Happy New Year!  It has been quite the year for me. A new baby, busier and new goals! The best way to stay on track is keeping organized by writing things down. Depending on your lifestyle, here is how to choose a planner.

Planner and Cozi App

A planner!! Over the years, I have kept planners and journals to keep me on track.  I use the Cozi app which works wonders for my family and I.  I don’t have to carry around my planner but rather just pull out my phone and add doctor appointments, for example and not take the appointment cards home! The best part is that the calendar is shared with my husband.  We both can add to the calendar with the kids activities, etc.  Both my husband, our kids and I have a colored bullet on the calendar.  we can easily track who has what each day.  Best of all it’s FREE!

Journal

In addition to the cozi app, I enjoy having a nice journal to write down my to do list and plan for the month ahead. I have also kept a separate calendar to write down my bills and check them off as I pay them. And then I have a planner just for PTO.  It is a lot of different things. For 2020, I decided to just purchase a planner that had a monthly and weekly calendar. Nice planners are pretty expensive and can go for $30 dollars. There is also the expense of getting all the extras, such as stickers and extra pages.

On A Budget

This past weekend I went shopping at Michael’s.  I happened to scan all the aisles to look for the new year clearance and sales. The 2019-2020 planners were 30% off. I decided on the 18 month planner. They were dated July 2019-December 2020. Worked for me! I have the whole year to use! The planner came with stickers, two pocket folders, a plastic storage compartment, a note section, monthly and weekly planner with the name of the month on each tab. With the 30% off I purchased the planner for $14.99!

You are wondering what in the world can I do with the 2019 section. Well, my friends, I will use it as a notes section! I am always jotting down craft ideas and things to do. It will not go to waste!

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How to Choose a Planner

There are many choices out there. Think about the size. Will you carry it with you when your out or just in the home. If so, plan on a smaller and light journal to carry around. And then of course, think about what you are looking for in a journal. Are you looking for just a calendar with the month or just the weeks and do you need extra pages for note taking. Think of how and what you will use your planner for.

To Conclude

I will still keep my PTO planner until the end of this year but for my personal planner I will just have one. I will use the monthly section to write down my bills and the weekly one for everything else.  I sure hope I gave you some ideas on what planner you should get.  If you are looking for something simple and cheap, try Marshalls, TjMaxx or the Dollar store. I usually go to Marshalls since they have really cute planners. This year I went for a different route but every year is different!

FYI, I plan to blog more often again.  It’s been an extra, few months of being more occupied than usual!

Happy New Year!