How To Pack For A Move

Today I'm going to share with you tips on how to pack your home for your next move. This is especially geared toward those with kiddos. Life is crazy enough balancing careers, home, school, and little ones. Moving is stressful enough without the affore mentioned balancing act. So you may be asking yourself WHY THE HECK AM I DOING THIS TO MYSELF???? I hope this video will help you create a more enjoyable moving adventure for you and your whole family!

START EARLY

If you know that you will be moving in the next 2-3 months, get a head start on packing now. Packing as early as possible will help lower stress levels during showings, make the process more managable especially when toddlers are involved, and aid in the transition for the kids.  If you pack a few boxes every day, it will ease the stress of packing and ensure that you have enough time to sort out your belongings. Most of us are able to plan in advance when we will be moving. Some may have less notice of an upcoming move. That's ok too. If you have less than 2 months to prepare to move these packing tips can still be helpful, you'll just want to up your timeline and maybe increase how many boxes you pack per day. But for the sake of picking a timeline I'm going to use a 2-3 month timeline.

PREPARE YOUR MINDSET

Think of the next couple months as vacation or an extended camping trip. When ever you go on a trip you don't pack the whole house and take it with you. Well, for this trip you will. But to break it down and feel less daunting. Start by thinking of these final months in your home as your vacation home. Begin by choosing your essentials that you will absolutely need for the next 2 months. Break the time down to 7-10 days.

CLOTHING

Choose 7-10 days of clothing for each family member. Keep in mind your family's needs, this could look like 7-10 outfits, or it could be 7-10 shirts and 5--7 pants/shorts. If you have infants or potty training toddlers that may need an extra outfit on occasion choose 10 outfits. Don't forget underwear and socks for each person or any dress wear that may be needed for business or church. But try to keep that in the 7-10 day parameters. GO through the coat closet and  pack away any items that are not in season. Everybody in the family should really only need one coat. If you absolutely need a dress coat, keep that out also. One final note on this category - To help make laundry managable & caught up, do a load every 2-3 days max. Since you will run out of clothes faster, you may even want to do 1 load per day. For my family of 4 It takes me about 15 minutes per load of folding, hanging, and putting away.  These is a whole lot less overwhelming than doing laundry for an hour or more once a week. 1 final tip is to have a hamper/basket in each room for dirty clothes. You could choose to do smaller loads and wash 1 room at a time to save you from sorting later.

BEDDING

Choose 1 set of sheets for each bed and pack away the rest. You may even choose to simply your throw pillows if you typically have a bed full of them. Each week wash and put them back on the beds.

BATHROOM

Pack away any extra items. If you tend to keep extra tooth brushes, soaps, shampoos, or anyother toiletries pack those away. Keep you most used makeup, curlling iron, straightener etc. and put the rest away. Keep 1 bath towel for each person and 1 hand towel out. Every Monday I collect all the towels in the house wash them and return them to their hanging spot.

TOYS/BOOKS

If the children are old enough let them pick out their top 5 favorite toys and books. If they are too little to understand you can do this for them when they aren't around so that there are less tears shed. You might also let them donate and bless other children by letting them choose what items they don't want to keep. Do this with your book selection also. If you tend to be a reader choose only the amount of books that you will realistically read in the next 3 months. If you have hobby crafts or toys, be honest with yourself about whether they are essential during your move. Or if you can live without them till you're in your new home.

HOME DECOR/FAMILY PICTURES

Many Realtors will recommend removing personal family photos and heirloom valuables for privacy and safety reasons. Not only will it get you a headstart of packing, It will also go a long way toward a buyer friendly showing experience if your knick knacks, collectibles, and personal items are put away. You may want to leave some decor, so that your home is welcoming and not bare. I would refer you to your Realtor or stager for advice on what to keep and what to pack in this category.

KITCHEN/DINING

Many of us have special place settings for holidays, entertaining serving or cookware. Pack these away. If you're selling your home in the Spring you are certainly not going to need your Christmas dishes and tablecloths. Unless you plan to throw a party while you're moving, pack it all away. Lastly, use this time to go through your pantry and fridge to remove any expired foods. If you have food items that you know you will not need, pack them away in varmit proof containers and pack them away too.

PETS

If you love have and spoil your pets like I do, you may need to go through their toy box and supplies and keep out only the essential items for them too.

DON'T PACK ITEMS THAT YOU DON'T USE NOW AND WON'T USE LATER!

Use this time to have a garage sale or donate as many items as you can. My personal rule is if I haven't worn it in 2 months, it's in season & it's not a specialty item (like wedding attire) then it needs to leave.

ENJOY YOUR MOVING ADVENTURE

Having a clutter free home at the beginning of your home selling/ moving journey will maximize your ability to enjoy the process with less stress. Imagine! You will be able to find things easier, you won't have as many things to pick up and straighten for that last minute showing