In order to add calendars to my family command center  I needed a couple things. First of all I was looking for a large enough calendar. With three kids I wanted them all to see what I was writing without using a 3 pt font. I wanted two months at a time each on a separate calendar so we could plan out the month ahead of us. I purchased two of the IKEA Nyttja frames measuring 19.75 x 19.75 each. This gave me plenty of room for the size calendar I wanted. Plus the Nyttja frames are so incredibly lightweight that they can be hung using 3M velcro strips. This came in handy as I was figuring out the exact layout of my family command center. I might have changed my mind on the arrangement  two or thirteen times.

As you might have guessed I couldn’t find a big enough calendar to suit my needs. I decided to create a blank calendar myself. Using a dry erase method I would be writing on the front of the frame. This allowed me to use it over and over since the calendar would be inside the frame.  I could write in the month and the dates as they change. I created a 15 inch by 15 inch monthly calendar with just the days of the week printed out. I could have printed this out at home and tiled the image but I wanted a seamless image behind the frame. I place two calendars on one page (measuring 24 inches by 36 inches) and uploaded them to Staples.com. Since I just wanted a black and white print and needed a big printer to print out my 15 inch by 15 inch calendars this was the cheapest option. I chose their engineering print option and for a whooping $3.89 I had my two calendars. I’m including a link to the calendar I created in case you want to try this out for yourself.

I opened the frames up and added some wrapping paper as a background. The paper I used is from Target and I carried the paper backing through the rest of the command center as well. You can use fabric, leftover wallpaper, or even your childrens’ artwork. I then cut the calendars out and centered them within the frame.  

The large size works perfectly. I have two months up at a time so we can plan ahead. The margins around the calendar are so large that I even write notes here for the babysitter with cell phone numbers and bedtimes. Since it is dry erase I can have a clean calendar ready for the month ahead within seconds.