BusyBodyBook: Personal and Family Organizers
Tuesday, December 13, 2011 at 10:22PM 
Congratulations Emerald, Lindsey and LoriAnn! You were the random winners chosen. Watch your inbox. I'll be contacting you shortly!
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I admit it, one of my favorite parts of the arriving new year is the excellent excuse to purchase a new planner and calendar. Some girls have a weakness for shoes...mine? It's planners.
A few years ago, I discovered Joan's BusyBodyBook family organizers in the form of a magnetic family grid organizer. I immediately put it to use on our refrigerator to dole out daily chores for the girls. Each Sunday night, I sat down with the organizer, swapped around names and jobs, and posted the chart for week. After months (years?) of whining over who had to feed the barn cats, and who collected eggs, and who did it the day before, and isn't it someone else's turn today? ...the simple grid system wiped out the whining. Bingo.
And then this year, I discovered Joan's BusyBodyBook wall calendar that utilized the same grid system. I immediately sent her an email and I asked if I could try it out. I was feeling frustrated with my lesson plan system for homeschooling. I wanted to simplify and I wanted to see the whole week laid out in front of me. Joan's calendar, with its grids and plenty of space to write has been the perfect thing. I can keep track of each of the girls' assignments and even have room for a column of any appointments or "out and about" activities. It's been just the system I was looking for.
Using Joan's designs, and family and personal organizing systems, is like getting advice from a friend who's got it all together. For me, the calendars and grids are simple, functional, but easily personalized to whatever your lesson-planning or appointment-making or meal-planning or chore-doling needs are.
Joan is graciously giving away one product (winner's choice!) from the BusyBodyBook shop to three MommyCoddleLikes readers. (US Only)To be entered leave a comment letting me know what you love most about the fresh start of a new year, or which of the BusyBodyBook planners and organizers would be the most helpful to you and your family. The 3 winners will be randomly chosen and announced at the top of this post on Sunday.
Also, be sure to check out the BusyBodyBook website, where you can download a free copy of the grids to see how they can work for your family.
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Note: Right now, Academic and Wall Calendars are 50% off with code: BBBACA.
And all 2012s are 10% off with code BBB2012.
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Joan sent me a copy of a Wall Calendar and a fresh magnetic fridge grid in order to write this review.
Reader Comments (34)
I *heart* new planners too! A new planner/calendar is like being able to start the new year with a clean slate and that always feels good. :D
I struggle with staying on task, being organized and remembering all the details of my day. The new year means I can start over with new ideas for getting my kids to eat more and differently. New ways to save money and retrain myself to not want soooooo much coffee. A new planner would be very helpful.
My 6 year old suddenly has quite a social calendar...a new planner is just what I need!
I would love the blueberry BusyBodyBook Personal & Family Organizer. I have so many scraps of paper written everywhere and paper clipped into my pocket calendar that it is all but impossible to figure out what the heck I'm doing. I love that she has a space to actually write those all important notes and lists.
i love organization! i have so many lists and notebooks i keep packed full of ideas and to dos. the best part of the new year is seeing everyone else with a positive outlook that things will be great this year. it inspires me to see everyone so happy.
Maybe this would work for me! I need something . . . Thanks for the chance!
Like you, I love a nice fresh clean notebook. I keep meaning to sit down and plan out some craft projects for next year, so this would be good for that.
I've been looking for something to help me keep track of my busy boys...this might be perfect!
I love the freshness of a new year. A calendar without to much written in -yet....
And the hope of it being a good year with the wonder of what may lie ahead.
I often buy several calendars until I finally settle on one. Looks like this one is a winner!
What a great giveaway! Thank you for the chance.
My favorite part of the new year beginning is the feeling of a fresh start and a clean slate. It makes me feel so energized and hopeful.
My favorite thing about New Years is, well the newness of it. I like the feeling of starting over, a clean slate, and all the worries, stresses, and pains of the past year are just that-in the past. Even though all of those things aren't REALLY gone, the New Year makes me more optimistic about things to come, instead of things that have already happened.
I really like making new years resolutions, although that may not be the best name for what I actually do. This year I have quite a list: Train for a triathlon (inspired by my mom), join a book club and can our own tomato sauce. Thanks for the chance to win!
I love starting the new year with a clean journal and calendar. It feels like such a fresh start. Off to shop a bit now at her store
A start of a new year means looking at seed catalogs and day dreaming of new beginnings...
wow, that looks like a great planner for my family as well!
The magnetic family grid organizer looks exactly like what we need!
These look great! As we are getting busier and my memory is getting worse, I need to commit to keeping an organizer up to date!
the new year brings a lovely opportunity to organize in a new way;) thanks for the giveaway
the fridge is our central organizational tool;)
Once the Christmas goodies are stashed back into the attic and my house looks like it's pre-December self I get back to business. Fresh start with the homeschool schedule( once again!), fresh flowers, rearrange furniture, oh our whole home seems new and clean and exciting ! All of it!
I love a new planner and that grid organizer looks perfect.
I haven't used a planner in a while (College maybe?), but with all the chores, errands and events a the family has going on now days I think keeping tabs in a planner would be a great idea!
love the busybody organizer calendar! just brilliant! Thanks for the opportunity to win. I love new years-- a second chance along with birthdays, to forgive any failures of the past and to start anew with good intentions, bright hopes and big plans!
I, too, love a planner and this one looks like a winner! The new year inspires me to take on larger projects around the house--spring and summer are for the yard and outdoor activities, fall is for the kids, winter is for me!
With the new year comes anticipation. I'm already thumbing through seed and chicken catalogs planning new things. With five kiddos 11 and under and a booming homestead I need to focus on organization.
I love the magnectic one! That way my husband can see it too and stop saying, "well ,I didn't know about that"! :)
The undated big wall grids sound wonderful! I don't need one every week, but when I have a busy week, I like to be able to plan it all out. And for that I like paper rather than computer calendars.
I try to be so.... organized but often forget the 1 or 2 things I really meant to do that day. Or, like yesterday, I took my child to the wrong hockey lesson (9 year old giant with six 5 year old tikes! - it worked but was kind of a shocker at first!) Would love this give-away!
I share your love...maybe it's genetic. Have you seen those huge wall calendars like Meemu has? Thinking of trying that this year, but I love my bag sized planner for me. And the other thing...I hate to throw them out! They are little museums of my year.xo
It is a fresh start feeling for me and I am loving the dated weekly planner.
I love the possibilities of a new year, especially the possibility that I might be organized.... :) We're starting homeschool for our 4 kids in January so this would be perfect as I'm plotting out their 4 different goals for learning. And maybe some space for the garden and chickens too. Thanks for the chance!
With 4 kids and a small business to keep track of I seem to always be on the lookout for new organizing methods! I would love to try the magnetic grid , it would be nice for us all to be able to see what the rest of the family is up to!
I love the fresh start of a new year. Everything is full of possibility and promise!
I love a New Year because it's a new chance to start over. I can learn from the mistakes I made the previous year.