The best laid plans: creating your own home planner

For years, I searched for a calendar/planner that would meet the needs of our busy homeschooling family. I even purchased a more expensive Day Timer brand product hoping the extra investment would get me a more useful tool. It just didn't work for us.

So, I decided to build my own home planner that would help our family run more smoothly. Here are the components that I used with links where you can print them out for your own use.

1) A sturdy 1.5 inch binder: I started with a cheap-o 1 inch binder from Dollar General and it broke within a couple of months. This planner will be carried, stacked, dropped, etc. so get something that will protect your investment.
2) Cover: This will distinguish your planner from other notebooks around the house. Use scrapbook papers and embellishments to make the cover a work of art that you will look forward to seeing every day. You can change it out mid year if you have a spare moment!
3) Page protectors: For pages that do not need to be modified on a regular basis, a page protector will keep them looking neat for frequent reference.
4) Adhesive tabs: Page protectors stick out further than regular paper so the usual binder dividers will not work. Make your own with adhesive tabs attached to the edge or a page protector.
5) Section 1: Calendar-- I modified the templates available on Wincalendar.com. I increased the size of the calendar cells and added a section for notes each month. You can download my modified version here.

I'll add more tips and downloads as I complete my 2012 home planner.