My Must-Have List for Keeping Our Family Organized

Things have picked up quite a bit this week. And honestly, it isn't school that picked up...just the fact that now there are four of us to coordinate and we all have a lot going on - okay, the baby has a only few things going on, but still. Here are some of the resourses that have proven invaluable as we move back into the daily hustle:

1. A Multi-User Calendar

I absolutely love my iCal since it syncs between my phone and my Mac. However, when the hubby switched over to Droid, we needed to find something that was compatible with both systems. I have to give him credit for finding this one:


Cozi is an online family hub complete with calendar, message center, shared To Do lists, grocery lists, meal planner, and Journal. You can use it on your computer or through the app. There are very few apps that we actually get the full version of, and after using the grocery list feature of the lite version (which is awesome because I don't have to text the hubby while I'm walking in the store asking about things he wants me to grab), we decided that the $29.99/year fee was worth it - there is also a free 14-day trial of the full version that you can test out if you don't want to commit right away.

If you are a more traditional pen-and-paper type person (I can be this too), I found an awesomely simple monthly calendar template that you can hole punch into a binder. It has been helpful for me in giving our nanny her schedule for the month. She loves having her hours ahead of time, and I love giving them ahead of time so I don't have to worry that I forgot to tell her when to show up. Everyone wins :-)

2. A Budget

I have been a Mint user since college. I'm not sure if you could really say I was "using" it because I had nan-budget in college. But I did have an account...LOL Anyway, as we pay bills, work down our student loan debt, and build our savings, this is an awesome website and phone app to keep everything straight all in one place.

3. A Baby Log

Another quick Google search find. If you are a tad bit OCD meticulous like me, this has been great for making sure the baby is eating, sleeping, and potty-ing without any problems while you are away. They do this at daycares, so why not for when your baby is kept in the home too...

4. An "Everything" Folder

Since college, I have always carried with me one durable folder/binder for all miscellaneous paperwork, mail, hardcopy To Do lists, etc. That way, if I have down time or am running errands, I don't get mad that I left something at home that needs to be turned in/faxed/etc.

5. A Cute Bag

Okay, the cute part isn't a must-have, but it doesn't hurt to tote all the millions of things you have to carry in something that looks good... I'm still in love with this one and am trying to convince myself I don't need to get it right now... sigh.

What have you all been using to stay organized? I'm always looking for new ideas!