Mother's Little Helper

I've managed for years to get through the week with a wall calendar.....I love wall calendars!  The Germans have really nice ones with "columns" for each member of the family.  It takes some eye adjustment, but gives you five boxes for each day of the week. :-)

But, this year in September, three kids + three schools hit me in the face and I realized that the tiny boxes on a wall calendar were not enough anymore.  For the first time in over ten years, I knew I needed a carry-with calendar.

...and look how it immediately filled itself up...

Luckily for me....a group of friends very generously gave me an organizer/calendar before I left Virginia.  Even better, it has pages with write-in dates -- so, it's not particular to which year I need September to be in.  It was right there on my bookshelf, waiting for me -- patiently waiting for the day when I would need to be organized.  :-)

I have an extremely valuable friend here who is major-league organized.   She's the one who helped me with my Christmas Card Sender's Block, as well.    She showed me how she uses her large planner, and how I can translate that to my little one.  My 'little' one is big enough for me -- I was just grateful for her giving me examples of how to use "task" sheets, or "notes" ---

She folds one over at the start of the month and writes all those things that should be/must be done.....brilliant. Copied immediately.

She also told me that she writes down in the margins when she orders something on-line so she can track how long it takes to arrive, rather than sifting through the e-mail confirmations.  Also brilliant.  Also copied immediately. 

She recommended pencil.  Not copied immediately, but soon afterwards.  Had to learn that the hard way.

But, I'm so much more organized....and the tangible benefit from that is that there is more room in my head now that I don't have to scramble to remember where I put that scrap of paper with a phone number, or promise to pick up another person's child after school... (!!!) ....it's all right there in my black book, which equals  =  Instant Headache Removal.  This is better than Advil. :-)