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I am so thrilled to be bringing back one of my all time favorite Gabbing Girl’s Jennifer. If you missed it before Jennifer shared an amazing DIY for gifts for girlfriends of neighbors! I love my self a great DIY so I am excited to try what she chats about below myself ASAP!

Getting Organized:  DIY magnetic calendar and menu planner

by guest blogger Jennifer Wise

In my line of work, I talk to a lot of people about their pictures.  When we talk about preserving them, there are usually two big obstacles to get over first:  organizing them and setting aside time for them.  So although I’m really in the memory-keeping business, these days I find I spend a fair amount of time reading about, developing, and sharing time management tips!  (In fact, I’ve started a great little collection of them at this link!)

Besides, I am kind of an organization freak myself, so I always have new ideas and tricks swimming around in the back of my mind about how to be more productive and use my time more wisely.  I’m really excited to share one of my favorites with you today.

I’m absolutely thrilled to be a guest blogger with Gabbing Ginger once again so that I can share with you a really fun, creative DIY project that will help you manage either your calendar or your menu a little better—or both!  Couldn’t we all use a little extra help there??

I’m going to show you how to make a 12×18 “car magnet” into a family calendar and/or a menu planner for your fridge!  Yep, really!  The surface of these particular car magnets makes them writable with a dry erase marker.  So that means that we can get clever with them—we can turn them into calendars and planners (and more)!

“A man who dares waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.”  – Charles Darwin

I don’t know about you, but we are always running every which way, so coordination within our family is an absolute must.  Who is driving him to basketball practice, and what time do we all need to be at her awards ceremony?  I keep my own calendar, of course, but having one for the whole family in one central place is a huge help!

One thing that can really help with time management is meal planning.  Planning meals out ahead of time has several benefits!  First, you usually eat healthier rather than just stopping for fast food or chowing down on whatever’s convenient.  Second, you can save huge amounts of time by consolidating your shopping trips.  If you have things planned out for the week, you can get by with just going to the store once (or maybe twice) a week instead of several small trips here and there that always add up to more time than we really think.  Meal planning and shopping trip consolidation are a HUGE time-saver!  I love this magnetic meal planner.

“Those who prepare create their own luck.”  -anonymous

I’m going to show you how to make a family calendar today, but the same technique can be used for a menu planner.  It could be used for a personal daily planner, too!

Some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten about time is that if something takes longer than 15 minutes, it should be on your calendar.  So even little things like sitting down to pay bills should be an agenda item.  For me, when I don’t include those “little” things on my daily to-do list, I feel like I’m overscheduled and overrun because I’m filling my day with all these “little” things that I didn’t make time for, but I only feel like I’ve truly accomplished the ones I can cross off.  I really like this daily agenda magnet for that very purpose.

I’ve even used these car magnets for a vision board!  Then I don’t have to make a new one every year—I can just erase.  So lovely on my file cabinet!

NOTE:  I’ve found that the surface of the car magnets are best cleaned with a spray cleaner specifically for a dry-erase board, especially if you’ve left the dry-erase marker on the magnet for longer than a day or two.  

So you’re probably thinking, “How on earth do I make a magnet?”  The good news is that you don’t have to have access to magnets of any kind!  This project only requires a computer!  You actually just create the design digitally online (or use a template), then the magnet is printed up for you and shipped to your door in about 7-10 days.

Magnets like this are obviously great for both personal and family organization and planning, but they do make great gifts as well.  They are 12”x18”, as I mentioned, and run about $30 (plus shipping).

And guess what!  I’ve made a special video just for Gabbing Ginger readers that walks you through the DIY portion of these magnets (the digitally creating part)!  Once you hit the “publish” button all you do is wait for the UPS guy.  It’s DIY without shopping trips or a mess– only your computer!

One other thing I love is that each magnet is going to be your own personal style.  If you like flowers, you can add (digital) flowers to it.  If your kitchen is red, make your magnet red.  If you like a clean & classic look, go for it.  If you want it to look like a scrapbook page, go for it.  You can even add a family picture like I did on our family calendar!  (The surface of the car magnet won’t give you a crisp photo, but they’re pretty cute nonetheless.)  You’ll have tons of available creative tools, so your magnet will be exactly what you’re looking for.

I’ll show you how!  Let’s go:

Organizing your goals, your day, your family’s week, or your meals right there in plain view puts them in the forefront of your mind.  In some cases, it makes them more of a team effort, too.  And with these completely personal magnets, it makes them more fun, more beautiful, and more YOU!

“…As if we could kill time without injuring eternity.”  -Henry David Thoreau

Today’s guest blogger, Jennifer Wise, is a married mom of three who thrives on creativity.  Her greatest desire is to make a difference.  She is fluent in American Sign Language, loves great Mexican food, and enjoys both teaching and learning.  Her favorite place is the beach, and her favorite thing to do is laugh.  If you gave her a million dollars, she would spend it on her addiction, traveling.  She holds a B.A. in Humanities-English literature from Brigham Young University.  Jennifer blogs each week at www.lifetalesbooks.blogspot.com and is the #familyhistoryfriday contributor at www.livegrowgive.org.   Her website is www.heritagemakers.com/jenniferwise