The planner consists of two main parts: a Who, What, Where section and a When section, both tucked into a clear, sturdy vinyl cover. Who, What, Where has four different sections:
- A monthly view calendar for August 2007 to December 2008, including holidays;
- A birthday list for each month, with the month name at the top of the column, the days of the month on the left, and a blank line next to each day;
- Things to Remember lists for Movies, Books, Music, Restaurants, Food & Drinks, and Performances; and
- Contacts pages with space for names and basic contact info.
When includes Notes pages, a full year view calendar spread over two pages, and a weekly calendar (beginning with December 2007) on two pages. It's this weekly calendar that sets the WhoMi planner apart from others. The top page of the weekly view is the master scheduling page, with space for morning, afternoon, and evening activities, as well as spaces for notes at the top and bottom of each daily column.
The bottom page has three colored rows for each day that you can use to track other family members' schedules, or to record special projects or tasks to do each day. If you need to keep tabs on other people's schedules, or need extra space for your own schedule and To Dos, this planner can be a useful tool.
Here's what I liked about the WhoMi planner:
- The Things to Remember lists, which mean no more forgetting the DVD you wanted to rent or the book a friend recommended to you
- The 3 views of the year in various parts of the planner: yearly, monthly, and weekly. If, like me, you're a visual person, this is really helpful
- The 2-page, color-coded weekly schedule, which lets you keep track of multiple people's activities, or track your appointments, activities, and projects all in one place
- The attention to small details, such as the perforated corners on the weekly planner pages (which let you easily flip to the right week) and the flaps at the front and back of the planner for holding things like receipts and business cards
- The fact that the planner comes in two different sizes and six different designs
And here are a few reality checks:
- Even in the larger size planner, the spaces for writing daily activities and appointments are fairly small. If you have big handwriting, you might find it hard to fit all the information you need.
- There's not much room for jotting down notes in addition to appointments and activities each day, unless you use the bottom page of the planner for this additional info.
- If you use the planner to track your kids' schedules as well as your own, be sure your kids still have a way of keeping tabs on their own calendars.
- There's no space to stash a pen, unless you clip it to the case clasp.
- The calendar layouts have Monday in the first column, rather than the more standard Sunday, which took some time to get used to.
If you're a visual person who likes seeing things on paper and needs more space each day than most calendars provide, check out the WhoMi planner. It's clever, unique, and fun to use.
