Moving can be one of the most stressful things a person can do. I usually don’t push our products that much but since I am now spending another summer moving a grown child I thought I might mention that if you are thinking of moving and haven’t moved in a long time you might consider getting our Moving on a Dime e-book for some ideas to help make moving less hair raising. It really can help you know what to do and what not to do.
Here are a few tips from Moving On A Dime:
- Start decluttering and packing away everything but the necessities once you decide to move. You need to do it anyway, so do it now. You want to get the most out of selling your house. Decluttering will help you sell it and will make it easier for you to clean when you have to show it.
Don’t wait until the day everyone comes to load the truck to start packing those things way back in the kitchen cabinets that you only use once a year. That all should be packed at this point.
- Reserve your moving van the minute you have a closing date or a firm date to move. Don’t wait until the day before you need it or the week before you need it. Chances are they won’t have a truck left this time of year.
- Start using up the food you have and buy as little as you can between now and moving day. The week before you move, plan exactly what you are going to use for meals until the day you leave and get everything else, like can goods and nonperishables, packed up.
- One to two weeks before you move, call on utilities and make arrangements for your mail.
- One to two weeks ahead of time, make up your “kits”. Have a “kit” or a box for things that you will need in the last few days you are in your home, things you will need to keep with you the first day you move into your new house. Gather things like toilet paper, soap, a few towels, cleaning supplies, a handful of tools, light bulbs, paper plates, cups and paper towels and a first aid kit. If you will have to clean first thing, make sure to keep out the vacuum.
Put toilet paper, soap and a towel out the first thing after you arrive. Have sheets ready so you can make the beds right away. Do this first instead of at the end of a long tiring day. When you are exhausted from unloading and unpacking that made up bed will look so much nicer than if you have to make it when you are dead on your feet.
Think through what items you think your family will need.
- If you are going to have helpers, plan on what snacks, meals or drinks you will need for them.
These are just a few moving ideas but I hope they help make moving, which can be a stressful time a little easier. This moving “mom” is now going to collapse on the couch for a few days until we have to move them once again.
-Jill :) :) :)
P.S. If you can afford them, PODS or other shipping containers are wonderful.
P.P.S. Over the past 4 years I have moved my grown kids 4 times alone. In the past 20 years since they have left home I have moved them and myself more than 20 times. In addition to that, I spent most of my first 18 years with my dad in the military. Hmmm… Maybe that is why I feel like an expert at this moving thing!
heheehe… ahhh jill… i can fully simpathise with you on the moving … yes, go and have a nice glass of lemonade and relax! :D
rose :D
Rose,I can always tell the moms with grown kids because they sympathize with me. I tease my daughter in law when she says how much easier things will be after the kids graduate. I always laugh and say that is a myth because what happens is they multiply and now as in my case I have 9 “kids” instead of 2. Not that I mind in the least though. :) :) Jill
And did you say ‘they are camping out in Tawra’s backyard ‘until the house closes?’ WOW! A blog on ‘moving’ just behind a blog on ‘vacations?’ Camping in a camper in Aunt Tawra’s backyard is a VACATION waiting to happen!
It’s all in the presentation! And kids are the most willing recipients of our brainstorms! Have a blast!
Robin in CA
(Mother of 4)
Isn’t that the truth. It’s all in the way you look at things. The moms and dads have a whole different perspective on the whole thing. HA! HA! I just hope my offspring can all live together for 2 weeks with out killing each other off. They have had to do it before so I think they will survive. HA! HA! Jill
so true, jill… even tho i also have 2 kids, my future son in law is like my own child (i worry about him too)… and i have told my 18 yr old son this many times, “just bc you turn 18 and is recognized by the govt as a legal adult, doesnt mean i stop being a mother to you!”… yep… my mom would agree with you wholeheartedly… she had 5 children, now she has 11 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren (well, 13 actually but 2 were stillborn) and yes, my mom worries about each and everyone one of us!…
and she doesnt mind either! :D… in fact, i think she gets the biggest kick at the family gatherings when she has all of the family together and she sees the many generations of her family growing … she has often said this is the best part of life!… to be able to be near her big huge family!…. :D
oh i am sure your son and his family will have a blast being so near tawra and her family … its good for the kids to be close…
rose :D
I have moved more times then I would like to count and have found that if you use the same size boxes for most of your items they stack easier and better in the moving van, truck, etc. I go to “McDonald’s” and get their french fry boxes. They are sturdy and even if you use them for books they never get to heavy.
My dad was a logger so we moved a lot when growing up and you are so on the money with all of your suggestions. We always started packing as soon as possible and lived on bare necessities until moving day. Our last move for my husband and I (hopefully our last; for a while anyway) was only across town, so every time I came to work in the house I would bring a few boxes with me. It really helped by moving day. If you’re moving to a new town, state, or time zone that won’t be a very helpful tip though. Well, glad your move went smoothly and can’t wait to see pictures!
you could also donate canned goods to a food bank so you dont have to move them.
Great new look! I have moved more than 25 times (not counting the moves between university and a co-op job for 4 1/2 years). I have now lived in one house for 12 years (more than twice as long as anyone else). I have finally realized that I need to declutter/discard/give away a lot, which always happened so often before due to frequent moves.
I have reached the point of having partially filled boxes in several rooms as well as piles of unused/but still useful stuff all over. I keep putting off actually moving anything out of the house because there is no deadline.
I have always done the majority of the packing for my family. My husband and I have moved 6 times in our 3 years of marriage, I have been 6 months pregnant, 9 months pregnant, 8 months pregnant, and 4 weeks postpartum (2 different pregnancies). SO, I have learned how to start packing early, and a little at a time. Being organized helps a LOT. One room at a time also helps. If you aren’t going to use it on a daily basis, put it in a box, label the box, put the box somewhere else.
As for the unpacking, I can’t stand having boxes piled up everywhere. I have always unpacked the last box exactly a week after we’ve gotten to the new location (regardless of swollen feet, recovering from difficult labors, and dealing with newborns). When you are unloading the truck, go ahead and put the boxes in their appropriate rooms, it’ll save you a later back-ache.
We are moving from Wisconsin to Florida in July. Yes, I know we picked one of the hottest times to do it! :) We know about not packing videotapes, candles, crayons, etc on the moving truck, but what about pens, markers? Do they explode? Is this something I need to be concerned about?
I’ve never had those explode Jen. You should be ok.
Pet owners / guardians:
1) Look up and write down the name, address, phone number and driving directions for one vet and one emergency vet clinic in the new area – even if they aren’t going to be your permanent ones – for emergencies until you find a new vet.
2) Board your pet from the night before the move to the night after or, on the day of your move, empty one room with a door first. Place the pet, some food and water, a few toys, leash / crate, and for a cat, a litter box into this room. Place the pets in this room. If possible, lock the door. Put a sign on the door stating “Pets Inside – Do Not Enter” and instruct all your help that only you are to enter this room.
3) When you take the pet to the new home, take it immediately into one room (once inside) and follow step #2. Keep the pet in there at least until all the stuff is brought into the home and the help is gone for the day.
After many moves we found it helpful to pack a suitcase as if we were going on vacation. Really helped to have the suitcase(s) to live out of while we were unpacking. No hunting for shorts or jackets or pajamas,
Best wishes on your move
Ronda
On my last couple of moves, I just moved my dresser drawers with everything in them. I just put a towel on top, especially the underwear drawers. Didn’t want my undies blowing somewhere. The next time I move, will be a long distance move from CT to GA, and it will be scary to me. Everyone keeps saying get rid of your furniture and start over when you get there. I happen to like most of my furniture. My bedroom set is almost 50 years old and I really don’t want a different one. I’m not taking the sofa, but I am taking my two recliners and the TV. I am also not bringing any of my appliances, but will still have a full truck. I have to bring all of my crafts with me, as the closest one where I’m going is 50 miles away, and sorry, but you can’t get the same stuff down there as you can get in CT. I’m wondering if I should buy sofa and dining room set up here before I go, since I am bringing a lot of stuff anyway? What do you think?
Anything you love like your bedroom set I would take with me. As far as whether you should buy a sofa there you need to consider a couple of things. First if you can find what you want or something close to it in GA then you might wait and just get it there because you need to factor in a couple of things. First hauling things a longer distance ups the chances of them getting damaged no matter how careful you are things happen. Second if you have to rent an extra big or an extra truck to haul them in why add that expense. Now if you have extra room in the truck you are taking anyway then take all you want including a new sofa.
Our situation has always been that it was cheaper for us to buy some of the larger pieces of furniture at our new home because we would have had to pay $1000 or more for an extra truck plus figure out someone to drive it for us and the expense for them to get back home etc.
But we did take anything we especially loved like a large roll top desk, antique beds, special family pianos and things. Hope this helps answer you question a little. I didn’t know if you were moving it yourself or having movers or what.
One thing to remember for any one who is moving we were told by a moving company that one of the most expense things to move are books and people don’t usually realize it because they are so small but it is the weight moving companies go by and books add up so get rid of as many of those as you can.
Jill and Tawra,
Just wanted to tell you both that I moved last week on Wednesday. My new apartment is about 30 miles from my old apartment. I moved closer to my hometown, friends and family. The area I left raised it’s property taxes 38 percent, so this past April my landlord raised my rent, and income and other taxes went up too. The city is near bankruptcy. Also, my landlord was an atheist who wasn’t kind at all, and never fixed anything. I prayed and God led me to move. I used a lot of the tips from your books when packing. I threw out a lot of stuff to streamline my possessions. All your advice on this site and in your books on moving and scaling down came in handy. Thanks.
Oh Bea how exciting to have a new place to live. I know it is a lot of work moving but hope you like your new place better and have fun fixing it up. I was just last night reading another Grace Livingston Hill book about a girl who moved into an older house and all the things she did to fix it up. It made me want to jump up and start painting but then reality hit and realized I was way to tired to start a painting project this week. :) :) It probably is so much nicer for you too being close to your family and friends. Glad the moving tips helped. You are right the mine secret to an easy move is to get rid of all you can.
That’s great! I hope you enjoy your new home!
Bea, glad you are settling in ok. Nice that you got the computer up and running quickly.
enjoy your new home and make nice new friends.
lynda
Thanks Jill, Tawra, and Grandma, for the well wishes. My new apartment was freshly painted by my new landlord and new carpeting was installed too, so all I had to do was move in and arrange my stuff. It’s fun to do that, but time consuming and tiring. To have to pack and move from an old apartment and unpack and set up home in a new place is very tiring. Looking for places to put everything in an organized way takes thought too. In my kitchen cabinets I put the spices for baking on one shelf and the spices for cooking on another. Your organizational tips Jill helped me to think, “Now what would Jill and Tawra suggest?” It helped me to think creatively and arrange things nicely. I’m not done unpacking yet, but almost there. My new apartment is more in a country-like setting, so I love the view of the mountains from my windows, and the landlord has a lovely garden in the backyard. I feel God blessed me. Thanks again.
Oh Bea that sounds so nice. Don’t push yourself too hard. I got back from a trip to Tawra’s over a week ago and just finished unpacking the last of my 2 bags I took with me. I know shame on me. I hate unpacking. Don’t forget where you put things does not mean it is set in stone if something feels awkward or like it isn’t working smoothly then you can always change it later.
Would love to have a view like yours. I look out across to the detention center here in town and my other windows look at the wall of my neighbors house. I do have nice neighbors though. They were working on the outside of their house and that wall was unpainted and looking rough and it is what I had to look at in my kitchen all the time. My neighbor was really sweet and got out there this summer and slapped some paint on it for me even though they weren’t done with it just so I wouldn’t have to look at an ugly wall all the time.
Thanks Jill for always being so sweet and thoughtful. I really prayed for the Blessed Mother, St. Anne (Jesus’s grandmother) Jesus and Our Heavenly Father to find me a nice new home and they did. I got everything I wanted in my new apartment. I even have my own basement with a landlord supplied washer and dryer for my own use. I also wanted a pretty yard and the apartment has one. There is a privacy hedge around the yard and the garden. My landlord even told me to take as many tomatoes as I want because he can’t eat them all. It’s nice having home-grown vegetables for free. As the vegetables ripen he will give me more kinds. My upstairs windows look out on pretty scenery and I’m grateful to God.
I will take your advice about not pushing myself too hard unpacking etc. The other day I was SO TIRED I went to bed about 7pm and didn’t get up to about 9am because I was so tired. I was pushing myself too hard for about 2 weeks packing and cleaning the old apartment and unpacking and arranging in my new one. When there’s so much to do sometimes you feel guilty sitting still too much because you want to get it all done, but that’s not good. For the last couple of days I’ve been taking it a little easier and pacing myself a little better. Good advice to do that.
Also, like you said, sometimes you put something someplace and then relook and rethink and move it somewhere else. I’ve done that already, and am sure I will do more of that.
I’m glad you have nice neighbors and they painted something that should have been taken care of. That is nice. It’s nicer to have pretty surroundings instead of things that look rundown when they can be fixed. It’s the small things that add happiness to life.
Thank you for these tips. I read them and used them when the hubs and I moved about one and a half years ago. This time, we are downsizing (3-bedroom, 3-floor house to a 1 bedroom apartment) in addition to just moving in about 3 weeks. I appreciate being able to re-read them this time around (in addition to your “purging” post a few days ago). I feel overwhelmed, but this is a big help. Thank you!
I wouldn’t purchase furniture before moving because it’s weight would increase the expense of doing so. I also understand that NC, SC, and GA have all of those discount places where you can purchase furniture inexpensively, so why bother? Look these up on line to see if they have what you want. On the other hand, if I were moving to a place like Montanna where I assume they have few furniture stores I might take some with me. I would compare costs of furniture delivery and moving. And yes you also have the possibility of damaging your new furniture.
In reply to Janice, we have moved in the last13 yrs. only ‘6’ times, from GA to FL to NM to OK and back to GA finally, been here about 2 1/2 yrs and’want’ to move again, but hubby says: ‘only in my grave this time”. So, I think I have to stay put. But on the more serious side moving with furniture unless it is something you absolutely love, leave the big stuff. 1. it probably will not really fit in the new place as it did in the old one, 2. you can find some really unique pretty things at consignment shops, I found a wonderful dining table with chairs at an estate sale, very different and also here in GA you are really never too far from a bigger city, even the smaller ones have grown up in the last 30 yrs. quite a bit. Some of the bigger pieces can actually wait for a little while to purchase.
Well, good luck on your move, enjoy GA, it’s really not that bad.
I found that making a “bed in a box” helped. I take a good size box, pack sheets, blankets, their comforter and a pillow. One box for each bed, marked with that persons name. It goes right to their room and is ready for when the bed gets set up, no hunting required! Especially for little ones, having their bed set up as soon as possible can make a big difference in getting settled.
We just used PODS for our move. Yes, it was great to be able to pack a box and then load it at our convenience, BUT we discovered the hard way that they will nickel and dime you for EVERYTHING. We are now in a battle with them over excessive charges and due to the fact they “cannot pick up” the empty container until the next automatic billing day (they claim they said they need a weeks notice for the pick up date, yet I know that they never informed me of that. They delivered the empty container with a 2 day notice and picked up the loaded container with a 5 day notice, so why a week notice for the empty?), therefore, I will be charged another month of use and then I HAVE to CALL THEM to have the refund of those charges executed….WHAT????!!!! Why should I have to call? They should automatically issue the refund, but no, I have to call and ASK for it to be done…stupid!!!!! I do not, nor will not, recommend or use PODS ever again!!!!!