Whether you are just starting to list your house or awaiting the arrival of the moving truck.. we both know one thing is true. Moving is hard, moving with kids is even harder.
From the beginning of the process, we already hated the moving process. We’ve done it a few times now and it’s never appealing to us. Packing, moving, unpacking, listing, showing, looking, buying, selling, etc. etc. etc.
Add a toddler or two into the equation and it becomes even more chaotic. Not only will you lose your toothbrush during the move, but you might misplace your daughters favorite blanket which means she (and the rest of your house are never sleeping again).
While we are one thousand percent in the thick of it, I thought it would be a good time to share some things I have learned along the way.
- Keep important items close by. No I don’t mean birth certificates, passports, social security cards, or anything of that nature. I mean favorite cups, blankets, stuffed animals, Lego trucks, and whatever other item your children are currently attached to. Chances are they will ask for it and while their world is upside down, you don’t want to make it any worse.
- Pack away the mess. Once we started to have regular showings, I knew I couldn’t clean up every toy we owned in the hour leading up to the showing every. single. time. So I bought boxes and started packing some of the kids things. Toys that are difficult to clean up when they are played with (ie. play doh, puzzles, board games). That way there was only a select few toys out and they, I knew, were easy to clean up in 5 minutes flat.
- Plan outings ahead of time. There are a few special things that my kids like to do but we don’t do often. I kept these things in the back of my mind to use when we had to be out of the house for a showing. There was one Saturday where we had THREE showings. Basically we couldn’t be home at all. From a Michael’s Make Break to Costco then car naps on the way to the movies. I had it all planned out so we didn’t drive around aimlessly while getting antsy in the car.
- Let your kids know what is going on. We have told the kids since day one what the plan was and asked their opinion on different things. Obviously they’re little and rarely have rational opinions, but we wanted to ask them what they thought along the way. When someone was coming to look at our house, we told them they had to help clean up so it looked nice in case someone wanted to buy it. They won’t understand everything, but it is worth making them feel included.
- Give yourself grace. Running out of the house with two toddlers to let a last minute showing request happen is hardly sane. But I did it. With 15 mins to spare, I allowed our plans to be put on hold so someone could see the house. I felt terrible afterwards for making the kids sit in the car instead of building that couch cushion fort we said we’d build. Rather than beat myself up, I found a way to make the rest of our night special. You’re only human, remember that.
We’ve settled, started painting, began moving boxes over during each trip we take, and had some of the necessary work done. We’re two weeks away from having the movers come to take all of the furniture. Two weeks away from sleeping in our new home. I’m nervous, anxious, excited, happy, sad, and overwhelmed all at the same time.
If you’re in this process with me, I feel all your feels. We got this.
