Simple Steps to A Less Stress Move
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I loathe change, like despise it, and yet I’m a military spouse whose life is riddled with change and unknowns and challenges and MOVES! I’ll be upfront and say that we are blessed in the fact that we haven’t moved all that much in the past 14 years. We’ve moved a total of 7 times and 3 of those were local moves.
I joke that I’m not very adventurous so that’s led to us staying put for as long as we could, but it’s also required us to make some sacrifices to stay in those places, like volunteering for deployments, spending a year in 2 separate cities for a year during a military school, etc. It’s not been ideal in any way, shape, or form. We’ve survived, by the skin of our teeth, and lived to tell about it!
And let me tell you, I’ve not always been prepared for movers to show up at our doors! When we moved from TX to AL, we fully expected the packers not to show up on time because that had been the experience of every one of our friends who moved that summer. Imagine my shock when the doorbell rang at 7:30 am and I was rattled out of bed by a crew of packers ready to throw our junk in boxes!
Fortunately, this time around, we’re a lot more prepared for the packers to show up in approximately 9 days! Okay, I may have just freaked out a bit at the actual number of days I have before my house is taken over by the smell of cardboard boxes and the sounds of packing tape being ripped! Cue the sneezes and shots of allergy meds!
This time around, we’ve tried to get ourselves more prepared and ready. After all, I am a Professional Organizer who helps people pack and unpack for a living! Here are a few things we’ve done to ease the stress of moving!
Write Out Lists
One of the keys to remembering all of the tasks that need to be taken care of Pre-Move is to write it all down. I know you’ve heard me say this before, but there’s no way to remember everything you need to get done if it’s not on paper or in your preferred list app on your phone.
Some of the things on your list may include:
- Things you’re going to hand carry to your new destination
- Home repairs or cleaning that need to be done
- Phone calls or emails you need to make to get utilities transferred or started
- Items you want to sell/donate/giveaway before your house is packed
- Supplies you need to buy for packing
You can probably think of more information you need to write down depending on your specific circumstances. Get yourself a notebook, or a good trust app, and get to list-making!
Purge, Purge, Purge
The last thing you want to spend mental energy on as you’re setting up your new place is how to get rid of items you no longer want! Purging before your life is put into boxes will save you mental energy on the other side. You are likely already familiar with places you can donate or discard those items you no longer want.
If you don’t love or use an item in your current home, chances are you aren’t going to suddenly love or use an item in your next home! Sorry to be the bearer of that news to you. I’ve found items in my attic that I haven’t used in 6 years that I know I’m not going to suddenly want or need for the next 2 years! We’ve taken loads to our favorite local charity, had $1 Porch Sales, and filled trash bags full of junk to set on our curb over the past few weeks.
We’ll be so glad to not have to make decisions about where to store or trash the items we’ve purged once we get to our new place. I’ve even talked my husband into getting rid of some of the large framed gifts he’s been given by previous Army units. Some of these gifts have been in our attic for 10 years or more. We’ve unframed many and now just have the certificates or memorabilia that we can put into smaller frames or just file away.
Do yourself a favor and do a good purge before you start packing!
Strategically Place Your Stuff
One of the benefits of an organized move-out is an organized move-in! All the prep work we do before our belongings are packed and sealed into cardboard boxes makes the exhausting work of unpacking those boxes so much easier.
As we’re unpacking our boxes, we want it all to go as efficiently as possible. We want to open boxes in the rooms where the items in those boxes belong! In order to make that happen, we’ve gotta make sure that everything ends up in the right rooms before the packing starts.
We’ve gotta spend some time walking through our homes putting things back in the rooms where they belong!
- Put all the toys back in kids’ rooms.
- Make sure all the clean clothes are back in the right closets or drawers.
- Place books back on bookshelves, or at least nearby.
- Keep office supplies and school supplies together in the same closet or room.
- Establish a place to collect all the items that need to be hand-carried or travel in your personal vehicle.
There are few things worse than opening a box that contains items from several different rooms! Nip that in the bud!
Expect The Worst; Hope For The Best.
It’s inevitable that an element of the move process will go off track. Expect it! Don’t be caught off guard!
The moving truck may break down, delaying the delivery of your household goods for a week or more. Your new home may not be ready for you to take occupancy on the day you expected. The internet provider may take 2 weeks or more to install your new service. The air conditioning may not work when you arrive at your new place. Again, all from personal experience!
Flexibility and contingency plans are not optional when moving from place to place. It’s always good to think through how you’ll handle some unforeseen detours in the moving process.
Where will we stay if our truck is delayed a week?
Where can I sit in my new house if I don’t have any furniture?
What can I do while I wait?
What can we eat that doesn’t require eating out 3 meals a day?
These are minor questions to ponder, but when you’re displaced with a bunch of bored kids and a blind dog, already having some idea of how to deal will work in your favor! Just talking about my own family here!
Another way to prepare for the worst is to take some things off of your own plate! Do you know what this means? YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO IT ALL!
When we moved from TX to AL 6 years ago, I decided I was going to be the sole person, with the help of a few friends for a few hours, to clean my entire house, top to bottom, front to back before I gave the keys to the property management company that manages our TX rental house. What a disaster?! I swore I’d never do that again.
Then we bought a house 3 miles from the house we rented in AL for the first 3 years we were here. You know what I did? Cleaned that house from top to bottom and still didn’t get my deposit back. That’s a whole other saga.
So you know what I did last week? I scheduled a cleaning crew to clean this house before we hand it over to the buyers. One less thing for me to stress about!
You can also enlist friends to hang out with your kids while the moving chaos is happening. Do you know how hard it is to field questions from total strangers who are packing all of your personal belongings while you’re also trying to manage sibling disagreements and boredom tears? Yeah, don’t do that to yourself!
Order take out or delivery for yourself and your moving crew. If your friends offer to bring you a meal or dessert or cold drinks or a pitcher of margaritas, your answer is Yes! Don’t add another place to go or another stop to make while you’re moving!
I must confess, I have a mammogram scheduled for our 2nd day of packing this time and if I could get someone else to go for me, I sure the heck would let them!
Whatever can be done to remove some of the stress out of moving, just do it!
What are your best tips for an organized, less stress move?
Marianne
June 1, 2020 at 2:03 PMMoving can be so stressful… I’m guessing that’s what the margaritas are for?? 🤣🤣🤣
We used to have friends that moved every couple of years… just because… and we would help. I was stressed! This would be a great guide for people who move once in a while.
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:04 PMMargaritas for stress relief, absolutely!
Alice
June 2, 2020 at 3:47 PMThe last time I move from one apartment to another in the same town it took over a month. All I had was my son (age21) and a couple of his friends. I am unable to do a lot of lifting. I also didn’t have much money so we borrowed my ex’s pickup and did the best we could. At one point I rented a small U-haul. I injured my foot getting out of the thing! I said never again!
Well, a year and a half later I’m thinging about moving again. This time it’s to a 55+ apartment building where I don’t have to shovel, haul dumpsters to the curb, or put up a creepy guy who smokes! I’m going to follow your guidelines and start early. Thanks!
Sabrina
June 1, 2020 at 2:42 PMGreat ideas. Thanks!
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:03 PMThank you!
Adrienne
June 1, 2020 at 4:41 PMThis is great advice. Moving is definitely stressful so any help is always welcome.
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:03 PMThanks! I don’t think we can remove all the stress of moving, but the more we can remove from the equation, the better, right?
Douglas Jasper
June 1, 2020 at 4:46 PMPurge, Purge, Purge is the hardest yet most important step I think.
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:02 PMPurge is one of my favorite words and definitely the most important step in the move process!
Danielle Ardizzone
June 1, 2020 at 5:02 PMI’m sharing this with a friend that is moving soon! Thanks!
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:01 PMThanks for sharing with your friend!
Eva Keller
June 1, 2020 at 5:59 PMI am a very organized person so I know that if I ever moved from my current apartment I would definitely have a system in place. I used to move around constantly while in college and grad school, but I wasn’t moving furniture or anything, so it was way different. Now I’ve furnished an apartment and own a lot of things so I know it’ll be a very different experience.
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:01 PMTrue! And the longer we stay put, the more stuff we tend to acquire and the more there is to move.
Yvette
June 1, 2020 at 7:49 PMI love being organized so much that I just love this. That said. I know just who I’m going to share it with!
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 9:00 PMThanks! And thanks even more for sharing!
Beth Shields
June 1, 2020 at 7:57 PMI am with you….I don’t mind the moving…and I do have fun setting up the new spot… but I loathe the packing. I can’t imagine packing with my current residence. But I love what you said – Purge Purge Purge. Yup – that’s what I am starting to do – even though I am not moving yet. I love to organize – things always go better. Thanks for your post – it is encouraging me to just get things organized and cleaned up – purging here!
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 8:59 PMPurge!! It may be my favorite word! Setting up a new place is a fun challenge to me!
Shannon
June 6, 2020 at 9:56 AMMil family here too! This is spot on. Especially the part about when you organize on the way out it’s an easier move in. Now I just have to remind myself of that the next move so I dont procrastinate!
Holly
June 1, 2020 at 8:26 PMGreat tips and advice! Moving is so stressful and this will definitely help so many!
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 8:59 PMThanks. I hope it helps someone to feel more in control of their moves!
leeandra
June 1, 2020 at 8:36 PMGreat tips, its always difficult to move this is helpful.
Jen Wade
June 1, 2020 at 8:58 PMAs much as we’ve moved, it’s never quite easy!
Linda Egeler
June 1, 2020 at 10:50 PMI certainly could have used these tips the last time we moved. But it’s a good reminder to purge, purge, purge. We alreadyhave stacks growing in the basement!
Debbie
June 2, 2020 at 12:27 AMGreat advice. As a Realtor, I tell my clients to purge when moving too. It’s the best time. You’ve listed lots of things people may not even consider. Good tips.
Lisa
June 2, 2020 at 1:25 AMGreat advice! We moved so many time when we were in college! We really got the hang of it!
Carrie Beaton
June 2, 2020 at 1:38 AMThese are great tips. I definitely agree with purging! We didn’t do this when we moved 8 years ago and there are things we brought with us that we still haven’t used!
Tiffany
June 2, 2020 at 1:38 AMNever thought about having someone to watch the kids – that would be a huge help next time!
Barbara
June 2, 2020 at 3:13 AMI’ve never moved since marrying in 1997 and moving into a “Family home passed down from generation-to-generation!” I need to declutter though! You are so right! If you haven’t used it in 6 years…why, why are you keeping it! Glad I read your encouragement!
Erica
June 2, 2020 at 11:04 AMI thought I may have loved you when you said PURGE! I KNEW I loved you when I saw a Margarita maker for stress relief! I don’t plan on moving, it gives me hives just thinking about it, BUT this is an excellent resource! You had me at “making a list” and purging!
Suzan | It's My Sustainable Life
June 2, 2020 at 12:41 PMGreat suggestions from an expert in moving 🙂 We are considering downsizing…so let the purging begin!
Sara
June 2, 2020 at 3:51 PMWe moved the summer of 2017 and purging before we moved was one of the best things I did. I knew that there were certain things my kids would never miss if I just went ahead and got rid of them before the move. And I was right!
Cathy
June 2, 2020 at 7:01 PMI hate moving! Does anyone enjoy it? You listed great ideas and shared your experiences, thank you! We have always moved ourselves, never again!
Charlene
June 2, 2020 at 7:30 PMMoving Essentials: Margarita mixer!!! Love it!! Seriously, though – great tips! We moved every four years when I was growing up, so when I got married, I told him to pick a house he loved because we had to stay there for AT LEAST 10 years!!
Michelle
June 2, 2020 at 8:03 PMThis is the TRUTH about military moves! Expect the worst for sure. I also can get behind the purge – always surprising to find what you’ve accumulated over the years!
Sandi
June 2, 2020 at 11:05 PMOh my! We are in the downsize stage and Purge, Purge, Purge is truely a struggle. Thank you for all you do as part of our military family!
Kendra
June 3, 2020 at 5:18 AMWe moved so much when I was a kid, I can’t even imagine how my parents pulled that off every one to three years. I’ve stayed planted in my current house for over 22 years–probably because of all of that moving. I can’t even imagine the purging I would need to do if we were to move again now.
Jessica
June 3, 2020 at 6:31 AMThese are such helpful tips. We’ve moved a bunch, and learned over time but these would be so useful to anyone prepping for a move.
Christina Furnival
June 5, 2020 at 6:31 PMGreat tips! We haven’t moved in six years and I hope it will be a while until we do again, but this is so useful! Thanks!
Ruth Iaela-Pukahi
June 6, 2020 at 5:12 AMI’m going to have to move again this year. 🙁 Since 2017, we’ve already moved 3 times! All in the similar area which can be good and bad. Good cause it’s a close move, bad because you tend to just move everything. I still have some things in the same boxes from the first move in 2017. I’m so tired of moving…I’ll need these tips and hope to declutter LOTS before moving again.
Cindy
June 8, 2020 at 1:56 AMGreat trips to making moving easier. Purging is my favorite thing to do before a move. And…I absolutely hate moving!