Life as a Planner

I've mentioned before how my mom always got a new planner from Gooseberry Patch every Christmas and she had the whole year planned out with meals and events ... she kept her life and our life in order.

I seriously praise the Lord that that organization/planning gene was passed down to me because without it, I have no idea how my family would function.

In college, I made lists. And I felt incredibly satisfied if everything on the list was checked off!

On a side note, my sister made lists as well in college. Lauren's lists included showering and buying Dr. Pepper.

My lists included finishing a paper, washing laundry and going to the grocery store.

If this is any indication as to how she and I differ ... :)

K-State started selling planners when I was in school and I loved them! They were spiral-bound, not too large, had game days already printed on their respective dates as well as other important dates students needed to know.

I used the HECK out of those planners. If I went and looked through those planners today, half of the pages would be filled with notes sent back and forth during class or during chapter meetings at Kappa (oops).

My parents eventually bought me a 'grown-up' planner: a leather bound Franklin Covey. I used it a bit while at Wichita State working on my master's, but I'm almost certain I went back and bought a student planner at K-State to keep using.

Franklin Covey be too fancy for me!

Since those times, I found some good options at Target that I liked. I can't be one to spend much money on a planner, even though it is something I use every single day of the year!

I used one identical to this last year that I really liked. It was longer than normal, so it took up more space on the counter (yes, this thing is left wide-open all year long or I'd miss something), but it did the job - plus it was spiral-bound, a must for me!

This year, my brother-in-law who is the king of gift-giving because he goes on my Amazon list and buys from there, got me a new planner ... that was NOT on the list ... but it was amazing! It's called 'The Happy Planner' because WHY NOT! It has been an awesome planner this year!

I'm also a fan of Emily Ley only because of my best friend sharing the love of her. Her planners are perfection! I bought her Home Base Binder when we moved here, but ended up never using it because it was just too big. I would have bought her Simplified Planner, but they sell out SO fast! They are a great quality and will hold up through a long year!

Another planner I have heard rave reviews about, mainly through Mix-and-Match Mama, is Erin Condren's planners. She, like Emily Ley, has TONS of different things to purchase on her site, but her planners are the best-sellers. I love the options of covers -- this one is adorable because you can add pictures of whatever you want on the front!

They all vary in price. They all vary in what is included in the planner - meal planning, notes and quotes, vertical, horizontal or hourly layout ... I mean, the options are endless!

If you find that you are not on the planning bandwagon, but have really been wanting to hop on, I suggest doing it! Life is stressful enough without having to remember everything without writing it down (and I fact checked that writing things down helps you to remember things better than just putting them in your phone - this discussion happened when I forced my husband to take a monthly calendar to work with all 'family' related stuff in it)!

Happy planner shopping -- and please tell me what you get! :)


XXOO,
Allyson