photo of my two year old playing with a moving box
Two weeks remain before we move out of our comfortable, modern suburban home into a 1930s cottage nestled in a Dutch forest. We are excited to move. Beyond thrilled actually. And understandably, the stress of it all is starting to take front and center attention in the Finding Dutchland household.
Rather than letting the stress impact our family’s happiness and well-being, I’m actually utilizing it to improve family communication skills and a “team building” exercise. In reality, this translates to my husband giving me full control over our moving strategy and designating specific times for unadulterated concentrated packing without the presence of my toddler.
As health psychologist Kelly McGonigal suggested in her Ted talk, I’m making stress my friend. And since right now, I am in the thick of moving, here are some of the things I am doing (and have done) to make it one happy move:
Start one month before
What can I say? I’m a planner at heart. Make a list of everything that you need to get done from now until moving day. There’s also practical logistics such as providing a written 30-day notice to the current landlord and canceling or forwarding utilities (gas, water, electricity, garbage, cable/internet, phone and cell phone) that need to be done well in advance. And of course, you need time to make an inventory of what you have and purchase moving supplies (moving boxes, bubble wrap, clear storage boxes, vacuum-seal bags).
De-clutter & Purge
Consider moving as a gift to figuring out what is truly essential and useful in your life. While I’m a sentimental fool, considerate ruthlessness are the two words best to describe my moving-state-of-mind. I’m a firm believer in not letting the things that you own take up owning you. Most of the time what we save to use for later we never end up using anyway because we forget about it, or we simply can’t find it.
Organized packing
Create a clear, organized packing system. Labeled all the boxes to include what was inside, what room it will go in and in what floor. When labeling the boxes, consider also implementing a color coordination system for all the rooms and floors. We were able to be settled enough to have overnight guests for a couple of days and throw a ginormous first birthday less than one week after moving into our new home.
Clean Along the Way
Try not to leave major cleaning projects right at the last minute. Allocate some time during the last week of the move to deep cleaning the oven, fridge, freezer and bathrooms. Granted, the simple act of moving can cause more mess. But a slow and steady deep clean regimen can help guarantee your deposit back since you will leave the place cleaned.
Clean New Place
If you can get the keys to the new place before the move, I strongly recommend you cleaning the new place. Even if the previous tenants or landlord cleaned the apartment, one can get a lot of comfort cleaning a place to one’s own satisfaction. It can also make settling in a lot faster as it makes it easier to unpack and make the house into a home.
Hire movers
If financial considerations allow for it, please hire movers. While one can save a bit of money by asking friends and family for the favor, hiring professional movers can go a long way. If you take the costs of renting a moving van, procuring other moving essentials (ropes, dolly, boxes) and the actual time it takes to move, hiring movers may actually be more cost-effective in the long run. Your friends and family (or more accurately – their backs) will be grateful.
Bonus tip
If you are moving with a baby or toddler, seriously consider utilizing your support network of friends and family to do some babysitting the weeks leading up to the move and moving day itself. Our little loved ones can definitely sense an impending major life altering change so it’s also best to explain (rinse & repeat) what is going on. Also, while it is a lot more time consuming, having them help packing non-breakables and toys may do wonders for their self-esteem.
Anyone have any moving tips to add before the moving day?
