google-site-verification: google65e716d80989ba07.html An Organizational Tool for Busy Genealogy Moms...and Dads! | The Armchair Genealogist

An Organizational Tool for Busy Genealogy Moms...and Dads!



This week the kids went back to school and I know many Genealogy Moms and Dads are overwhelmed with keeping life organized and on track. The kids will soon be under deadlines for projects; combined with after school activities and family events, life just got hectic.

I stumbled on this organizing tool and thought I would share it with you. It’s called Home Life and it is a web-based  planner/organizer/calendar from Daytimer. A free online tool which allows you to schedule your entire families’ activities in one convenient calendar.

Your family events both group and individual are saved and shared in an online calendar. Schedule in your genealogy events and deadlines alongside the kid’s activities, your husband’s work and family commitments. Each family member is represented on the calendar in a different colour. All family members have the ability to edit this calendar, or you can restrict it to yourself and your spouse. Or if your a real control freak just yourself. 

For instance, I have a daughter in University, she can load her school and work schedule to our family Home Life website, you receive your own URL when you sign up (signing up is quick and painless). Now I know if I am trying to plan a family event what her schedule looks like, or if I want to call and chat I can check her schedule to see if she is at work or home. She in turn can see our schedule and co-ordinate her next visit home.  

Other features of Home Life Calendar include To Do Lists, Lists such as grocery, an address book, a photo album, documents and a family blog if your so inclined.  I love the part that I can make a to-do list and check off who is to complete the tasks. I can then send each of my family members there to-do lists.  I love it.... can’t say my husband feels the same way. 

Home Life functions as a family hub. I used to have a wall size white board in my kitchen; it looked like I was organizing the United Nations. Now I have Home Life and my hub has moved from the kitchen wall to our laptops and iPhones.

It simple to get started. After assigning each family member a colour, start scheduling your events, each event can be scheduled to an individual, the entire family or multiple individuals and all displayed on one family calendar, which nicely identifies conflicts and time restraints. You can click on each family member, and view his or her calendar separately.

What is nice for Moms and Dads is that Home Life takes into account driving time. Let’s face it a good deal of our time is spent as a taxi service.  Home Life allows you to schedule the driving time and who the driver will be. It also allows you to schedule a text or email reminder to your spouse so he or she doesn’t forget to pick up the kids from the babysitter because you have a meeting.

If there is a scheduling conflict, Home Life will point it out to you, allowing you to be proactive and make arrangements for your kids, spouse or yourself. You can synchronize your Outlook with Home Life as well; with the Outlook Sync plug in you have two-way syncing capabilities reflecting your scheduling changes in both calendars. You can also import your Google Calendar.

Home Life is portable; it can be downloaded in an app to your iPhone and iPad, allowing you to carry your calendar everywhere.  If all family members have an iPhone you can send all updated calendars and everyone will be on the same page or rather calendar.  Like a traditional printed calendar, Home Life will allow you to print it off print, hang it on the fridge for all to see. There is so much flexibility with this calendar it is hard not to love it. 

If you’re overwhelmed with the start of the new school year, and wondering how your going to balance your family responsibilities with your genealogy life then check out Home Life and get organized.