Family Calendar? How donyou stay organized?

[Pandora]

I need a visual way to organise us all so we can quickly see if someone has something on a certain date so we ( and by we I mean DH) don't double book or claim ignorance.

Are there any good family calamders/planners/organisers? Ideally something that can gonon the fridge or be hung somewhere prominant rather than a diary ( though that would be good for me - I think Bathsheba mentioned a goo one some time ago)

[Doodlebug]

I have the MasterPlan diary. It has places in it for me to write what we each have on (me, dh, ds1 and now ds2). I keep it by the phone so if dh is ever making plans he can flick it open and see straight away where everyone is scheduled to be! Also helps with his work hours, he works retail so some Thurs nights and Saturdays.

[Vixstar]

I have a diary open on my kitchen bench and I am lost without it. It is kept in the same place all the time. I write appointments, dinner menus, birthdays, kids milestones, birth days of newborns, phone numbers / websites I hear about on the radio or tv, when the kids are given medicene (ie Bailey 1.30am 5ml paracetamol - that way DH and I don't double dose).....um what else.......EVERYTHING! Then around Nov / Dec I buy a new one for the next year and on an arvo, with a coffee, go through the current one day by day to start the new one. I find by Nov / Dec I am making appoinments etc for Jan!

I also keep them.....last Friday night I sat down and updated my 3 year olds baby book for the past 2 years by going through my prev diaries. I came across things like the day he had his last bottle, when he started saying certain words, when he stopped wearing nappies at night....it was like going back in time.

For REALLY important things I use red pen, every day stuff is black or blue and REALLY, REALLY, DON'T COME HOME WITHOUT IMPORTANT KINDA STUFF......i highlight!

I have friends who tease me about my diaries!

xxxx

[Rouge]

We all use Google Calendars. Have it synced with our macbooks and iphones. On my calendar I can see my work calendar and my home one. DH can see it too as well as me seeing his work and his home one. We also get reminders to our phone via sms from google as well as emails and reminders It works really well the only time I use the wall calendar is if I'm on the phone then it will get put into our phone/google anyway.

[Rivlas]

I have used a calendar for years. It hangs in the kitchen beside the phone. I get one that has big enough squares to write goings on in them.
I have used this system for about 20 years and it works well for us.
Tried the diary but it was never looked at.

[Astrid]

Masterplan diary here and the poor thing goes untouched. I have showed it to DH and he is just not interested. I think he does need something on the wall, we had a whiteboard one that we filled out 5 weeks at a time on and that seemed to work, well it worked till DD1 found out about whiteboards and drew all over it

[Kel001]

Hiya,
Just wanted to thank those that mentioned the Master Plan Diary - I had a look online and fell in love with it, so got myself one and one for my Mum (who is a diary freak! lol)
Thanks girls!

[Pandora]

Thanks! Yes that's the diary I'm thinking of and it would be great for me.
Dh wouldn't open it though so in addition I need something 'in his face' so to speak so that's there are no excuses - he regularly organises to do things after I've told him I have plans. And guess who's plans get cancelled?