Monday, December 26, 2016

How to Set Up a Planner

As the New Year approaches, plannerds everywhere are setting up day planners.

Even here at Giftie Etcetera, the new year means some tweaks to my planner. The most critical change is that I am moving back to a running to-do list.



to do list, planner, planner set up, tasks, calendar, daily pages



Sunday, November 13, 2016

How to Use a Personal Planner for Work and Project Management

I've been blogging about how to use a planner a lot less lately because I've been working at my big girl job a lot more often.


planner, paper, projects



Sunday, October 9, 2016

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Hints for Using a Notebook with a Planner

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As an advocate of one planner for one life, it might surprise my Loyal Readers to learn that I use a notebook at work. 


notes, work, work-life balance, notebook, notebooks, to do lists



Monday, August 29, 2016

How to Use a Planner to Survive the Chaos of a Natural Disaster

If you aren't familiar with this blog, I mostly write about day planners. In fact, Giftie Etcetera has a pretty active Facebook group where we discuss getting and keeping our lives in order. 

When my hometown in Louisiana flooded in a massive, 3-day rainstorm, the group kept talking about planners and order in general. 


That is, they did until one member said that her house flooded and she was stuck. Her planner wasn't good enough for the to-do list that grows so long and massive after your home is completely ruined. 



Louisiana Flood, Louisiana Flood 2016, survival, planner, plan for survival



Monday, August 22, 2016

The First Page in Your Planner

Things have been crazy here in Louisiana. But in my planner, things have been pretty routine.

The system that I use on the first page of my planner gets a lot of credit for that routine in the midst of chaos.



planner, planner daily tasks, daily routine, graph chart, graph paper



Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Louisiana Floods - What About the Homeless Children

Louisiana has flooded on a massive scale. 

Our state is now the "home" of over 40,000 HOMELESS households  - a number reported by CNN - and growing.

We are finding dead bodies in cars and homes as some flood waters recede.

My home was threatened, so we evacuated. My childhood home is currently sandbagged and still under threat. The picture below shows my aunt's house, but it could have shown my cousin's house, local teachers' houses, or my friends' houses.


This flood event had a 1 in a 1,000 chance of happening. Imagine that. 1 in a 1,000. People don't insure (and are not advised to insure) for a 1 in a 1,000 chance of something happening. Those with flooded houses lost everything.

Yesterday, I tried grocery shopping in the local stores. Of course, food and supplies are difficult to ship on the cracking, waterlogged interstate system, so I came home and wrote this on my private Facebook page.

But the story deserves to go public.



floods, Louisiana flood, children, parenting, homeless



Monday, August 8, 2016

Combining Daily Planner Pages with a Weekly Plan

Since I've moved to mostly daily pages in my planner, people keep asking the same question over and over - "do you also use weekly pages?"


weeklies, dailies, daily planner inserts, weekly task lists



Monday, August 1, 2016

The Cleaning Schedule in Your Planner That Will Actually Work

When I was younger, I was a history teacher. I was obsessed with the colonization of America. I thought maybe, someday, we'll colonize the moon.

Well, I have now achieved greatness by doing something I've only ever dreamed of doing.

I've colonized my home...



cleaning, cleaning schedule, housework routine, housekeeping schedule, planner pages



Friday, July 15, 2016

A Glimpse at a Typical Planner To Do List

When faced with a blank planner spread, sometimes it is difficult to decide exactly what goes on a to do list.

What belongs on today's page? Which items are important enough to list?


to do list, planner, tasks



Friday, July 1, 2016

Trust Your Planner with Your Vacation Planning

Do you bring your planner on your summer vacations? Is it too much to pack? Does it stay at home? You think you don't need a plan because it's vacation?

Big mistake!



planning, planner, vacation plans, vacation planner



Monday, June 27, 2016

5 Critical Components of an Effective Daily Plan

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Most days, I make a daily plan in my planner. You should consider doing this, at least on busy days, even if you track all upcoming stuff on a weekly spread.

franklin planner, day on two pages, planner inserts



Tuesday, June 21, 2016

How to Make All Those Lists Work in Your Planner

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If you use a planner, you probably make lists all the time. To do lists, to buy lists...lists are an organized and efficient way to plan.

A planner basically exists because of lists. 
If you just needed to write down appointments, you could simply use a calendar.


lists, to do lists, recurring lists, shopping lists, planner



Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Keeping a Monthly Master Calendar in Your Planner

Even though it's summertime, a glance at my monthly calendar shows just how overbooked I truly am at the moment.


monthly calendar, planner, monthly calendar in planner, Paris is a Good Idea Monthly Calendar



Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Tiny Tweaks That Change How To Use a Planner

If you follow my planner posts, you know I constantly make changes to the planner (but not to The System) to make my planner work better for me!


planner and pen, planner and ink, day planner, recollections planner



Monday, May 16, 2016

Maximizing the Power of the Middle of the Planner

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When you open your planner, does it serve you? Is the information that is most important right there, in front of your eyes?

middle, planner, planner spread, task lists, to do lists, context lists



Friday, May 13, 2016

4 Uses for a Free Box Printable from Planner Fun

Becky at Planner Fun teams up with Giftie Etcetera every month to offer a free printable, with a ton of new ways to use it.

This week, we are using her cool page full of boxes. So versatile. So simple. So useful.

Make sure to visit Becky's blog (link at the end of this post)! She's awesome and most of her printables are free.



free printable, planner page, planner printable



Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Closing Time - When to Stop Working the Planner at the End of the Day

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I use my planner all day long.


planner, time, time management



Thursday, May 5, 2016

The Truth About Mothering a Child with Exceptional Needs

I've drafted the first line of this post over ten times. It started as a celebration of mothers who raise kids with exceptional needs.

But that wasn't enough.


It morphed into a cutesy illustration of what moms of "normal" children can expect - footprint art, tissue paper flowers, or breakfast made from cereal and spilled milk - versus what moms of kiddos with special needs can expect.

But if a child can't remove his corrective foot braces, has inadequate fine motor skills, or had seizures pretty much every day this week, moms already know they won't be getting that traditional stuff. They don't need me to tell them (or you) that.


I owe it to the mom who stood by me in the special park (the one with a wheelchair swing and an adult-sized harness swing) - watching our two "probably have autism but doctors are nervous to label them" kids to make sure they were at least not physically mean to each other - to tell the truth.


planner, planner spread, special needs, exceptional needs



Wednesday, May 4, 2016

The Context Task List Planner Hack

I just did something so simple and so smart in my planner that I kicked myself for not doing it earlier!

to do list, weekly, tasks, context code lists
Pin This on Pinterest!!!



Monday, May 2, 2016

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

When Well-Meaning Strangers Don't See Special Needs

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Imagine you are sitting in a restaurant and a child picks up the salt shaker from the table and licks it.

Now, pretend that the parent moves the salt shaker away, but doesn't correct the child. 



parenting, special needs, exceptional needs, children, disabilities



Monday, April 25, 2016

Why You Should Be Taking Notes in Your Planner

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I love that moment when I sit down with a blank planner page. 

Filling in my schedule and listing my tasks, cup of coffee in hand, is so much more fulfilling than doing the tasks! (Truth, right?!?)


planner, notes, pen, records, medical



Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Creating Happiness in Your Planner

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I've talked about depression many times at Giftie Etcetera. One of my most popular posts ever is about depression. 

But what about happiness?

depression, happiness, planner



Tuesday, April 19, 2016

One-on-One Consultations With Giftie

***Not Currently Doing This***

***Will let you know when I am back.***

I am excited to announce that I am offering a new service at Giftie Etcetera!





I plan to offer planner, time management, or organizing advice tailored to your needs in exchange for a few cups of coffee.

To find out the details, click on Consultations.


Of course, it'll always be free to read my blog or join the conversation in the Giftie Etcetera Facebook group.

In fact, members of that group will get an exclusive discount. Join the group to find out how to collect your discount.


Etcetera.


If you enjoy what you read at Giftie Etcetera, please share on social media. Click here to join the Giftie Etcetera Facebook group.

Monday, April 18, 2016

6 Ways to Use a Free Planner Printable - 12 Month Tracker

When I team up with Becky at Planner Fun to offer free printables and new ways to use them, I am rarely stumped.

Usually, my problem is limiting myself to 6 ways to use the printable.



planner, printable, planner printable, yearly planner



Saturday, April 16, 2016

Pomodoro Time Management for Lazy Planners

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The Pomodoro Technique is a time management technique in which people basically use a timer to get themselves to get things done in brief and successive periods of time.


time management, planner



Friday, April 15, 2016

Think Differently About How You Use Your Planner

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I'm anything but traditional when it comes to planning. 

Sure, I use a monthly calendar for appointments. Sure, I make to do lists.


planner, graph paper, daily docket



Thursday, April 14, 2016

Crazy Ways to Save Money

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I try to be frugal, without sacrificing too much time or energy. 


budget, money, saving



Monday, April 11, 2016

13 Genius Items to Include in Your Planner

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Using a planner is not just about the binder or the inserts. Using a planner is about making it work for you.


planner, day on two pages, Franklin, Franklin Covey, Daytimer hot list



Sunday, April 10, 2016

Sometimes, the Village Just Needs to Hush

With some kids, it's hard for strangers to tell when children have potentially serious special needs. 


special needs, parenting, exceptional needs



Friday, April 8, 2016

Decorating a Planner With Distracting From Planning

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Let's all be brutally honest. Giftie Etcetera does not feature the prettiest planner pages on the internet.


decorated planner, planner, planners, monthly planner



Thursday, April 7, 2016

What Do People Think I Do

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Every morning, I get out of bed when my husband leaves for work. Doesn't that sound lazy and decadent?


stay-at-home, parenting, schedules



Monday, April 4, 2016

Creating Focus With a New Set-up for My Planner Dashboard

I did a complete revamp of my inside front pocket and dashboard of my planner.

See how simple and boring it looks?



planner, planners, day planners, dashboard, dashboards



Sunday, April 3, 2016

My Planner - Featured at Philofaxy

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My friends from across the pond (can an American say that?) featured me!


coffee, planner, coffee and a planner



Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Optimize the Use of Your Paper Planner (Featuring Franklin Planner Day on Two Pages Layout)

Are you using your planner to its full potential? 

Some simple tweaks to your daily layout can help you to stay organized and on task.


planner,peace, planner peace, owl magnet, hot list



Sunday, March 27, 2016

Saturday, March 26, 2016

10 Simple Steps for Copying a Video Off of Facebook

Grandparents, aunts, and uncles want to save videos of their little relatives that parents post on Facebook, but Facebook doesn't make it easy! 


facebook, technology, video, facebook videos



Thursday, March 24, 2016

How to Clean a Peanut Butter Knife

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I know some of you will read this and laugh at me.


peanut butter, cleaning, housekeeping



Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Trying a Traditional Day on Two Pages Approach to Planning

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There is a reason that traditional planner producers, like Franklin Covey, produce certain planner page layouts.


planner, day on two pages, franklin covey


Monday, March 21, 2016

Why I Added a Pen Holder to My Planner

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I can't tolerate things that stress out my planner.


planner, pen loop, pen hack



Sunday, March 20, 2016

Countdown Cleaning

In today's flashback post, I'm teaching you a simple technique for helping kids deal with chores.


chores, kids, parenting



Thursday, March 17, 2016

How to Organize a Large Tote Bag

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The level of lazy that I am capable of achieving is staggering. I try to NEVER do anything that I don't have to do.

So when I say that I carry a HUGE bag outside of the house almost every time I leave, you have to understand that it is about making life easier!



denim tote, coffee, sunglasses



Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Dividing Parenting Duties Fairly

As my family was getting dressed to leave the house for a playdate, my husband urged me to go ahead and get dressed.

"I'll take care of the kids," he said.



kids, kid in bow tie, kid outside, parenting



Monday, March 14, 2016

Using a Double-Sided Daily Page in a Planner

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People who carry planners grapple with the same question time and time again.

We need more space.

We need less weight.



frixion, green ink, planner, at-a-glance, notecard, graph paper, graph planner page

Friday, March 11, 2016

How to Use a FREE PLANNER PRINTABLE by Planner Fun

Time for Giftie Etcetera's monthly collaboration with Becky at Planner Fun, where we work together to provide you with a no-strings-attached free planner printable and some unique ways to use it!


Squares, blank planner printable, printables, planners