I have this divided into categories to make shopping easier. I also have the estimated price feature on this list. It's kind of fun to see how close I came to estimating the right total, or how much cheaper everything was (hopefully!)




So there you have it! The sum of my Planning Binder! Any ideas on how you have adapted your planner to accommodate your needs? I'm always up for new ideas to make my life a little simpler!

My Planning Binder- Daily Do's, Weekly and Monthly Planning Pages

Okay, here's part two of a peek into my planning binder!

The first three sections of my binder are Daily Do's, Weekly Plans, and Monthly Plans. To make a template for each of these sections, I used Microsoft Publisher.

First, can I just say? Publisher ROCKS! I'd never used it before starting my new job... here I've been trying to format Word pages and getting frustrated at figuring out layouts and stuff... ugh. Publisher works so much better. And I'm totally and completely behind in the world of technology, I realize. My middle school computer teacher would be ashamed.

Anyway. Here are a couple of examples of my pages. Again, heed my tips for making a planning binder work- Make it Yours, Make it Flexible, Make it Routine. My template probably won't work for you. That's cool. Make it Yours! Your first template will probably need to be adjusted to fit your needs, your life, and your schedule better, and that's okay. Make it Flexible, and Make it Routine!


Daily Do's Pages: 

Half page (landscape), double sided.

For some incomprehensible reason, Blogger didn't want this picture to be uploaded facing the correct direction... who knows. Sorry I've made you crane your neck...

Here's the gist of these pages. The top allows me to write in the day and date. That way, if I don't use my planner for a day (like a Sunday, or if I know that an entire day will be dedicated to one event), I don't feel guilty about wasting a page.

I have two columns on these pages.

The left column first has my "Daily Docket" or a schedule for the day that I can fill in if I need to remember a specific time for something (like, 8:30 Staff Meeting! or 6:15 Dinner with the Joneses!).

Next I have my meal prep section entitled "What's Cookin', Good Lookin'?" where I can write in any meals I'm making, notes, and anything I need to prep.

Next is a section for my FAM Notes. I have a horrible memory, so writing down my exact observations as they occur really helps me. I have a spot for my cycle day, my basal body temperature, and spots to write in my CF observations at different points in the day (waking, 9 am, noon, 4 pm, and evening).

At the bottom I leave a space for tracking my goals. I get to cross of a circle any time I meet my goal for the day. My goals include excercise, not biting my nails, taking my vitamins, and reading a chapter in the Bible (with a place to keep track of what chapter I read).

The right column has "Morning Do's" at the top of the page, with three circles for me to cross out as I get things done. I like having household tasks in the morning- it makes me feel like I've accomplished things before work!

Next is my "Work Day Do's" section, which is just like the one above it. At night, as I look ahead to the next day, I sometimes suddenly remember something I should have done at work- an e-mail I needed to answer, a payment I should have processed... so I write it down for the next day, so I won't have a sleepless night of trying not to forget something!

After that is my "Evening Do's" section.... which is pretty self-explanatory, given the above two.

My "Prayer Requests" section and "Notes" section close out this column. Again, my bad memory means I often forget, by the end of the day, that someone has asked for prayers. Also, the staff at the Bible Camp where we work have a prayer time every morning, so anytime I think of something, I like to write it down! "Notes" is really just a catch-all... I've used it for phone messages, things I needed to ask HH about, account numbers so I could cancel my phone plan... you name it.

Weekly Plans Pages: 

Half page (landscape), double sided- one side has a "Week at a Glace" template, the other side has a "Weekly Household Chores" template.

On the back side of these pages (so the left side of the picture), I have a list of household chores that should get accomplished every week or so. As I get these done, I cross them off here. It helps me to have a detailed list of things I need to get done, without having a strict schedule. That way, I can tackle smaller tasks on busy days, without feeling like I'm failing because Monday is laundry day and I just didn't get a chance to do the laundry.

On the front side of the pages I have a "week at a glance" where I can write down menu planning, events, and reminders.

Monthly Plans Pages:

Half page (landscape), single side. These were super easy to make- just make a chart and then you can fill in the dates and months as you go.

 

I like having these calendar-type pages for looking farther forward. I can make small notes about events on this page, and I also keep track of my cycle on this page (marking ovulation and menstruation with little symbols).



So there you have it! Three of my most-used pages in my planning binder! What tools do you use to keep your life organized and running smoothly?

More-than-Ten-Minute Tuesday: A Look Into My Planner

Lots and lots of awesome bloggers have posted their versions of family planning binders. I'm adding mine to the bunch!

Some tips to planning binders:

Make it Yours: No one else has a life just like yours- make your binder customized to your life! I looked through several different examples (try searching "Family Planning Binder" on Google- you'll be impressed), and then used what I saw to come up with something that works for me right now. Using a fun font helps personalize your planner even more (try dafont.com to download some great fonts).

Make it Flexible: Start with a few different options at first, and be ready and willing to change things up as you figure out what you liked and didn't like about each example. Adjusting your planning pages and things take time and experience. You'll probably have to change at least something about your pages at some point! Also recognize that your life will change, too- and along with that, your needs will change, and so will your binder! I've already changed around my Daily Do's pages, added a new section, and I'm thinking about streamlining a section... we'll see.

Make it Routine: A binder won't work if it's not part of your schedule. I usually look in my binder at least five times during the day, and then once at night before bed. I'm forgetful, and having a constant reminder really helps. Keep in mind that your binder will also need to fit into your life- physically. I don't really carry around backpacks or diaper bags, and I knew the binder would need to come along with me, so I chose a mini-binder because it fits in my purse and it's less bulky to carry. Check out your options and find out what works for you.


The General Idea:

The binder is from Staples- it's one of the 5.5x8.5 size binders. Mine is yellow, with a rubber grippy edge. I picked it because it looked sturdy yet cheerful! (This is the type of binder I use, just in yellow. I've been using it for over a year now- it's really really durable!)

I was worried that I wouldn't find a three-hole punch that would work with this particular size, but they sell those at Staples, too- although I use an adjustable three-hole punch that I already had on hand. I did buy the pre-made dividers for the binder rather than making them myself (which wouldn't have been that hard... but I was having a lazy day).

My binder has five sections for the time being- Daily Do's, Weekly Plans, Monthly Plans, Misc. Planning Pages, and General Info. I have the sections to help me organize my plans and find information easily, and I use paperclips to help me find the exact page I'm on.

A few months after I started using this binder, I went back to Staples (which is never a good idea for me... too much fun) and found a ton of cute new binders and accessories, and while I wanted to buy them all, I decided on just one (and yes, I am proud of that!).

I picked up this nifty pocket- it's plastic and closes with velcro- and it's been so handy already. I put my phone and my keys in there when I'm at work, and then I know exactly where they are all day and they're not taking up extra room on my desk. And it's two fewer things to carry! I also put receipts in here to file later. (And I don't know why the picture uploaded upside-down...)

To see more about the pages I include in my binder, click here and here.