We’re not telling you anything new by stating the importance of staying in contact with your closest female friends, even if work and busy schedules make it difficult to do so at times. Close friendships are good for the soul, as well as for your relationship with your significant other, so be sure to find some time to spend with the girls. To help you out, here are a few planning tips that will help you organize get-togethers more often.

Share your schedules.
Every few months, draw up a schedule of your work, family and social activities. Colour in all the empty spaces that may be available for time with the girls. Hand a copy of the schedule to each of your friends to keep them up-to-date on your availability. This will make things easier for everyone when planning an evening out or knowing when to call for a long chat.

Plan in advance.
Plan ahead and set aside a day and time for everyone to hang out. For example, arrange so that you all have lunch together the first Tuesday of each month, or breakfast every Saturday morning. That way, you can schedule your other responsibilities around this pre-planned meet-up date, as well as ensure to not plan anything else for that day.

Compromise.
You have to accept that not every one of you will be available for a dinner or a girls’ night out. Don’t cancel an activity on account of just one person’s absence, as it’ll prove to be even more difficult to reschedule. Just ensure that your next gathering fits with the schedule of the person who was unable to make it last time.

Take things as they come.
Organizing an evening with the girls isn’t always possible, as the more time a gathering requires, the more likely you are to lose some participants down the line. You may have to stop thinking big, planning get-togethers that stretch out for long periods of time, and just be content with a quick Starbucks run or happy-hour stop after work. You can even try and incorporate some girl time within your daily chores, such as going grocery shopping together at the same store, or perhaps cooking your weekly meals together on a Sunday afternoon. An hour or two will do you all some good and are easier to integrate into your daily lives.

Sign up for an activity together.
With work, time at home with your sweetie and/or the kids, the gym or art class, there may barely be any time left over to eat and sleep! A good way to see your friends more often is to have everyone sign up for an activity together. Train at the same gym, sign up for a yoga or dance class—it could be anything; so long as it’s an activity that everyone is interested in and you can all do it together. This way, you can ensure some girl-time on a regular basis.