Guest Blogger: 5 Tips for Making a Move Easier on Your Family

Guest Blogger #958, Entry #2407, May 10, 2013

Moving is not something that most people look forward to. While there’s a certain element of excitement, adventure, and renewal inherent to any major move, it’s not at all uncommon for people to harbor a fear of the unknown. And leaving familiar places, friends, and the life you have known behind is never easy. But when you have a family the entire prospect becomes even harder. For one thing, you probably have a lot more stuff to pack and keep track of now that you’re not single. But you also have to contend with a spouse that may be leaving a job behind in order to follow you, not to mention kids that will be taken out of the schools they love and away from all of their friends. They simply might not understand why you have to move, and they will almost certainly be upset about the prospect. In short, moving could cause a lot of stress for you and your family. But there are things you can do to make the process easier on everyone

Before you decide to move – have a talk with your family

Image via: David Philips

1. Have a family meeting.

A great way to assuage the fears of your family when it comes to moving is to sit everyone down for a family meeting. This way you and your partner can explain the process and the reasoning to kids, and they can discuss what is upsetting them about the move. Just talking through the issues will help to get your whole family on the same page and ensure that everyone is at least comfortable with prospect, even if they’re not totally happy about it.

2. Find Scout locations and activities for the kids.

One of the best ways to prepare your family for the upcoming move is by taking the time to do a little recon. Kids may not be keen to leave their friends, their school, and their activities behind, so find something for them to get excited about. You might look into clubs or sports they participate in now so that they know they won’t have to give up everything they love when they move. Perhaps there will even be new activities for them to try. And once you’ve found a home, check out local parks or kid-friendly hangouts, see if there are other kids their age in the neighborhood, and pop in at schools to meet teachers and see what they have to offer.

Decide how you and your family will make moving easier

Image via: Arch Studio, Inc.

3. Get organized.

Help your family get organized, this will help you to make sure that everything gets done in a timely manner. You can create a master schedule and set deadlines for a variety of activities as a way to avoid some of the major stresses associated with moving. And you should also use a comprehensive system for packing by which you number boxes and note what’s in them for easier unpacking upon arrival.

4. Hold a yard sale.

Over time you have no doubt accumulated a lot of stuff, much of which you don’t really need or use. So do a massive cleaning before you start packing boxes to weed out items that can go to Goodwill or get sold at a yard sale. This could significantly lighten the load when it comes to packing and everyone will be happy to replace outdated items with new products once the move is complete.

5. Hire movers

Hire movers like United Van Lines to make the transition easier. Packing, moving, and unpacking are a lot of work. But you can easily hand off at least one part of this equation to someone else by hiring professional movers. It can be pricy, but leaving the heavy lifting to someone else can take a huge burden off your shoulders, both literally and figuratively.

For more moving tips on Stagetecture, click here.