Have you vowed to get organized in 2010?
Is this the year when you will finally have all of your family’s important information safely in one place?
If so, you’re not alone. I typically begin each new year with a trip to my closest big box store to buy my new planner. This year will be the year I find one that includes all of what I need and none of what I don’t. I’ll like the stylish cover, the pages will ask all of the right questions, and my organization problems will be solved.
But that never happens. Inevitably I come home having spent a bit too much on a planner that is a bit too inadequate. And what happens next? I don’t utilize the planner I’ve purchased and another year of disorganization begins…
Not this year! I reached out to Molly from GO MOM! on Twitter to let her know that I would love to check out her new DIY GO MOM! Planner and then review it right here. I expected to be happy with the planner. I love Molly’s GO MOM! site and so expected nothing but greatness from her new downloadable planner, but I was surprised just how many aspects of this new planner I love.
The Basics
The DIY GO MOM! Planner takes the popular planner designed by organization expert and mom, Molly Gold, and transforms it into a downloadable, PDF-version that is fully customizable. Rather than pay a premium for a bulky planner that suits your needs – but fills up your space with extra pages or lacks some of what you want – with the DIY GO MOM! Planner, you choose which pages to print and how many. Ready to bind your pages? Molly’s tips enable you to get creative and find the best way to organize your planner pages.
What’s Included
Calendar Pages = Monthly + Weekly Calendars
-Monthly: 12 Dated Monthly Pages 2010 with Holidays
-Weekly: Undated Weekly Pages applying our popular GO MOM!® format
Resource Pages= 22 pages total
-GO MOM!® Mom’s Corner
-Menu Minder®
-Grocery List
-Time for Takeout
-Magic Moments
-Celebrations Record
-Gifts on the Go!
-Time to Entertain
-GO MOM!® Contacts
-Home Sweet Home Directory
-Vehicle Directory
-School Contacts
-Child Contacts
-GO MOM® Kids
-Directions Diary
-Activities on the GO!
-Sports on the GO!
-GO MOM!® Out and About
-Babysitter Contacts
-Babysitter Guide
-Emergency Directory
-Emergency ID
-GO MOM!® Medical Resources
-Medical Authorization Form
-Medical Summary Parents
-Medical Summary Child
-Medical Summary Pet
My GO MOM! Planner
After I downloaded my planner file from the
DIY GO MOM! link, I went through page by page printing only the pages I need right now. For the first time ever, my planner will not be cluttered by empty pages.
I even chose to print more than one weekly planner per page in order to cover every week in the month using less paper. Finally, I used my three-hole punch leftover from my teaching days to prepare my pages for the three-ring binder I purchased. I found an inexpensive binder that was not only useful, but beautiful as well and also contains pockets for smaller notes I’d like to contain in my planner.
Why I Love This Planner
1. No Need for White Out! My plans change. Frequently. I write down playdates only to scribble them out when a child gets sick. Clients tentatively book events on multiple dates causing me to checker my pages with X’s and O’s. With this planner, an incredibly month doesn’t need to become chaotic. I can simply print that month out again and start with a fresh page!
2. Waste Not, Want Not I cannot say enough about the fact that this planner allows me to choose the pages I want to print. My kids are three and five, so not every page available is a fit for our lives right now. The ability to select only the pages that I need is simply genius.
3. Get Creative Taking an active role in assembling my DIY GO MOM! Planner inspired me to be creative with how I assembled it. As I mentioned, I chose to print four weekly calendars to a page, allowing me to slide one sheet behind each month for more detailed daily planning. I also noticed that some of the pages house information that I normally have access to in my wallet (insurance information, for example), but that my husband never has access to. By going back to the planner and finding the pages that would be most helpful for him to have when I am travelling, I was able to create a mini-planner fully customized for a second caregiver for my kids without leaving my entire planner behind.
What I’d Like to See
In the future GO MOM! plans to make additional bundles available to accompany the DIY Planner, and I am looking forward to see what will be offered. I’d also love to see a version of this planner that follows the school year rather than the calendar year! Also, while I was able to play with my planner to customize the size somewhat, I also look forward to other size options in the future. The 8.5 x 11 paper size certainly is easiest for most to print, but I did see some cute binders in other sizes. Can I help it if a girl loves to shop?
This Planner Is For You If…you have been frustrated or disappointed in the past with your planner purchases. The planner pages created by Molly Gold are perfect for my work-at-home mom lifestyle, so it will likely fit the needs of many other families. The DIY GO MOM! Planner is also great for crafty types. I enjoyed purchasing a cute little three-ring binder at Target, but I’m sure that many of you would make a beautiful cover of your own with family photos or a cute scrapbook page.
This Planner Is Not For You If…you want to just buy a planner and be done with it. Admittedly, downloading, printing, and placing the planner pages in the binder was incredibly quick and easy, but there are likely some of you who would buy the file and never actually download and print it out. Perhaps add better follow-through to your resolution list for 2010? 😉