Well, after my vacation some of you may have thought I’d give up my habit of blogging, but I’m BAAAACCCKK!!! :) We had a wonderful time but while we were gone I realized that I had missed some friend’s birthdays that occurred either during the trip or this week and I didn’t have cards or anything for them. SO, I thought I’d share with you a system that I’ve just started to help remember those dates. It’s not tried and true yet because I’m just starting it, but I’m hoping that some of you might like to share what you do to help remember important dates and then we can all learn from each other.
A while back I got a little birthday book from my friends at www.buttonedup.com and I finally sat down and filled it out recently. It’s just pocket-sized, so it fits anywhere, and it has a tab for each month, and several lines for each date of each month. I pulled up Facebook events and went through and recorded those extra-special birthdates on each date. Now I’m going through and trying to get family members and other special dates that aren’t on FB – like anniversaries of close friends, their kids’ birthdays, etc. It’s a process, but I’m hoping that in a couple of days I’ll have my book completed, and then I can make it a habit when I plan my grocery list for the first week of the month to look and see what birthdays and anniversaries are coming up that month so I can buy cards for the whole month at one time… that way I’m not frantic because I forgot that so-and-so’s birthday is in two days.
Also did you know that you can select in your settings on Facebook to have it send you an email reminder the beginning of each week to tell you which friends are having birthdays that week? I just discovered that one recently, as well. That’s helpful so you don’t forget the ones who you’re friends with but not close enough to send a card – just to drop a note via FB on their special day.
Another thing that’s easy to forget is those bi-annual or annual dr. appointments. It’s hard to want to go in the first place, so it’s easy to forget to conveniently call and schedule your appointment. Then you end up with vision problems or a cavity in your tooth and you kick yourself because prevention would have been far less painful and expensive. Worse yet, if it’s an appointment for your child or pet you might not even realize there’s a problem before you are way past simple repair even. It’s difficult however, to schedule appointments when you are there because it’s so far out, so I always say, “oh, I’ll call you.” Here’s how I remember to call: As soon as the appointment is finished, go home and pull out your calendar. If it’s a six-month appointment, I make a note five months to the day from my appointment that says to call and make the appointment. Then I know better what my schedule will be in the next month, and I can make sure that I don’t forget when to do it. If your appointment crosses the calendar (for example if it’s an annual appointment, or one in the fall to call back in the spring), make a note at the back of the calendar that’s “as big as Texas” that says what date you need to call and set up the appointment. That way when you get your new calendar you can check the notes page and see what things you need to add. Many calendars have a mini calendar for the next year in the back – circle the date and put a sticky note on the page so you don’t forget what you are supposed to do on that day!
And there’s one other important day that you need to remember if you are married – and especially if you have kids. That important day is date night. You must remember to take time for just you and your spouse, and it’s hard to schedule that in when you’ve got busy schedules – especially if the kids are running here and there with sports and what-not. I know some couples try to make date night once a week but the problem with that is that other things get in the way and then they end up giving up the idea. SO here’s what I intend to make work when we have kids – date night once a month. The third Saturday or the first Monday or the second Friday. Figure out when it’s going to be and STICK TO IT. Don’t plan anything else for that night. One couple I know has a partner couple and that’s how it works for them – my friends have date night the first Saturday night of the month and their friends have date night the third Friday night of the month. On date night they take their kids over to the friends’ house and they have a family game night. Whether it’s Rock Band or board games, the parents have committed to playing games as a family with the other family’s kids included. Then they switch. It’s been awesome for both couples and it’s great for the kids because they feel like they have FOUR supportive adults they can turn to for advice, etc. All in all, for them it’s a win-win. Just remember that just like I’ve “preached” about the importance of “me” time and “we” time with your family, you also need “just us” time with your spouse. That’s VITAL to the health of your marriage.
Remembering important dates is all about organizing your schedule and taking time to make time for your friends, your health, and the health of your marriage. You can do it!!!!!
(If you haven’t figured out by now, it’s really important that you invest in a good planner… you can get cheap ones at WalMart or expensive ones at Barnes and Noble or electronic ones that are apps for your smartphone… I don’t care where you get it or what it looks like… you need one!)
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