Twelve Months of 2012

Although it is the first week of November, its time to begin “background planning” for next year.  By this doing, the structure of the next year, its nuances and undulations, will be in your mind as you make initial plans for this year’s holidays, celebrations and vacations.  In addition, the beginning of November generally offer more “brain” availability than most of you will have until after New Year’s Day.  It’s a good time to launch calendar consciousness and know how 2012 is laid out.

Looking ahead into next year is one of the concepts of pre-organization.  When you are going about your regular errands, you can conveniently stop and buy the insert for your planner.  You can remember to get the bank’s decorative  calendar and purchase a blank wall calendar for your family’s planning needs.  All these preparations will make it easier to slid into 2012 (as long as you remember where you stashed these calendars once you have them in hand).

I encourage you to multiple the calendars in your life.  I especially having a “scratch calendar” in the kitchen because it seems my mind unhinges and relaxes while I’m cooking dinner and I think of all kinds of notes to make about upcoming events.  In addition, you can use it to notate conversations you would like to have when you vacation with your sister next July and the gift you need to prepare for the upcoming family wedding in  January.  Oh, the value of having calendars early cannot be overstated.

I like to have smaller twelve-months-per page calendars wherever I plan to sit at a computer, tucked into my checkbook and/or credit card holder, and wherever I might park when doing paperwork.  I like a medium-sized one inside the cupboard door of my laundry room and kitchen, another where I dress and even one in the bathroom where I apply my makeup.  It is just nice to answer questions without moving too far when your hands are busy and your mind is working through future needs.

Multiply calendars as your current responsibilities demand, including community, church, or political service.  It is nicer to “see” and plan than to wonder and plan.  Because there are so many printed calendars available, choose one of these for hanging in your more public rooms in the house and save the plainer, larger wall calendars you can write on a lot for utility and convenience in more private places of your home.  Remember, though, that a blank calendar is useless.  How much better to write notes down and move those heavy thoughts from your head to your calendar!

2012 Configuration
As you review next year’s calendar, you will notice it is a leap year with 29 days in February.  Easter is on the second Sunday, April 8th.  There will be more than four weeks before we will be celebrating Mother’s Day on May 13, 2012.  Father’s Day comes mid-month on June 17, 2011.  Independence Day is midweek, a Wednesday, which means its time to plan whether a full week’s time off is warranted or if you might prefer the first half or the second half of the week as your vacation time.  Halloween is also midweek, a Wednesday, in 2012.

Labor Day is early in the month, September 3rd.  Christmas Day falls on a Tuesday, which places Christmas Eve on Monday and gives a nice long weekend for late-minute preparations and extended family visiting.  Likewise, New Year’s Eve in on Monday and so you’ll not have to geared up and ready for work and school again until Wednesday morning, January 2, 2013.  What a grand layout for a wintry holiday season!

As the calendar’s layout become more comfortable to you, memorizing the following twelve numbers (154-163-152-742)  will make you confident in knowing what days of the week any day in 2012 happens to fall.  These are the dates of the first Sunday of each month during 2012.  I like to think of these numbers as an extra long telephone number and enter them as such on my cell phone under CALENDAR 2011 as a backup calendar.

Once these numbers are easily accessible to my mind, it is easy to figure out the exact construction of a particular month and know which day of the week a certain date is on.  For instance, my grandmother’s birthday is January 10.  What day of the week will it be on in 2012?  Well, the first Sunday in 2012 is the 1st.  The second Sunday is the 8th.  Therefore, her birthday celebration will be on a Tuesday!

May November 2011 be a gracious month for you, with family and fun to fill its days.  As you begin to focus on 2012’s calendar needs, getting your calendars purchased/printed and put in place, it will be easier to move into 2012 despite the hectic days ahead. Remember, we do what we can when it is early and still easy.  Then the stresses of November, December, and January won’t feel quite so heavy and you can anticipate 2012 being twelve interesting and growing months for you and yours!