A Year at Home: Your Simple Planning Guide 

Inside: how to create a simple, personalized yearly homemaking plan that gives you a bird’s-eye view of the whole year. This isn’t just a concept – it’s an actual physical tool you’ll reference all year.

You wanted to plan a spring break trip, but then you missed starting your tomato seeds. You wanted to pre-make three kinds of cookie dough for Christmas but your presents weren’t wrapped, so that took priority. And somehow you forgot to plant all those pansies you promised you’d have for a garden tea party for your daughter’s birthday.

I get it. You have a lot to plan, to remember, and the events of the year keep on coming. That’s okay. Today we’re fixing that with a yearly calendar tailored to you.

We can do this in several ways:

• A paper calendar (either a regular wall calendar or a printable year-at-a-glance sheet)
• A section in your existing planner
• A digital calendar with repeating tasks and reminders
• A simple seasonal checklist kept somewhere visible or into your homemaking binder

Download the PDF using the buttons below, or create your own. Then we’ll set it up together.

Why Bother Making This?

Ever notice how exhausting it is to constantly figure out what needs attention in your home? That’s decision fatigue, and it’s real. A homemaker’s calendar takes all those spinning plates in your mind and puts them neatly on paper where you can see them. Instead of waking up wondering “what should I tackle today?” you already know what truly needs your attention this month. 

A yearly plan helps you stay ahead of the seasons. You can prep your garden beds before the first warm day. Buy Christmas gifts early to avoid December chaos. And deep clean the porch before summer fun. It gives you permission to focus on what matters MOST to you, creating space for the parts of homemaking you actually enjoy. 

What to Include on Your Calendar

Your homemaker’s calendar should list all the important tasks that keep your home running well. Here’s what to consider adding:

Seasonal deep cleaning tasks – Every home has areas that need attention beyond regular cleaning. Think baseboards in spring, ceiling fans in summer, and deep carpet cleaning in fall. Spreading these tasks throughout the year means nothing gets neglected.

Home maintenance  – These are the non-negotiables that protect your home and family. Schedule when to change air filters, test smoke detectors, clean gutters, and check appliances. My husband takes care of this for us, so I don’t worry about it. But it might be something you’ll need to include

Food preservation and seasonal cooking – Plan when you’ll stock up on strawberries for jam, tomatoes for canning, or make big batches of soup for the freezer. Seasonal food is frugal and more delicious. Don’t write down every little thing. Just those things you need to plan for and might forget.

Holiday preparations – Mark when to start holiday planning – WELL before the actual events! Note when to inventory decorations, shop for gifts, and plan menus. Having these reminders a month or two ahead saves so much stress. It’s one thing to think “oh I’ll do my Christmas shopping early this year”, it’s another to see on your September calendar “order Christmas gifts”. Much more helpful.

Garden planning and big projects– Mark seed-starting dates, planting weekends, and harvest times if you garden. Even small container gardens benefit from having these dates planned. Again, don’t write too much, just those big events like when you put the garden in.

How to Create Your Calendar

Creating your calendar should be simple. Truly.

1. Start with fixed dates

Begin by adding what you can’t change

• Birthdays (either the month they happen or the month you’d like to shop for them)
• Vacations/ trips that are planned
• Appliance maintenance
• Start and end of school year

These form the backbone of your calendar because they simply MUST happen. Once that’s done we don’t have to think about it anymore and can move on to the fun part.

2. Layer in your personal priorities

Now add what matters most to YOU. I can’t tell you what you should have here, but I can tell you what’s on mine. Prepping for my children’s birthdays the month before, getting in my spring, summer, and fall garden, and hosting a 4th of July party. They matter to me, so I make room for them. Your calendar should reflect what you value about homemaking.

3. Leave breathing room

This is IMPORTANT! Don’t fill this up just to fill it up. I have nothing written in July. This doesn’t mean I’m not doing anything in July (quite the opposite, I’m super busy in the garden). But there’s no manual event that I have to write down. Be smart.

4. Make it pretty enough to display or small enough to store

You can tuck this into your planner, hang it on the wall, whatever. Just don’t fill it out and forget about it. That’s all I ask.

Seasonal Focus Ideas

Remember, there is no “sample calendar”. But if you need some ideas, here are things to get you started throughout the year:

Spring: Gardening and Cleaning

Spring is all fresh air and cleaning energy.

• Cleaning windows and screens
• Outdoor spaces prep (furniture, decks, etc.)
• Garden prep, seed starting, etc.
• Dates your hummingbirds come back so you can feed them

After months indoors, prioritize tasks that bring fresh air and sunshine into your space.

Summer: Garden and Outdoor Living

Are you vacationing? Leave space in those months to take a break and reminders to do any prep work before hand.

• Food preservation schedule
• Pool maintenance
• Vacation logistics: booking pet care, etc.
• Buying school supplies, checking on backpacks and clothes

Try to keep these months lighter, if you can.

Fall: Holiday Prep

Getting ready for winter has to happen before winter. I always seem to forget this.

• Winterizing home checklist
• Fireplace clean out and inspection (this can happen in summer too)
• Holiday prep (menu plans, gift shopping)
• Stocking your pantry with baking supplies

These tend to be some of the most fun planning tasks. They become stressful if you’re doing them under pressure the second week of December, but if you tackle them in October, they’re lovely.

Winter: Inward Focus and Planning

And now we get ready for spring.

• Garden planning and seed ordering
• A good post-holiday declutter tends to happen so you might want to plan for it

Remember, I can’t tell you how to structure this. You might want to write out the months of all your kids birthdays or you might want to be reminded the month before that it’s time to shop for them. It’s just about keeping things from sneaking up on you.

And Don’t Forget

This isn’t about squeezing more productivity from your days. It’s about getting a big picture view of your year. Let there be some empty months, some light months, some busy months. My hope is that you’ll see “Okay, I have to prepare for two birthdays in April and put the main garden in. Not a great time to go on vacation.” Make sense? Good.

Your calendar is not your boss. It’s simply a tool to help you organize your year, one season at a time. If you need help, you know where to find me.