Diary for a SAHM

The diary for a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM) is a combination planner, journal, and dream-catcher, created by my very good friend Amina. I wanted to showcase it here because I am positive some of you will instinctively be drawn to its logic.

I also wanted to share it because Amina is my friend. And I love to see friends succeed. Will you pin this image and/or tweet, share on Facebook to give her more visibility? You can use the hashtag #SAHMDiary

The planner is available in French and in English. If you love France, and even if you don’t speak French that well, I can tell you right now what’s inside because you could totally buy the French version and add a little international flair to the sometimes mundane. The words and images are almost completely self-explanatory.

For Amina, the concept of the book sprung out of the desire to validate and honour what stay-at-home-moms do, and to remove some of the stigma attached to the role. She said:

This diary was especially created for you—the stay-at-home mom—so that you can run your life more flexibly without the pressure to accomplish goals set by someone else. A stay-at-home mom has the choice to spend her days energetically, or in a more zen-like state, according to what life happens to throw her way. As such, this diary is not dated.

You have ten months’ worth of weekly planners that are not dated because some weeks are busier than others and you might not wish to fill it out consecutively.

On the left hand side are the days of the week, and on the right side are creative little weekly “post-its” where you can write a) things to remember or organise, and people to e-mail or call, b) shopping list, c) things to pay, d) play dates for moms or kids, e) household projects.

Right after each weekly page is a mostly blank page, except for the little snakeskin design. This is where you can write down what’s preoccupying you that week. You can jot down school meeting notes, ideas for upcoming blog posts, ideas for your kid’s birthday party – you even have a space for your child to draw while you’re at the doctor’s office (and in desperate need of diversion)!

Once every four weeks, instead of a blank page, there will be a lined page and a helpful, validating reminder of exactly what a Stay-at-Home-Mom is. (She’s a teacher, a nurse, a chauffeur, a party-planner, a counselor–you get the idea).

You also have a space to write dreams, goals, projects, thoughts, etc. When you’re not in all-day meetings, your mind can jump from one thing to another in a rather artistic fashion that can’t be confined to a weekly, dated planner where every hour has a space to fill in. 

As you know, life is not always like that.

In the back, you have a space for birthdays, of course. Our friend Danila said this one is indispensable for her, so it became a must.

And a space for dinner ideas. Not necessarily the full recipe, but just ideas of different easy things you can make. Like … pasta with smoked salmon, sour cream and chives. You can add that one!

You’ve got your favourite websites and blogs (like A Lady in France), 😉 and then a space for the books you want to read, or movies you want to see.

And then you have a place for useful numbers. Everyone knows you add friends to your phone directly. But what about the mom of a kid your child wants to play with for the first time. (When you don’t know if there will be a repeat).

Or the specialist you have to see for only two visits? You don’t want to add those to your phone, but you need the number handy. This is the place for it.

Best of all, the book – totally chic and cute, I must say –

is not too thick or heavy.

And it fits in my smallish tote bag!

That way you can take it with you when you go. Because everyone knows the best thing about being a stay-at-home-mom …

is that you don’t have to stay at home.

You can get your English journal here:

and your French journal here:

Comments

I love to hear from you, friends. You can comment using the box below or your Facebook profile. But FB doesn't notify me of new comments, so if the post is more than a week old and you want to make sure I see your comment, it's better to use the comment box. Merci!