It's hard to believe 2013 is just weeks away, and one of our must haves to start the year off right is a good planner. No matter what your interests are, we've gathered some of the best out there for every type of person, from the fashionista to the geeky girl and everyone in between. If you don't pick one up for yourself, consider gifting one and helping make someone's life a little easier and more organized.
The first step toward a New Year is buying a new calendar. These 2012 planners will help you keep your cool as you coordinate your schedule. Whether you prefer planners that are strictly professional or packed with personality, we've found 10 notebooks to suit any style.
New parents anxiously track their wee one's feedings and changes. While some rely on notebooks and loose-leaf paper, others count on electronic devices to do the dirty work for them.
For the eco-conscience mom, Lullaboards ($28) is a dry erase system for reporting a baby or toddler's daily duties. The boards come with an attached dry erase marker and magnets and adhesives to attach to any surface. The boards are available in baby and toddler editions with numerous design options to choose from. Depending on the edition, the boards have space for recording feeding sessions, nap-times, diaper duty and to-do lists.
Getting to your tot's first few pediatrician appointments with your lil one in tow is nothing short of a major accomplishment. Packing the diaper bag with all of the necessities, getting your babe outfitted and getting beyond the front door takes some strategy. So when the doctor asks you exactly how much milk your tot is getting and you can't remember, don't worry.
The Skip Hop Day to Night Baby Log ($39) tracks all of your baby's info in one central location. With sections for recording six months worth of feedings, diaper changes and sleep. The book comes with an illuminated "time capsule" that serves as a clock, timer and dim flashlight for recording middle of the night information without waking your sleeping beauty. When your infant passes the six-month mark, the book can be stored until the next child comes along and you try to recall just when your first-born began sleeping through the night or when she took her naps.
I love the idea of being organized, but with a family running in all directions — it's not always a reality. The smidgen of downtime I have is on the bus to work, which does lil good when my magnetic page planner is at home hanging on the fridge.
I've tried to go tech and load our appointments, pick-ups and drop-offs, and party dates into my Blackberry, but there's something so satisfying about putting pen to paper. I was thrilled when Amy Keroes of Mommy Trackd sent me over her latest invention, MOM Essentials: A One-Stop Organizer for Moms on the Move ($15).
The small book can be slipped into my laptop bag and has weekly calendar sheets, to-do lists, space to remember website sign-ons and jot down your family's take-out orders. The tear-off pages bring a sense of satisfaction when you toss them into the recycle bin. Additionally there's a page of Post-its ready for sticking, which for me means an easy way to leave my husband messages on the front door and the dashboard of our car.
As a mom running in a hundred different directions each day trying to organize my life, work and family of four, I have become a mental note taker. But, jotting things down in my head doesn't allow for my husband or kids to view the "To Do" list.
LobotoME organizational products are a great way for a mom to make her list of tasks a family affair. Since women don't need one more thing to lug, the momME weekly planner pad ($20) with tear and tote sheets is ideal. It has space for your schedule, errands, kiddie activities and more. The Help ME note pad ($10) is a polite way for you to delegate duties to your better half. In fine print, it reads, "Objective: Do this or Die."
Before I had a kid, my days were scheduled to a "T" mostly because I had time for walks, lunches, dinners and parties. Now, it's a whole new ballgame. In addition to planning my own life, I've got to keep tabs on my babe.
Since she's got playdates, music lessons and doctor's appointments, momAgenda helps me keep it all together.
To learn more about momAgenda's amazing products, read more
On the road to becoming the healthy, happy you, it pays to be organized. Keeping a mental list of all your various projects can be overwhelming. There is just no way to remember all those things you need and want to do.
Many of us use day planners for work, so why not use a planner as a tool for your personal life as well? I came across these from lobotoMe.com. Talk about organization! They make notepads for everything.
My favorite is the Feed ME meal planning to do list. It's a pad of 50 sheets ($8) and helps you plan out your meals for an entire week. On the right-hand side, there is a preprinted grocery list so you can keep track of all of the ingredients you need so you are organized when you go to the grocery store. This way you don't wander into the cookie and chip aisle, and hopefully the organized list keeps you from having to make multiple trips back to the store for forgotten ingredients.
I also like the organizeME Weekly Planner ($16 per pad of 60). It's a way to organize all the chores and errands you need to get done in each day, and a way to remember to take care of yourself too. It has a spot to write down what healthy dinner, exercise, and "me time" you have planned Monday through Sunday. It even has a little spot on the bottom to check off when you've had your 8 glasses of water a day. These sheets can tear off and fold to fit in most daily planners.
Taking care of yourself is something you need to do everyday, and sometimes you need to plan for it in advance. I'm all for anything that can make eating healthy, getting exercise, and staying stress-free easier. There's a lot to keep track of, and these day planners can help keep you on track.
