As parents it can be a real challenge to keep up with the busy schedules of every member of the family. Especially as kids get older, you might feel like everyone is going in a different direction!

I recommend creating a Family Calendar on a large (around 3 x 2 feet) whiteboard and posting it in a prominent place in the house. Having a visual reminder of the appointments and events for each member of the family can create more structure and accountability. And even if you just have young children, posting the schedules of both you and your partner can add ease when coordinating childcare, doctor’s appointments and family events.

Here are some tips for making your own Family Calendar:

On the top half of the board, draw a permanent grid in black marker to hold dates for two weeks. In the lower half of the board draw one section titled “Family Goals” and another titled “Notes.”

In the calendar section of the board, you can enter the upcoming dates in erasable marker. Assign a different erasable pen color for each family member and one for the family as a whole. Every other Sunday evening after dinner, ask family members for their upcoming events, dig through the kid’s school schedules and extracurricular activities, check your work calendar and put it all in one place! Be sure to include the times of the events to you can clarify any conflicts.

Hold a family meeting and compile goals to list in the “Family Goals” section of the board. (And stay tuned next week for a detailed post on creating family goals for the New Year!) To make sure you are successful with your goals, revisit Set yourself up for success with better goal setting. In our family, we have listed goals like: Raise the money to buy a new Mac Book Pro by Jan. 1st, Organize the basement and get rid of boxes by March 1st, Sign up Liam for Community Center Art Class by Feb. 15th.

For the “Notes” section of your board, create a system where family members can jot down a missed phone call, reminder or other request. Keep it current by erasing items when they are complete.

For our family, the Family Calendar has allowed us to feel like we are working together instead of vying for time apart. Every member’s needs are taken into consideration as we work to manage our time in a respectful way. This teaches important relationship skills to kids like teamwork and communication. It also makes it easier to track where your time is going and prioritize when you feel overwhelmed. And scheduling all-family events on the calendar helps you reserve time together, a precious gift!

How do you coordinate your own family’s scheduling needs?

Have you noticed that despite the fact that there are 24 hours in each day, the mantra of our society seems to be “I don’t have enough time!” How often do you find yourself thinking that very thought or saying those words?

Let’s face it: as parents, we are very busy. We not only work, maintain our home lives, keep up with family and social connections and meet our own daily survival needs, we also take care of all the needs of little -- often demanding -- people!

How can you make better use of your own 24 hours?

Get organized! So much time lost is actually time wasted from not being efficient.

• Cook meals that will leave leftovers for another dinner or for lunches. Have a “stock” grocery and household staples list you always need to purchase and plan meals for the week before your shop.

• Arrange your work schedule so you don’t drive in traffic every day. If you do drive in traffic, listen to books on tape, learn a language or listen to relaxing music.

• Stagger your work schedule with your partner’s work schedule a couple of days a week so that you have some self-time after or before work.

• Efficiently plan errands. No more driving all over town for just one errand!

• Schedule your week on a family calendar with each family member’s activities for ease of planning. We have a big dry-erase board in our kitchen.

• Keep two to-do lists: one master list for bigger goals and one weekly list for more urgent to-dos.

• Go over and revise your priority list every week. Eliminate what you can and be very clear about what is most important so you can focus.

• Keep a list of holidays/birthdays. Shop ahead and store gifts, already wrapped. This saves both money and time. If you go to lots of kid’s birthday parties, choose a couple of really meaningful items and buy several at a time. A well-written storybook or art activity makes a great gift for most kids.

Track your time to better understand how you are using it. For one week, track your time and notice in particular the time traps, activities that take more time than you realize or intend. For example, you might not realize you spend three hours per week on Facebook, two hours per week driving for errands or one hour per week on the phone with a friend you don’t even enjoy talking to that much. By getting clear about where your time is going, you can make more conscious decisions about how you really want to invest your precious time.

Eliminate some 'have-to's': You do them because you feel you should but often end up feeling irritated or resentful. We all have chores in our lives that we don’t enjoy, but sometimes we are doing things out of obligation that are not even necessary. For example: volunteering at your kid’s school at every event, scrubbing the toilet every week (other people live in your house too - they can take a turn!), or spending time with a friend that you have out-grown or who brings you down. All these activities can be draining! Be willing to say no more often, let go of what you can and ask for help.

It is important to realize that no matter how busy you are, you do have choices. Sometimes, in the hardest of circumstances, the only choice you may have is your attitude, but even that can be time saving. Have you ever noticed how much faster a chore goes when you are happily singing along to the radio instead of complaining and dragging your feet?

Do you ever walk into the grocery store and feel totally overwhelmed with all of the choices? How do you choose healthier foods for your family, without reading every food label and spending three hours at the store?

The good news is, just as there are strategies for shopping on a budget (don't shop hungry, use a list) a few rules of thumb can get you well on your way to making healthier food choices with less time poring over ingredient labels.

1. Stick to the edges. Every grocery store is laid out in a similar fashion. Fresh foods (fruits, vegetables, breads, meats) are always on the outer perimeter of the store, and canned or packaged foods are always kept in the center aisles. Fresh foods spoil within a couple days, so they must be easily accessible for quick replacement. But how often do you think the grocery store replaces canned goods and potato chips in the middle of the store? If these foods are not purchased by consumers, they may stay on the shelves for months, even years! So they are kept in the middle of the store, only to be accessed when absolutely necessary. Most often, these foods stay fresh because they contain a high number of preservatives, additives and trans-fatty acids to extend their shelf life. Aim to buy at least 75% of your groceries on the perimeter of the store.


2. Look for foods with fewer ingredients.This is the easiest rule of thumb to follow. The more ingredients a food contains, the more likely it is that food has been stuffed full of unhealthy and unnatural chemicals and preservatives. (If you can't pronounce the ingredients, this same rule usually applies.) For example, compare a bag of Boulder Canyon Totally Natural kettle chips (3 ingredients) to Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream potato chips (23 ingredients). And I could only pronounce a few of those 23 ingredients!


3. Choose fresh, frozen or canned fruits and vegetables, preferably in that order. Fresh produce is always best, but less well-known is the fact that frozen fruits and veggies run a very close second. Frozen veggies can hold their nutritional value for a long time, and you can avoid the high sodium content in canned goods.


4. Choose 100% whole grain or whole wheat for breads, cereals and crackers. This will usually be displayed on the front of the package, so it can be an easy way to sort through 25 overwhelming choices of bread at the store.

Good luck, and I hope you spend less time and have more fun on your next trip to the grocery store!