Family To Do List: Every Event Comes With Its Own Tasks
Every event comes with its own to do list. Maxie suggests what needs doing, someone in the family owns each task, and it shows up exactly when it matters, not before.
Try Maxie free →What is Family To Do List?
The To Do List is the prep behind the plan. Tasks live on the event they belong to, get assigned to a real person, and appear in the daily list when they're due, so nothing is left as a mental note.
Why families use this
It's never just "swimming on Thursday". It's packing the kit, remembering the towel, and not forgetting it's Dad's turn to do drop-off. These small logistics jobs are easy to lose track of and they rarely make it onto a calendar at all.
The To Do List ties them directly to the events they belong to, so they stop falling through the cracks.
It's never just "swimming on Thursday". It's the kit, the towel, the goggles, and remembering whose turn it is to do drop-off. Those are the jobs that decide whether the event actually goes well, and they're the ones most likely to be sitting in one parent's head rather than anywhere useful.
A task with an owner and a due date beats a mental note every time.
The To Do List attaches the prep to the plan. Each event carries its own tasks, each task belongs to someone, and each one appears in the daily list when it's due.
How it works
1. Tasks attach to events
Every to do lives on a specific event: a party, an appointment, a club, a trip. Not a separate list to remember to look at.
2. Add them yourself, or let Maxie suggest them
When you create an event, Maxie proposes relevant prep based on the event type. A birthday party invite prompts "RSVP", "Get gift and card" and "Wrap gift and card". A swimming class prompts "Pack kit: swimming kit, towel, goggles". Every suggestion is editable or removable before it's added.
3. Assign it to someone
A family member, or a free-text "other person" like a grandparent or babysitter. AI-suggested tasks always get an owner if one isn't picked.
4. Set when it's due
Relative to the event rather than a fixed date: on the day, or 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or a custom number of days before.
5. It surfaces when it matters
Due tasks appear on the dashboard's To Do List the moment they're relevant, filterable by "Everyone" or "Only me", and by time window: today, this week, the next two weeks, and beyond.
6. Check it off
A tick, a green flash, a bit of haptic feedback. Completed tasks stay struck through and collapsed for the rest of the day, then tidy themselves away.
7. Get reminded if it's still outstanding
Push notifications cover what's left, and an event reminder can shift from "you're all set" to naming the specific task still hanging over you.
What it does for families day to day
- "Remember to..." becomes an owned task. With a name against it, so it isn't quietly one person's job by default.
- AI does the first draft. Genuinely useful defaults: a gift for a party, kit for sport, prep for a haircut. Always reviewable before anything is added.
- Recurring events keep their tasks. The weekly swim class keeps "pack kit" every week, resetting after each occurrence.
- A satisfying, low-noise daily view. Only what's due today or overdue, so it never turns into an overwhelming master list.
Why tasks belong on the event
A standalone to do app doesn't know why "towel" is on the list, so it can't tell you when it stops mattering. Maxie does, because the task is part of the event.
That's what makes the due date relative, the reminder specific, and the weekly reset automatic. Move the swimming class and the prep moves with it.
Where this fits with everything else
Whichever way an event goes in, whether it's Quick Add, a forwarded email or a photo of an invite, the prep comes with it. Task Suggestions writes the first draft, and everything lands on the same Shared Family Calendar, so the whole family can see what's outstanding rather than being told.
Related features
Shared Tasks: Maxie Suggests, You Assign, Nobody Forgets
Maxie suggests what an event actually needs, kit, forms, presents, and whoever's handling it gets told directly. One list, nothing forgotten.
Shared Family Calendar: The Whole Family, One Calendar
One shared family calendar everyone sees the same version of. Invite a partner, co-parent, grandparents or a childminder, updates land for everyone.
Add It Once: Weekly Clubs Sorted for the Whole Term
Set up football on Tuesdays or swimming on Thursdays once, and every future session appears automatically, kit list included, all term long.
Quick Add: Type an Event, Maxie Builds It
Type any event like you'd text a friend, no forms or dropdowns. Maxie works out the day, time and who's going, ready for you to check in seconds.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a separate list, or part of the calendar?
Every to do lives on a specific event: a party, an appointment, a club, a trip. There's no floating standalone list to maintain, because the task and the reason for it stay together.
Does Maxie decide what needs doing?
Maxie proposes tasks based on the type of event, and you decide. A birthday party invite prompts 'RSVP', 'Get gift and card' and 'Wrap gift and card'. A swimming class prompts 'Pack kit: swimming kit, towel, goggles'. Every suggestion can be edited or removed before it's added, and nothing is created silently.
Who does a task belong to?
A specific family member, or a free-text 'other person' such as a grandparent or babysitter. If you don't pick someone for an AI-suggested task, Maxie assigns an owner automatically so it never sits there as nobody's job.
How do due dates work?
They're relative to the event rather than a fixed date: on the day, or 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or a custom number of days before. Set it once and it stays right even if the event moves.
Where do I actually see my tasks?
On the dashboard's To Do List, the moment they're due. You can filter by 'Everyone' or 'Only me', and by time window: today, this week, the next two weeks, and beyond.
What happens when I tick something off?
You get a satisfying tick with a green flash and haptic feedback. Completed tasks stay visible, struck through and collapsed, for the rest of the day and then tidy themselves away. Nothing is deleted, it's just cleared from the daily view.
Will I get reminded about a task I haven't done?
Yes. Outstanding tasks trigger push notifications, and they can change an event's own reminder from 'you're all set' to a nudge naming the specific task still outstanding.
Do repeating events keep their tasks?
Yes. A weekly swim class keeps its 'pack kit' task every week, resetting automatically after each occurrence.
Won't this become an overwhelming master list?
It only shows what's due today or overdue, so the daily view stays short and low-noise. Anything due later waits until it's relevant.