I would consider myself to be ultra organized. I have excel spreadsheets for every aspect of my life from debt reduction to keeping track of the #s on all the frequent flyer and discount cards in my purse. However one thing that I've never been able to really work with is a dayplanner.
Back in the day there was the Day Runner calendar that fit conveniently in my purse but that got tossed because I can't read my own handwriting. Then came along the 'Palm Pilot' or PDA which was a great toy but I didn't actually use it. After that I kinda gave up, relying on my awesome memory to keep appointments. Then a printed calendar on the fridge did the trick when we became a family. With all the dr appts and errands to run, I *had* to write it all down.
One of the great (sarc) things about being pregnant is acquiring the 'mommy brain'. It's like suddenly your quick witted brain is replaced with a pile of mush and you often stand in one place wondering where you were headed. It's extremely frustrating! Being someone who prides themselves on memory and attention to detail, it was hard to accept and I feel like I have to retrain myself to get that skill back. It took years to develop!
When Mason was born, Clayton asked me what I thought of 'Google Calendar' and I didn't really know about it. For some reason I didn't care to either. Which looking back, is surprising because I LOVE technology. I figured my paper calendar was working just fine. Finally I agreed to download it and has it every made a difference in our lives! Since Clayton and I are always online, it is easy to keep track of and update.
Here is our schedule for the month of October
As you can see it was a pretty busy month! By clicking the Google calendar link above you can read about how the calendar will improve your family's organization and from there you can download it and try it out :)
Here is my review of Google Calendar:
- Easy to set up! Just need a gmail address (or create one easily) I don't use gmail for my mail program so don't feel like you have to switch from your regular program
- Insert a custom background of your favorite picture
- Everyone linked to the calendar has their own 'color'. My appointments/events are blue and Clayton's are green
- Many different calendar views; day, week, month, 4 days, agenda
- Works well with mobile devices (Clayton has an Iphone)
- Has a Google Map feature when you input a full address in your event, it will display a map (optional)
- Easily change an owner, change the date or delete
- Has a little weather forecast for today and the following 3 days
- Add other peoples calendar to your interface
Some of the cons:
- It has a 'task' manager but it's very limited in functions. I would prefer to have it on a separate page and have the ability for Clayton to see the task and check it off as completed
- Setting up reoccurring events can be tricky
Overall this is an excellent tool for busy families who need to hyper manage their time!
On another note, I have decided to also use a paper dayplanner (gasp) for 2010. Why? you ask. Well if you read my other blog, you may have read up about how my main focus for the next two years is debt reduction and one of my mentors in this process is Gail Val-Oxlade (Host of Til Debt Do Us Part). She has been involved with the creation of the 2009 Til Debt Do Us Part Life Planner which I only heard of a few months ago.
Since it was not available in stores, I had to be put on a waiting list for the next version (which disappointingly she was not directly involved in). I have read that the 2010 version is a lot better than it's predecessor and it has a lot more pages/content. So as soon as I got the email stating it was ready for purchase $29.99 + tax + S&H. I've got my credit card in hand (ironic eh?) and I go to their website to purchase put in all my contact information and hit refresh to see the shipping and the book is now a whopping $39.84. Wow $40.00. A bit steep for something I'm hesitant on using.
So I write a note on the Til Debt Do Us Part Fan Page on Facebook asking if I can buy it local (Chapters!?) and I get a quick response and it is explained to me that in order to cater to their International viewers/customers they had to offer it through one vendor and that resulted in higher shipping costs. I was also told that the price of the book was extremely reasonable considering that it's a much bigger book this year. I appreciated the response. So for someone who is trying to lower their debtload, was $40.00 going to be well spent? I decided yes and ordered it anyhow. (For the record, I transferred a payment on my Visa after purchase! No more credit for me).
It took about two weeks I think to receive the planner, and I was excited to see the layout. The cover was a bit on the dark side but as promised it was a large book. Definitely will not fit in my purse! Each section includes: Ample space to fill in details of your budget (Food & Personal Care, Transportation, Entertainment, Clothing & Gifts and Other). There is a space for totals at the end. The next page was for appointments for each day, the following page was for things to do and a meal planner. At the end of each month there is a summary page to track how much money was spent in the previous month and a section to write about 'the month ahead'. Three lines are provided for your three goals! After that is a page for Monthly Bills to which you write the amount and due date and a check box for when it's paid. (I already have this set up in Excel!)
There are also inserts of two family's (I'm assuming from the show) who share their story and provide you with their budgeting tips. At the end of the book, the next year calendar is provided.
Do you use Google Calendar? Leave me a comment and let me know what you think of it! Did you know there was a Til Debt Do Us Part Day Planner? Based on what you read today, will you buy it? What are your thoughts on the price?