You might be thrilled just thinking about moving to a new house. Does your entire family feel the same way?
Taking care of a big family is challenging enough already. It’s a big ask to get every family member on board with moving—and essentially hitting refresh on their lives. How do you prepare for this, logistically and mentally?
START WITH A MOVING CHECKLIST
We don’t want you to dread the long to-do list that comes with big family moving. Keep reading to get the ultimate moving checklist you need to prepare for the big day and the life you have ahead.
TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT MOVING
This is one of the most critical things to do before moving. Sit your children down to explain that you’ll be moving to a new home—and what that means for them. A child can seriously struggle when they have to move to a brand-new school, leaving their close friends and childhood neighbourhood.
To cushion some of the shock, give them lots of time to process the move. Showing them nice pictures of the new place and its surrounding area might help.
MAKE SPACE IN YOUR HOME AND YOUR BUDGET
For a successful move that allows you to quickly get back on your feet, it’s important that you manage the family budget. Moving can set you back a lot more than it needs to if you’re not careful, and especially if your new home is an upgrade.
There’s a lot you can do to recover some of the costs of moving. First, only pack and move the belongings you know you’ll use in the future. The more boxes you take, the higher your total shipment weight will be—and the more expensive your move can be.
Now is a great time to rid your home of any clutter. Consider holding a garage sale, selling items online, or donating to charity.
PREPARE AN ESSENTIALS BOX FOR EACH FAMILY MEMBER
To help reduce your moving load and streamline the process altogether, get everyone to put together a box of their most essential items—think of it as a survival kit.
These boxes should be your family’s top priority when moving so that everyone has the things they absolutely need while waiting for everything else to get delivered.
TRANSFER YOUR CHILDREN’S SCHOOL RECORDS AND GET THEM REGISTERED
Months before your move, you should gather each of your children’s school transcripts and other required documentation for transferring schools. In some cases, you can arrange for school records to be transferred from one school to another.
Again, talk to your children to prepare them. Let them know what the school is like, what kind of extracurricular activities it offers, and what social changes they should expect as a transfer student.
TAKE APART YOUR LARGE FURNITURE
Disassemble any furniture that can be disassembled. This will save you and your moving team some heavy lifting and make more space for other belongings. If you struggle with disassembly or encounter any problems, that’s experienced furniture movers are around for.
PROTECT YOUR FAMILY FROM HARM
Keep a close eye on your children during the moving process. Make sure they don’t get in the way of your hired movers, try to lift heavy boxes, or play outside around large moving trucks.
It’s best to keep them occupied with games or TV in a closed room that’s far from the moving action. Consider asking a friend, relative or babysitter to make sure they’re out of harm’s way on moving day.
STAY IN TOUCH WITH FRIENDS AND NEIGHBOURS
People can forget to manage their emotional well-being at times like this. Moving stress can take a toll on anyone and changing environments can mean losing some of the precious social connections that keep that well-being in check.
Thankfully, modern-day communication technology makes it a lot easier to maintain those connections. If you’re moving far away, keep in touch with regular emails, instant messaging, and phone calls. Help your kids set up video calls with their friends so they don’t lose their connections, either.
It also doesn’t hurt to start fostering new connections in your new neighbourhood.
CHOOSE THE BEST MOVERS FOR YOU
No matter how many times you’ve moved, it’s wise to seek all the help you can get.
When choosing between moving options, factor in your family size, your number of belongings, and the distance you’re moving. You don’t have to do it alone—instead of driving your own moving truck, you could save yourself lots of stress by hiring professional movers.
If you’re moving to a different city or province, there are a lot more risks and expenses associated with self-organized moving. Look for moving companies that accommodate for long-distance moves.
This checklist could go on and on—we believe you can never be too prepared. One last item we’ll add for now: get to know the professional movers available in your city. Our movers at Two Small Men with Big Hearts are always ready to start the conversation. Get a free moving estimate today.