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Manual Overrides

You can manually override night routine assignments in two ways:

  1. Edit calendar event titles directly in Google Calendar to swap between parents
  2. Assign a babysitter via the web interface to delegate the night to a named babysitter

Both methods lock the assignment as an override and trigger recalculation of future assignments to maintain fairness.

How Manual Overrides Work

The application automatically detects when you change a night routine event title in Google Calendar and updates its internal schedule accordingly.

Override Detection

The system detects overrides through:

  1. Webhook Notifications - Google Calendar sends real-time notifications when events change
  2. Event Title Parsing - The application parses the parent name from the title
  3. Web Interface - Babysitter assignments made through the assignment details modal
  4. Database Update - The internal assignment is updated to match
  5. Fairness Recalculation - Future assignments are recalculated to maintain balance

Making a Manual Override via Google Calendar

Step 1: Find the Event

  1. Open Google Calendar
  2. Navigate to the date you want to change
  3. Find the night routine event (e.g., [Parent1] 🌃👶Routine)

Step 2: Edit the Event Title

  1. Click on the event to open it
  2. Click the edit button (pencil icon)
  3. Change the parent name in the title:
    • From: [Parent1] 🌃👶Routine
    • To: [Parent2] 🌃👶Routine

Title Format

Keep the format: [ParentName] 🌃👶Routine

Only change the name inside the square brackets. The name must match one of your configured parent names exactly.

  1. Click "Save" to save the change

Step 3: Verification

The application will:

  1. Receive a webhook notification from Google Calendar (usually within seconds)
  2. Parse the new parent name from the event title
  3. Check if the date is within the allowed threshold
  4. Update the internal database
  5. Recalculate future assignments to maintain fairness

You can verify the change by:

  • Checking the application logs for override detection messages
  • Viewing the web interface (the assignment should update after refresh)
  • Looking for the "Override" decision reason in future assignments

Assigning a Babysitter via the Web Interface

You can also override an assignment by assigning a babysitter directly through the web interface.

Step 1: Open the Assignment Details

  1. Open the Night Routine web interface
  2. Click on any assignment in the calendar grid
  3. The assignment details modal will open

Step 2: Set the Babysitter

  1. In the assignment details modal, find the babysitter input field
  2. Enter the babysitter's name (e.g., "Dawn")
  3. Click the "Set Babysitter" button

Step 3: What Happens

The application will:

  1. Update the assignment's caregiver type to babysitter
  2. Store the babysitter name
  3. Lock the assignment as an override (🔒)
  4. Update the Google Calendar event with [BabysitterName] 🌃👶Routine title and babysitter description
  5. Recalculate future parent assignments to maintain fairness

Removing a Babysitter Assignment

To revert a babysitter assignment back to normal parent scheduling:

  1. Click on the babysitter assignment (shown with 🔒 icon)
  2. Click "Unlock Event" in the modal that appears
  3. The assignment will be recalculated using the fairness algorithm

Babysitter vs Parent Fairness

Babysitter assignments are completely excluded from parent fairness calculations. When a babysitter is assigned, the fairness algorithm treats that date as fixed and only recalculates non-override dates.

Calendar Event Format

Both parent and babysitter events use the same title format in Google Calendar:

  • Parent event: [ParentName] 🌃👶Routine
  • Babysitter event: [BabysitterName] 🌃👶Routine

The difference is in the event description. Babysitter events will show: 

Night routine handled by babysitter Dawn. Reason: Override [NightRoutine]

While parent events show: 

Night routine duty assigned to ParentName. Reason: Alternating [NightRoutine]

Time Window for Overrides

By default, the application only accepts manual overrides for events within 5 days in the past (configurable).

Configuration

Set the threshold in your routine.toml:

[schedule]
past_event_threshold_days = 5  # Accept changes up to 5 days ago

Examples

If today is January 15th and past_event_threshold_days = 5:

Date Can Override?
Jan 9 ❌ No (6 days ago)
Jan 10 ✅ Yes (5 days ago)
Jan 11-15 ✅ Yes (within 5 days)
Jan 16+ ✅ Yes (future dates)

Why a Threshold?

The threshold prevents:

  • Accidental historical changes - Old events being modified unintentionally
  • Fairness calculation errors - Past assignments affecting current balance
  • Data integrity issues - Conflicting historical records

Adjusting the Threshold

Increase the threshold if you frequently need to correct past assignments: 

past_event_threshold_days = 14  # Allow 2 weeks of changes

Impact on Future Assignments

When you manually override an assignment, the fairness algorithm recalculates future assignments to compensate.

Example Scenario

Initial schedule:

Date Assignment Reason
Jan 15 Parent A Alternating
Jan 16 Parent B Alternating
Jan 17 Parent A Alternating
Jan 18 Parent B Alternating

You manually change Jan 15 from Parent A to Parent B

Updated schedule:

Date Assignment Reason
Jan 15 Parent B Override
Jan 16 Parent A Total Count (compensating)
Jan 17 Parent B Alternating
Jan 18 Parent A Alternating

Notice how the algorithm adjusted Jan 16 to maintain balance.

Valid Override Formats

The application recognizes several event title formats:

Standard Format

[ParentName] 🌃👶Routine

Example: [Alice] 🌃👶Routine

Without Emojis

[ParentName] Routine

Example: [Bob] Routine

Case Sensitivity

Parent names are case-sensitive and must match your configuration exactly.

✅ Valid: 

[parents]
parent_a = "Alice"
parent_b = "Bob"
- [Alice] 🌃👶Routine ✅ - [Bob] 🌃👶Routine ✅

❌ Invalid: - [alice] 🌃👶Routine ❌ (wrong case) - [ALICE] 🌃👶Routine ❌ (wrong case) - [AliceSmith] 🌃👶Routine ❌ (doesn't match)

Common Use Cases

Swapping Assignments

Scenario: Parent A can't do tonight, switch with Parent B

  1. Find tonight's event in Google Calendar
  2. Change title from [Parent A] to [Parent B]
  3. Find Parent B's next assignment
  4. Change it from [Parent B] to [Parent A]

Result: The nights are swapped, and future assignments remain balanced.

Emergency Changes

Scenario: Parent is sick and unavailable for several days

  1. Edit each affected event's title to assign the other parent
  2. The algorithm will compensate in future assignments
  3. Once the parent is available again, normal scheduling resumes

Preference-Based Adjustments

Scenario: One parent prefers weekend duties

  1. Edit weekend events to assign the preferred parent
  2. The algorithm balances weekday assignments accordingly

Monitoring Overrides

In the Web Interface

Overridden assignments show a special decision reason:

  • Parent overrides: Reason shows "Override", with 🔒 icon
  • Babysitter assignments: Displayed with slate/gray background, babysitter name visible, with 🔒 icon
  • Indicator: Visible in hover tooltips (desktop) or tap-to-view (mobile)

In Google Calendar

Overridden parent events still appear as normal night routine events, but the description will show:

Decision: Override

Babysitter events use the same title format:

[Dawn] 🌃👶Routine

With description: 

Night routine handled by babysitter Dawn. Reason: Override [NightRoutine]

In Application Logs

Watch for log messages:

INF Processing calendar change notification
INF Override detected date=2024-01-15 old_parent=Parent1 new_parent=Parent2
INF Recalculating future assignments

Troubleshooting

Override Not Detected

Problem: You changed an event title but the web interface doesn't update

Possible causes:

  1. Webhook delay - Wait 30-60 seconds and refresh
  2. Outside threshold - Event is too far in the past
  3. Invalid format - Parent name doesn't match configuration
  4. Webhook not configured - Check application logs

Solutions:

  1. Click "Sync Now" in the web interface to force synchronization
  2. Check the event date vs. past_event_threshold_days
  3. Verify parent name matches configuration exactly (case-sensitive)
  4. Check logs for webhook errors

Wrong Parent Name

Problem: You mistyped the parent name

Solution:

  1. Edit the event again in Google Calendar
  2. Correct the parent name
  3. Save the change
  4. The override will be reprocessed

Future Assignments Didn't Recalculate

Problem: You made an override but future dates didn't change

Explanation:

The algorithm only recalculates when necessary to maintain fairness. If the override doesn't create an imbalance, future assignments may remain unchanged.

To force recalculation:

  1. Click "Sync Now" in the web interface
  2. Check the statistics page to verify balance

Past Event Beyond Threshold

Problem: Cannot override an event from last month

Solution:

  1. Increase past_event_threshold_days in configuration: 
    [schedule]
past_event_threshold_days = 30
  2. Restart the application
  3. Make the override in Google Calendar
  4. Consider: Do you really need to change historical data?

Best Practices

Use Overrides Sparingly

  • Overrides should be for exceptions, not routine changes
  • Frequent overrides can disrupt the fairness algorithm
  • Consider adjusting configuration instead for permanent changes

Keep Titles Consistent

  • Use the same format for all overrides
  • Don't modify the emoji or "Routine" text
  • Only change the parent name in brackets

Document Major Changes

  • If you make significant overrides, note why in event descriptions
  • This helps track unusual patterns in statistics

Verify After Overriding

  • Check the web interface after overrides
  • Review statistics to ensure balance is maintained
  • Click "Sync Now" if changes don't appear

Communicate Changes

  • If you override an assignment, inform the other parent
  • Update any family calendars or notifications
  • Ensure both parents are aware of the change

Alternative: Configuration Changes

For permanent changes, update configuration instead of using overrides:

Changing Availability

Instead of: Manually overriding every Wednesday

Do this:

[availability]
parent_a_unavailable = ["Wednesday"]

Changing Frequency

Instead of: Manually spreading assignments further apart

Do this:

[schedule]
update_frequency = "weekly"  # instead of "daily"

Next Steps