Day Planners for Moms: FamilyTimeMine (and a Double Giveaway)

When I started yakking about my favorite day planners over at Lilting House a long while back, I had no idea what I was starting. Look at this:

That's just this week's searches, and only the top chunk of the list. I let go of the Grab button too soon and didn't feel like redoing it.

It seems I'm not the only one with a planner obsession.

I also learned that if you review them, they will come. I wound up with more planners than you could shake a Bic at. (Har.)

Here's one with lots to like about it: the FamilyTime.Mine day planner. The company sent me two sizes to look at: a purse-sized 5 1/2" x 8" model, and an 8 1/2" x 11" model. (I'll be giving them away at the end of this post.) Both are spiral bound, which I've decided is my preference for a planner. I really need to be able to fold back the cover for easy writing. The front and back covers are sturdy plastic, also a plus. I like the colorful confetti design on the little one. Actually, they're both quite festive. The colors on the larger one (this is the "Collage" pattern) are brighter than they appear in this image.

Okay, these images are not to scale. The one on the left, Collage, is the 8 1/2 x 11" model. There are other cover designs available, too.

Enough about the outside! Open them up, and the first two pages are a heavy card stock, folded so there's a large flap on the left-hand side. I have the August 2007-Dec. 2008 versions, so the flaps read "Fall 2007" and "Winter 2007." I assume the 2008 version has front flaps for Winter and Spring. Open the flap and you have a fold-out grid for writing out your weekly master schedule. In the back of the planner are two more of these folded card-stock pages, with two more seasons' worth of master schedule grids. This is a pretty nifty feature, I must say. The flaps do add a little bulk to the planner, but these are skinny planners compared to other brands on the market, so even with the flaps they are not unwieldy at all.

(Click image to enlarge.) The weekly schedule on the left is the folded-over part of the flap.

Apart from these master schedule pages, the paper is thin. I haven't pen-tested these but I'm guessing there's bound to be some bleed-through. I'm a felt-tip pen kind of girl (or better yet, fountain pens), so thin paper makes me crazy. This is the only major strike against the FamilyTimeMine, but for me it's a biggie.

After some instructional and promo pages (which you could tear out), there's a page for personal info, emergency numbers, and holiday dates. On the other side of that begin the monthly and weekly calendar spreads. This planner has the monthly spreads inserted before each month's set of weekly pages (as opposed to the MomAgenda which has all the monthly spreads together up front, a feature I am wildly fond of).

The monthly spreads are nice and clean, with big clear boxes. (REALLY big, in the 8 1/2 x 11" version.)

The weekly pages are a page per week (not a spread per week).

You'll note it's a Monday-through-Sunday week.

The gray columns on the side of each page are a perforated list area. You can tear these off or fold them over. That's a neat feature, although I'm not crazy about the fact that every page is perforated (including the monthly calendar grids—not the card-stock flap pages, of course). Call me picky, but I don't like the perforation running down the line between Sunday and Monday on the monthly calendar.

It's a clean, functional format, though, with lots of writing space and little visual clutter. There are teeny tiny quotes at the bottom of each weekly grid.

Back-of-the-book extra pages include a babysitter info page, a kind of personal yellow pages space, some pages for recording phone numbers & email addresses, and two blank lined pages for notes.

Behind the two final flappy card-stock master schedule pages is a page of FlyLadyesque stickers for birthdays, bills, holidays, vacation, Important! events, ball games, and other events for which you might enjoy a colorful reminder. The back cover (that nice sturdy plastic again) has a very nice side pocket for tucking stuff into. I think I would prefer a bottom pocket, but this is still quite a nice feature.

Checking around, I see prices ranging from $10.15 (for the smaller size, at Amazon) to $16.99 (for the larger size, at Calendars.com). (The larger size seems to be about $13 at Amazon.)

Giveaway time! Leave a comment on this post and I'll enter you in a drawing for one of these two planners. I'm giving them both away, so if you have a size preference, include that in your comment. The first winner I draw will get to pick which size he or she gets. I'll hold the drawing on Monday, December 17, for a sort of hobbity reason. That ought to give me time to mail these to the winners before New Year's. (But remember, these are the August 2007-December 2008 models, so you'll probably want to tear out a bunch of pages in the front.)

Next up: the Bizzimom planner.

Other planners reviewed at Lilting House (this is the index page; scroll down to find the review you want):

MomAgenda
Catholic Woman's Daily Planner
BusyBodyBook
Mom's Daily Planner
A Circle of Days (Small Meadow Press)   

Comments

[Jo]

I'd like to enter! I've been looking unsuccessfully for a new planner. I hadn't seen this one before--thanks for the review.

[Laura]

Thanks for the review! I am currently searching for the "perfect planner." And, I would like to enter the drawing!

[monica]

i would like to be in a drawing for the purse sized one. i actually took a note book and drew in my own planner because i couldnt find one that i liked. but i think this one is what i was going for. thanks
monica

[Dani]

Please enter me in the drawing!

[Renae H]

Count me in! Either size is fine with me. Thanks for the giveaway!

[KarenDV]

I would love the larger sized one. The covers are lovely -- much nicer than my plain old black office-supply planner.

[Julie]

I dont expect you to enter me in the draw (I'm in the UK!!) but I wanted to say thank you so much for this review - I have been looking for a planner with a tear out section for ages - and they actually seem to have some on UK-Amazon!! Thanks again.

[Christine]

I would love to enter the drawing. thanks so much for the reviews.

[Mary G.]

Lissa, I'd love the 8.5x11 one as I try to keep everything in a binder so I can add pages as needed ....

Thanks for offering these up ... you're a real peach!

[Stephanie]

Count me in! I'd love to be entered in the drawing for the larger size planner. The Lord knows I need a little help in the planning department!

[Jennifer]

I'd love a new planner. I am a big fan of the FTM planners as well.

[margaret]

thank you for reviewing these.

[Michelle]

I appreciate the review, especially with the visual examples. Thanks for doing the giveaway!

Michelle

[Rebecca]

I'd like to enter, please. :)

[Activities Coordinator]

Free! Planners! Ooh, pick me! Pick me!

[Mary]

Add me. :) Please..

Mary

[Angela, MotherCrone]

Thank you for this review...I really like this. I'd love to enter!

[Ana Betty]

I'd love to enter! These reviews are so helpful, thanks so much!!

Blessings,
Betty

[KImN]

Need a new planner...enter me!

[radmama]

Oh, I'm a sucker for a new planner. Either size could work, but the larger one might be nice for our family information station in the kitchen.

[melanie]

Add me to the list. I'd love to win a planner :-)

[Sarah S. Chicken]

I've not really had a day planner before. But the whole calendar-on-the-fridge doesn't seem to be working as well as I might hope. Perhaps I could have the small one? Hopefully it would round out my purse and make me a more organized mommy. Thanks for the giveaway!

[Elizabeth]

I'll enter because 12/17 is my birthday.

[Chelsea]

I love those! Perfect timing, mine is just ending and I need a new one!

[patience]

That is a great planner! But don't enter me into the competition, can you imagine the postage if I won?!!

Btw, how do you get the search information for your weblog?