@Shan – I tend to know the basics of the kids’ schedules and I construct the family schedule based on that. Ideally they tell me before my Friday planning if they have anything coming up they’d like to do. My husband also sends notes ahead of then of things that should be taken into account. If we have anything complicated coming up he and I will have a session together and then I incorporate our decisions into the Friday planning.

@Kressel- my log is on my laptop, which usually lives in my home office. So it’s pretty easy for me to just stop in and fill out my spreadsheet. At this point I can remember what I’ve done for about 24 hours. But that’s 7+ years in. For the first week it helps to check in every few hours.

Thanks for replying! It’s so exciting to become part of this community. I’ve been listening to “Before Breakfast” for a while, so I’ve done the time keeping before, but now I’m more committed to it. Is it compulsive to keep a list with you all day and write it down as you go? Or is that how it’s done?

@Kressel – you should do whatever weekly planning time works for you! Just as a mindset experiment, though, I tend to think a good weekly planning process can take less than 30 minutes. Sometimes more like 20, meaning it can fit into a busy day. And it’s about preparation — in the same way that cooking and cleaning for the upcoming Sabbath is about preparation. But I’m happy as long as people have some regular weekly planning time!

@Lynn – glad to hear you’re still doing weekly planning. Different phases of life call for being a bit more granular than others. So this is probably one where you need to plan more tightly to be sure stuff will happen.

@Sarah – excellent call on writing in the coffee shop! And yes, an ice storm will throw a loop into a week, but when we plan we know what matters and what doesn’t, so the important stuff does tend to get done.