BusyBodyBook Organizer - Review (Giveaway Closed)

I'm a planner. Every week I make a grocery list, a menu plan, and a to-do list. The problem was that I didn't organize my lists in such a way that the tasks actually got done. Then I had a chance to try the BusyBodyBook Personal & Family Organizer.

Let me start by saying that, although I received a review copy of the 2009 Personal & Family Organizer at no cost to me, I love this book so much that I have every intention of ordering the 2010 book.

The Organizer has five columns, which can be used for multiple family members or any other categories you like. I debated between using it for planning homeschool lessons (one column per subject area) and using it for my own daily schedule. I decided to try it for my daily schedule.

I labeled the five columns for Appointments/Errands/Time-Sensitive items; House and Laundry; Kitchen and Food Prep; Online; and Homeschool/Personal. I wrote my menu plan in the Kitchen/Food Prep column, and it also includes prep tasks like starting the sponge for sourdough bread. I think the rest are self-explanatory.

(Don't mind my sloppy handwriting!)

I found that, by dividing tasks into categories like this, almost everything got done. And the most important things--like appointments and payments--were never missed. I use the Online column to plan my blogging, so I don't get caught at the last minute with a planned post unwritten. I've also been using the book for recording notes such as how much I spent online. I cropped this image because the next line included a reminder to order a birthday gift, and I'd noted the cost; I later transferred the information to our budget calendar, and I could find it since it wasn't on a scrap of paper!

The Organizer also includes tear-out pages for to-do lists (or grocery lists), as well as pages for notes, birthday and anniversary reminders, and appointments for next year. (I love that. We often schedule our January dentist appointments in July, and I never had a good place to record those so that we'd remember!)

Another advantage of the BusyBodyBook Organizer is that you can change the column headings from week to week, if you like; if your summer schedule is different from your school-year schedule, you can re-allocate the columns to work better for you. I love the flexibility of this planner!

The BusyBodyBook Organizers are available for the calendar year or the academic year (August to August). The company also offers a 7-column undated weekly grid pad (make your own calendar, with 7 columns) and a 7-column wall calendar.

Would you like to have one of these planners? Or maybe the wall calendar would work better for your family. Either way, there are two great ways to get one for yourself.

Buy it: Click over to the BusyBodyBook site and order one (or more!). These are not only great for household planning, but they'd be useful for students, too.

Win it: One reader will win a product of his or her choice from BusyBodyBook. Here's how to enter:

This giveaway is closed. Congratulations to Tricia!

Just leave me a comment to let me know which BusyBodyBook product most appeals to you and why. Be sure to leave a way for me to contact you. Limit 1 entry by this method. This must be done in order to qualify for extra entries.

Here's how you can earn additional entries (please leave one comment per entry):

• Leave a comment to tell me which of the organizer cover designs you like best. (1 entry)
• Leave a comment to let me know which feature of the organizer, weekly grid pad, or wall calendar you like best. (1 entry)
• Enter a giveaway at another Back to School Bash participating blog. (1 entry per blog)
• Subscribe to my feed in a feed reader or by email. Leave an extra comment to let me know you've done this. If you already subscribe, leave a comment to let me know. (1 entry)
• Blog about this giveaway with a link back to this post. Leave a comment with a link to your blog post. (1 entry)

More details: Open to residents of USA, age 18 or older. Giveaway ends Thursday 8/20/09 at noon (Eastern time). Winner will be chosen by the random number generator at Random.org. Winner will be contacted by email and must claim the prize within 72 hours, or another winner will be chosen. Void where prohibited.
Good luck, and thanks for reading!