5 Reasons For a Planner When You Think You Have Nothing to Plan

What do you need a planner for? A lot of people say they don't need one because they have nothing to plan for. I use my planner for a lot of different things. I love decorating it with stickers and I'm a total list maker so I like jotting things down. Making that check mark provides a lot of satisfaction when you finish a task. I use a MAMBI Happy Planner in a Homebody layout and I love it! A good suggestion is to review your planner at night for the next day to see what's on the books. I like to write funny things Cole says and maybe someday he will want to look through my planners when he's older.

^ Isn't she a beauty? THIS is the planner I love. There are so many stickers to choose from, it becomes addicting. Plus, you can join facebook groups or pinterest layouts for ideas on how to use it or decorate it. *WARNING: this may also cause a washi tape addiction!

1. Meal Planning
My planner has a designated spot for meal planning but I've used a planner without and still wrote down what I needed to make for dinner. During and after grocery shopping, I like to write down what meals I can make with the ingredients I've purchased. This helps so I don't have a lot of wasted food. "Oh, I forgot we had that chicken!" I don't always go in order and that's okay, my planner doesn't mind :) I may come home and decide it's pizza night tonight instead of tomorrow. If I pin a new recipe, I write down what it is so I don't forget the good intentions I had.

2. Appointments and birthdays
I write birthdays down in the monthly section of my planner when I first get a new one. As I plan each week, I check out the monthly section to see if any birthdays or appointments are happening that week. We really don't have a lot of appointments but if I write things down a few times, I'm more likely to remember.

3. Chores
Sometimes I write things that I should do every day down such as vacuuming, dishes, laundry. It feels good to check it off and I'm more apt to complete it if it's in my book. Other things I keep putting off will be added to my planner so I am forced to keep looking at them until I get them done.

4. Activities for Kids
I don't know about you but I pin A LOT of crafts and activities and they just sit in Pinterest space. Rather than scrolling through endless boards, I like to write down a few I'd like to do with Cole. We don't HAVE to do those but there are some ideas right on hand in my book. When we go geocaching, I make a list of all of the caches I found.

5. Errands
Jotting down errands and grocery lists is helpful (though I usually use Alexa for my lists.) It's satisfying to write things out sometimes. Some errands might be to mail a package, pick up batteries or call whosyding. I save my planners so if someone stops by for dinner or comes over to go in the pool, I write it down. It's almost like a diary so it's interesting to see what's been planned.

I find planning relaxing and use it as a self-care activity. I do some part-time work on the side so I use it to remind myself of how many hours I worked or important tasks I need to do that I didn't get done. Also, I blame my sister for getting me hooked on my planner but I wouldn't have it any other way! :)