For any family, staying ahead of the family calendar is a challenge. Juggling the multiple schedules of kids, spouses, sports, part-time jobs, careers, trips, often require a special degree. As a family of 7, maintaining the family calendar is crucial. If we're not careful, we can easily overbook, show up late, even miss events and activities.

So what do you do when you need to keep track of everyone's schedules? You discuss the importance of keeping a good family calendar.
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Today, we want to share how we as a family, manage our busy calendar. It isn't always easy. It takes a fair amount of effort. But it works for us, and maybe it will work for you.
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We priced out what it would look like to add another line and purchase an additional phone. We learned that it would be cheaper to get everyone iPhones. There was a special promotion being offered which made it a better deal then purchasing simple messaging or cellular phones.
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Aside from the price, Amy and I were already using the iPhone, and I knew that I wanted to stay with Apple. One of the features that I utilized was the convenience of  iCal software. Since I was already using a MAC Book, it was super easy to sync everything together. Knowing how helpful the iCal software was with keeping a work calendar, I was looking forward to using the system to build a family calendar.

Using the iCal app that now came on each of our iPhones, I created a family calendar that Amy and I were able to manage with ease. We utilized the iCloud and our iTunes account to connect the all the phones. This allowed us to keep family calendar right there on our iPhones.
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We still keep our calendar on iCal and our iPhones. It takes a little bit of work to keep the calendar updated, but we a little bit of time, inputting new appointments or activities became a habit. Now we just pull out out phones and punch all the important information right into our phones and we're good to go.

So how can you build your family calendar?
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Determine what works best for you and your family. Are you a techie-type, or do you still prefer pen and paper. I still see plenty of parents whip out their pocket calendars and pens to jot down upcoming activities. So determine which mode of calendar recording you are more comfortable using. If you're ready to take your family calendar into the digital realm, then jump in. But decide what is going to work best for you.
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You won't master it overnight. While most apps are fairly easy to use, don't expect to learn everything the first time you use it. It may take you a couple of days to get comfortable with the interface, preferences and options. But the more you use the app the more comfortable you will become with the software and the more efficient you will be using the app.
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Stick with it. I'm not going to lie, input information can be a tedious task. Just sit down and begin inputting the school year calendar and you'll quickly find that this is a pain. But stick with it. I promise, if you do it enough it will get a little easier. Just don't give up.
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Remember to communicate. This is super important, communicate with your spouse. Don't assume that because you put something into the calendar that everyone is aware of your activity. Be sure to inform your spouse or the family so that everyone is up to speed.
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Going digital with our family calendar has worked well for us, but it might not be for everyone. It's been great to have all of our devices; computers, phones and tablets all communicating and sharing our family appointments, activities and events. It's been a great help.

So, how do you keep your family calendar? Are you digital? If so, what apps are you using? If you have made the jump yet, how do manage your families activities? We'd love to hear from you. Leave a comment below.

Thanks! We'll see you next time!

​- the higham family

We are so excited to announce the return of Kids Talk! That's right, we're back to what we hope will be weekly posts of the kids getting together and talking about different topics, trying different things and having fun. 

In this weeks episode we're taking a few minutes to recap the summer and talk about some of the high points and favorite activities. Click on the link below to watch the vlog on our YouTube channel.

Be sure to leave a comment, either here or on the video page. We want to know the best part of your summer! What made your summer epic! Tell us below.

- the higham family

Hello friends, thanks for stopping by the blog today. By the way, Happy Labor Day! We hope you all had a great weekend with your family! Today's post is one of two posts that are going live today! Because of the holiday weekend, we did not post our weekly Monday family vlog. I know, we're lame. But quite honestly, we had so much going on, we just didn't have the time to go through and edit all the video from Friday, Saturday, and Monday. ​

We want to stay as consistent as possible with our blogging and vlogging, but neither are our full-time jobs. Amy and Jay both work. The kids keep fairly active schedules, and we believe that while we love sharing our family story, there are some moment where our family comes first and the camera comes second.

But here's the deal...

We know we should have posted something for Monday evening, and while Jay did try to get something up in time, it just didn't happen. So today, Tuesday, September 05, we are posting TWO vlogs, our weekend family vlog and today's Kids Talk!

It really was a busy weekend, which kicked off with the first high school football game of the season. We are so excited to watch Nate play football. He has been wanting to play for a couple of years now, and as a senior, he's finally getting his chance.

So Friday night we made our way to the game, and celebrated Nate's game. But while the team didn't win, Nate had a great game for first time out. You'll see in the vlog that he makes a great tackle and runs the ball back for some good yardage!

Saturday was a day of projects. Amy had to work most of the day, leaving Jay and the kids home errands and working around the house. When Amy came home, we spent Saturday afternoon rearranging and cleaning bedrooms. We capped the night off visiting some friends for the Alabama vs Florida football game.

Sunday included morning worship. Jay then took Aiden, Asher and Breya out for lunch, while Amy and Nate visited with our friends the Pope's, who's son Judah who is in the hospital. We did not vlog on Sunday, as Sunday's are our "off day".

All in all, it was a very laborious Labor Day weekend, and we haven't even shared what happened on Monday. That's coming later.

Okay, that's enough updating. Go ahead and watch the vlog!

Thanks for being a part of our family!

​- the higham family