Dear FlyLady,

Happy New Year! Yes, in September. I feel like I have three opportunities per year to start over. January, of course, then June when school lets out, and again in September when school starts again. I make new lists, I get back to my Control Journal, and I try to get routines and menu plans re-established before the chaos of the holidays throws everything awry again.

Since the FlyLady calendar starts in August, I know you see the importance of a new Fall start also.Our school district sends out a yearly calendar with the whole year in very tiny, color-coded boxes, with a long legend next to it. It’s impossible to read at a glance, so I’ve always transferred it to my FlyLady calendar, and then scolded my too-busy DD for not doing the same. This year she has 3 children in all 3 schools, from her Kindergartener to her Senior. Holidays and special events always take her by surprise because she doesn’t read her chart.

Not this year! This year, when I ordered my big Flylady calendar, I ordered her the small one. I filled it out with everything on the school calendar, using different colors to make events stand out. Days off are now an eye-catching yellow, Kindergarten events are pink, and the older kids can now take ownership of their midterm and endterm deadlines highlighted in blue.
I
love that I can do the whole school year and not have to spend time doing it all again in January with a new calendar. I even added birthdays, so no surprises there, either. And there’s plenty of room left for her to enter all the other stuff, like ball games.I was a bit afraid she’d see it as criticism, but she was thrilled with it! Thanks for the new small calendar. Now I can afford to help her every year.

And thanks for all your gentle words of encouragement that keep all your flybabies fluttering.

A Utah Flybaby