In our (almost) 12 years of marriage, we've lived in 10 different homes (11 if you count the 3-month stint at my in-laws when we moved back to PA). We've moved from PA to CO, back to PA, and then back to CO--all without ever hiring a moving company--so I feel like I've got the long distance moving thing 'down'.
Since we're moving back to Bayfield (400 miles away) in less than 2 weeks, I thought I would share my moving tips since I'm going through all of them right now! These posts will show you how to not lose your mind if you decide to do all of the moving yourself {...and you can!}.
When you stop to look around your home after you know you're moving, it can be very overwhelming...where do you start?!
The first things to pack are the last things to unpack: decorations.
This is when I'm very grateful that we live simply...
This picture shows all of our decorative things from the entire house:
If you're in that 'I can't start packing yet, because I'll still need to use things for a while' stage--packing up your decorative items is the perfect place to start.
Here's a quick breakdown of how to do it efficiently:
Step 1: Gather every single decorative item you own.
This step requires you to be very observant! It's easy to miss things that you're used to looking at everyday. (I had our 9 year old walk through the house after I thought I was finished, and he found another picture that I missed!)
Find a nice workspace to lay out what you have, so you can pack similar-sized items together. {A dining room table is perfect for this!}
Step 2: Get your boxes and packing material ready.
Different sized boxes make packing fragile things easy...they aren't as likely to break when packed in a smaller space. I had some sewing material that I was considering donating to the thrift store, but I realized that it would be the perfect thing to wrap the 'breakables' in when we move...glad I kept it!
I can pretty much 'eye up' spaces and know what will fit where...but if you're 'spatially challenged' (like my husband!), you might need to gently set the items into the box you want to use before you wrap everything up and start packing things, just to make sure they will fit in that particular box.
{Grocery stores, shoe stores, friends who just moved, and Craigslist are all great places to aquire free boxes!}
Step 3: Carefully wrap, box, tape, and label your items.
Ok, this is more like Steps 3-6, but for your sanity, I am not writing out each of them! Just remember to mark what's inside the box, so when you're unpacking, you're not surprised every time you open a new box!
Maybe it's because I've never hired anyone to pack and move our stuff, but I don't think I would love unpacking as much as I do, if someone else packed it up--I'd have no idea what is where! I also think it makes it much quicker to unpack when you pack everything in 'categories' (like with like), as you're not distracted by bathroom items when you're unpacking clothing, etc.
There will be times when you need to put an unrelated item into the box, just because it fits so well (or you're running out of boxes!), but for the most part, try to keep 'like with like' when packing.
Trust me--you'll appreciate this attention to detail when you're unpacking!
Other things to do in this 'beginning' stage of moving:
- Gather seasonal items/decorations (hopefully they're already boxed up)
- Change your address with banks, insurance companies, utility company, etc
- Kids' stuff: pack up hand-me-downs, out-of-season items, & most of their toys
- Sell/donate unused items...this is my absolute favorite time to purge!
- Reserve your moving truck online
Moving can be a stressful time in life, but with some planning, preparation, and patience--it doesn't have to be the 'worst' time in life!
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