It’s hard enough to organise your own schedule, let alone everyone else’s, and when there’s a million and one things that you need to keep track of, it’s no surprise that stress levels go through the roof. Scribbling down everything you need to remember in a calendar can help you to keep tabs on the wheres, whats whys at hows, so you don’t need to panic about forgetting something important.
With the new year comes a new onslaught of Doctors, Dentist and hospital appointments, children’s parties, various hobbies and extracurricular activities. It’s simply impossible for one human being to keep on track of all these, so investing in one of the best family calendars is a sure-fire way to making your life so much easier.
In previous years, you may have made do with a cheesy celebrity topless calendar, where the squares for each day of the month are so small, you can’t actually read your handwriting. Yes, the excitement of turning the page to find yet another heart thumpingly attractive picture of your favourite soap star may have been the ticket to getting you through the year, but actually, there’s much more efficient ways of doing things.
Our list of the best family calendars introduces you to some innovative ideas for arranging your family’s schedule. From A3 charts that allow you to see and keep track of each family member’s upcoming engagements to dry erase calendars, which allow you to keep things impeccably neat and tidy - great for calming even the most cluttered of minds.
We’re starting things off with this A3 family wall-planner, which keeps each person’s activities separate. You’ll receive 12 sheets, which come with the days of the month printed and an morning and afternoon square for each person. Best of all is you can personalise it too. Simply select how many people are in your family, and you’ll be able to design a little named mini-me character to top each to-do chart. You can even choose which month you want your calendar to start on so you’re not paying for pages that you can’t use.
This calendar is determined to keep you upbeat, with each flip of the month commencing with an enthusiastically cheerful quote, which may or may not entice you into cracking a smile. There’s a grid for each month, which is split into five columns for each family member so you can keep their activities separate. Smaller than our first pick, there’s not as much room in each of the squares, which may make things a little difficult if someone’s got an overly packed day.
This family calendar offers up something a bit different. Instead of giving each family member their personal square, you’ll have to share one, but there’s a large box to the right of the calendar where you can pop any additional notes or memos for the month. Because it’s a dry erase board, you’ll need to wipe it off at the end of each month and label up the squares according to the first day of the next month. A pain, but just think, you’re certainly saving the trees and being able to rub off cancelled activities will keep it looking nice and tidy.
Name a kid who hasn’t read The Gruffalo. It’s a children’s classic and for that reason, it makes our list. It’s similar to the Happy Jackson calendar in layout, with columns dedicated to each family member, and there’s Gruffalo quotes featuring throughout the calendar. Added extras included 150 activity stickers and there’s also a drop down list to keep invitations and any memos that you may have. For a calendar that pleases you and the kids, this has to be a winner for being the best calendar for families with young children.
This one is a calendar, so there’s no separate columns for each family member. Having said that, it’s available in A4 and A3 size, so the individual squares are going to be fairly large. The great thing about this calendar is its personalisation, which features your family member’s names in each of the graphics throughout. You can have it made to start at any month, so you’re not paying for pages you won’t use. This one is the cheaper out of the personalised calendars but offers the same sense of family unity.
An alternative for supermums. When a calendar can’t hack the amount of activity going on in your family’s life, it’s time you invested in a planner. The fun bit is the sticker set, which you can use to mark appointments, activities and tasks. There are pages where you can tear off your shopping list and there’s even a pocket where you can store all your stray bits of paper that you’ve scribbled reminders on. If you can deal with having your family plans in a book rather than on the kitchen wall, this is a great buy.
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