Moving home with your family
Moving home is a stressful time for everyone, so here are some tips to consider when making the big step of moving home, whether you’re moving to a totally new area or just up the road.
Acknowledge everyone’s feelings and keep everyone informed
Involve everyone in decisions. Once you’ve chosen a new home, don’t forget to take the children to see the new place too (if it’s possible!) After all, they will be living there too and it’ll help them get used to the reality of the move. Try and make the visit into more of a tour of the area, too, and show them places they are likely to visit regularly, like the local park or their friends’ homes. If they are also moving school as a result of the move, you might find it especially helpful to show them where the new home is located in relation to their new school and what their new daily routine might look like.
Get everyone decluttering
Provide incentives if you have to! It’s not just one person’s responsibility to do the packing, so try and encourage everyone to do their bit. The more decluttering you can do before the move, the less you’ll have to physically move on the day. Whatever you don’t want to take with you to the new place, either donate to charity, give away to loved ones or sell online (money is a good incentive!) As well as decreasing your heavy lifting, you might even save some money if you’re able to fit all your stuff into a smaller man and van than you might have otherwise!
Hire a moving company
You don’t have to, but it’s definitely worth considering. If you’re pushed for time, use a site like Shiply.com to get quotes from many removal companies without you having to call everyone in the phone book. You fill in a quick online form about your move (current and new address, no. of bedrooms etc) and then moving companies send you quotes for you to choose between. Having companies come to you means you can get on with other things (packing, most likely!) You can specify on Shiply whether you’d like a full service (including packing), a part service or just a van to do the moving.
Pack a moving day bag for each family member
Make sure everyone has their own bag for moving day, complete with things you’ll need for the journey or shortly after you arrive. Think things like tea/coffee, pyjamas, snacks, some toilet roll/tissues and a toothbrush. This will save you rifling through boxes desperate to find them when you arrive!
Good luck with your move!
