Many people think it isn’t possible to move homes without a lot of stress if you have kids. While it’s not easy to achieve, and we are well aware of this, it is possible. It’s going to take a lot of organization on your part, and you’ll need to call in the help of your friends and/or family members, but it can be done. We assure you of this. If you’re struggling to believe us right now, hopefully, by the end of this article, you will better understand how this is possible. Keep reading down below if you would like to know more.
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Keep Everyone Organized
First, and most importantly, you must keep everyone organized throughout this process. Now, this will take a lot of dedication and likely a lot of revising your original plan, but once you get a solid plan in place, it can become quite simple to ensure people are where they are supposed to be. When we say everyone, we mean literally everyone who is involved in the move in any capacity. If your kids will be helping with moving, they need to know their tasks and when they need to be done. The same goes for anyone else that you manage to get to help with this.
If you think that it’s going to be tough for everyone to remember their roles, we recommend writing down a physical list for everyone to refer to. This can be a checklist with the things that need to be done and then the person or people that should be doing it. If you want to go that extra mile with this, you can include dates and times, specifically for those things that require them.
Triple Check Your Moving Date
Your moving date is when you need to be out of your current property and moving in somewhere else. Of course, if you can move out earlier and want to do this, you need to consider this with your schedule. Moving into a new home is always easier, but it’s not always feasible to complete. As such, you need to be looking at alternatives for what you should be doing if you aren’t ready to move by your moving date.
It is essential that you double and triple-check your moving date to ensure that you have everything sorted by then. There has to be some kind of plan in place so that everything is ready for the new owners to move in on that specific date. You cannot afford to get the date wrong, as this will cause you no end of trouble.
If You Don’t Have Room For Everything
What happens if you don’t have room for everything? If you are downsizing to a smaller property, you may have to sort through and take only the things you desperately need. You don’t want to fill up your new home and leave it looking cluttered when you have just moved in.
Work On Decluttering The Home
Once you know when you will be moving, then it is time to start decluttering your home. Everybody has belongings they no longer need, so what is the point of taking them to your new home? The key to decluttering your home is to work on each room individually. Sort your things into four piles. These should include the items you want to keep, throw away, donate, and sell. Selling your items will get you some money for the upcoming move while donating things will provide those in need with items they might not necessarily be able to buy themselves.
While decluttering, it is a good time to start packing things away so you don’t have to do it all on moving day. Packing as you go along and come across things you know you won’t need until you have moved will save you a lot of time. You won’t realize how many belongings you have until you start sorting through and packing them all away.
Get The Kids Involved In The Cleaning
Cleaning will be one of the worst jobs when it comes to moving. You wouldn’t want to move into a dirty house, and one that nobody had bothered to clean, so you should not expect anyone else to do this either. As such, you should go through the home room by room, ensuring it is as clean as possible. Make sure you are getting in all of those hard-to-reach areas you would usually ignore if possible.
This is something that your children will be able to help you with, as long as they are above a certain age. Even if they are only doing little bits here and there life clean the luggage, it’s one less thing you will try and have to sort on your own. There are ways to get them excited to do this, such as offering treats as a reward or turning the whole thing into a game.
Ask Your Kids To Help Pack Up Their Rooms
Get them involved in packing everything up in the kids’ rooms. Getting them involved will save time as you can do it in a fraction of the time. The children will be able to see where all their belongings are going so they can find them in the new house. If you get the children their own boxes and pens, they will be able to decorate the boxes so they can find them easily. Another method for the kids, depending on their age, is to get them kiddy suitcases. Such as a trunky in which they can keep all their special belongings during the move.
If the children are older, you could also get them involved in dismantling their furniture under supervision. Show them how and provide them with the right tools. If you use an electric screwdriver, you could also get the younger children to press the button while you hold it in place. Children love helping, so you may as well make use of this rather than them being in the way.
Ensure You Have People Around To Help
Moving with kids is not easy, especially if they are younger. You will need to do the bulk of the work yourself, so you should ensure that you have people around to help you do this. Ask your friends and family members to help you as much as they can/when they are available. This might include helping you pack up boxes, helping you go through your items so you know what is being kept and what is being thrown away, and anything else they can do for you. If your kids are too little to help, then you may even want to ask them if they can look after the children for a couple of hours so that you can get as much sorted as possible.
Other than friends and family, there are professionals you need to hire to ensure you get the level of support you need. Make sure you are hiring a moving company that can provide you with the specific service you need, such as the best international moving companies if you are moving out of the country. Check that the company you’re looking at offers the specific service, and then look at reviews to ensure you’re getting the best.
When Moving Day Comes Around
When moving day comes around, to avoid stress, you need to have your kids out of the way if they will not be able to help move things. It doesn’t sound nice, but it will be necessary as you can’t load and unload boxes if you are constantly worried about where your kids are and what they are doing when you are moving. As we mentioned above, you should ask someone you trust to look after them for the day, perhaps even an overnight stay. It will ensure you have plenty of time to get things sorted for moving without the constant stress of panicking about the kids.
We hope that you have found this article helpful. You now know that moving with kids can be done without all the stress. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s manageable if you find a way to keep yourself on task, get the help you need, and start before it gets to a week before you move. Hopefully, you will manage to keep your stress levels during the moving period and get through it without a hitch. We wish you the very best of luck!
Featured Photo by Lisa Fotios: https://www.pexels.com
