The regular year is busy enough, but now that the holidays are here, it's so hard to keep track of everything.  Here are some secrets to help you.

Choose the Right Calendar

Yes, you can manage multiple schedules — with the proper tool. Paper planners, such as WhoMi, allow busy moms to organize their work, home, and travel schedules, as well as their spouse’s and children’s activities, all on one page. Free electronic calendars that consolidate multiple schedules, such as Google and Cozi, are ideal for sharing information between family members. Better yet, these calendars sync with your computer and smartphone. Take advantage of the reminder features to keep you on track on the go.

Practice Weekly Planning Sessions

Taking even half an hour to plan each week will pay incredible dividends of your time. Sundays are the perfect day to concentrate on planning the five C’s: calendar (seeing what events are happening this week), carpool (figuring out who needs to be where and when), cooking (choosing what’s for dinner and what groceries to buy), chores (assigning household tasks to a specific person), and children (assessing sitter needs and deciding who is helping with bath time, bedtime, and homework).

Be Choosy About Children’s Activities

Consider limiting children’s activities to only one or two per kid per school year. Imagine how relaxing life could be with only one practice schedule, one weekend game, and one victory party. If your family could use more downtime, consider what type of strategy could help you achieve that goal and share the new activity policy with your kids (and explain the reason behind your decision) before next season starts. Let your children have a say regarding which extracurricular is most important to them. If older kids insist on committing to multiple hobbies, ask them to help pay for a portion of the fees or equipment — it’s a surefire strategy for getting them to rethink the importance of each activity.

Check out the complete list here.