Apparently January is National Organization Month.

That's great if you're already organized or just need a nudge to get there. For someone as frazzled as me, the constant stream of helpful hints makes it feel more like National Inferiority Month.

It's not like I didn't try to get organized. Just this week, I started using "Intuition: Mom's Assistant," a clever application that enabled me to organize my various responsibilities by time, location and category — in color, no less. It was pretty fantastic. As I picked bright hues for each family member's commitments, I ended up with a consolidated calendar that was optimistically color-coordinated and not entirely unrealistic.

I was still mulling over how I could shift things around to make our schedules more manageable when I ran across a National Organization Month-themed article about helping teenage boys clean out their overstuffed backpacks midway through the school year. The advice offered by Ana Homayoun, author of "That Crumpled Paper Was Due Last Week," seemed so practical that I downloaded Homayoun's book immediately and even set aside time to read it into the calendar.

Unfortunately, that calendar didn't have any leeway for traffic jams, sick children, a broken modem or any other complications. Now, at the end of National Organization Month, I have a cheery list of things that didn't get done and several new obligations that I haven't had time to add to the family calendar.

Luckily, we're heading into February (National Snack Food Month), a time to celebrate freedom, romance, grapefruit and bygones. As I just noted in my calendar, Feb. 11 is Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day.

When she's not being a journalist, Treena Shapiro is busy with her real job, raising a son and daughter. Check out her blog at http://familytree.honadvblogs.com.