Creating a Family Calendar

[blainebullman]

1. Each Monday at the beginning of family home evening have each member of your family list the activities in which they will be involved during the week and which activities are coming up that month. Have children look through school assignments, extra-curricular activity schedules, and church activity schedules so that nothing is forgotten.

2. Also list upcoming extended family dinners, ward activities, work trips, family vacations, etc., on your calendar. Don’t forget to block out Monday evenings for family night.

3. Next, create a list of chores and determine how frequently these chores need to be done for your family. Assign each member of the family a week or a day for a specific chore (e.g., Week 1: Jessica empties dishwasher; Week 2: Trevor vacuums on Tuesday and dusts on Thursday). List each family member’s household responsibilities on your calendar.

4. Place your family calendar in a central location where everyone will be able to have easy access to it. Encourage your children to check the calendar often to be reminded of what is on the roster and to update it when necessary.

5. Learn to just say no when activities start mounting up. Creating a family schedule will help you manage your time, but if you simply don’t have the time, learn that sometimes “no” must be the answer.

6. Consider blocking out specific days for each family member during the month. This is a special day to do something fun with Mom and/or Dad.

[pushka]

Nice advice, Blaine