I found a few new tricks, like this one for moving clothes in closets. But most of the stuff I saw, was pretty routine. At least for me after countless moves. My pointers for moving your own stuff (movers pack however they want, in whatever order they want):
1. Pack the way you want to unpack. For example, I have a eight drawer rolling cart. I could just dump all eight drawers into a box or bag and call it a day. But then I'll get to the other end and hate life. So, instead, I dump them into ziploc bags or grocery bags and then unpack them separately on the other end. Sounds tedious but after you've moved and unpacked all day, little things like this make you feel much better.
2. We always, ALWAYS made the beds first thing. Why? Because when you decide that you've had enough for the day, that is not the time to start wondering where the sheets are, is the bed put together, etc?
3. Try to unpack the kids' rooms first (or at least put them to work starting the job). Even if this is just making their beds and unpacking toys. It keeps them busy, out of the way, and makes them feel like they are part of the process. It doesn't have to be right the first time.
4. If you don't have frozen meals, make sure you budget for take out or delivery. Trust me, you won't feel like cooking after a day of moving.
5. Our movers always packed stuff we don't want them to pack, so we started locking things in the car that we didn't want them to touch. I call it the "Car Box" because it usually was in the car with us while we travel. It includes things like: box cutters/scissors (needed to open boxes on the other end); a first aid kit; plastic utensils and cups/plates; napkins; toilet paper, toiletries; maps or directions; etc You get the point. Even if you are packing yourself, it helps to have this box in an easy to find location.
(This includes all the hardware for your beds, desks, etc that can be taken apart. As any military family will tell you, this stuff gets lost frequently. One of my friends recently found out that ALL of the hardware was put into the same box. Guess which box came up missing?)
6. I saw several suggestions to keep everything as you had it in your old house. Honestly, I think that's next to impossible. For example, our last house had a "craft room", as I called it. It held my sewing machine table, and two shelves. Okay, It was actually a closet. But our new house didn't have anything close to that. We also had less closets and shelves. So we had to reorganize where to keep linens, pots and pans, even spices. My entire system had to be changed. Our current house, has a Harry Potter closet (that's what we are sticking with because I have kids and we all love Harry Potter). So we're currently deciding what to put in there. Be flexible.
7. Color coding is awesome! Not only does it work for the kids to recognize their boxes, but it eliminates confusion if you can't see or read what was on the side of the box. *A side note: I thought it was a given, but just in case: write on the SIDE of the box, not the top. Once you stack boxes, you can't see what you wrote. (The downside of this is that not everyone follows the color coding rule, so we ended up with boxes for the kitchen in bedrooms.)
8. Because we move
9. Most people know to forward their mail. But here's a BTDT tip (been there done that). Do not, EVER forward your mail to begin the day you are actually leaving/turning in the key, etc. Out of our last five moves, three times, in three separate states, our mail didn't start forwarding the day it was supposed to start. If I had not been still living there I would not have gotten my mail and realized it wasn't forwarding. Our most recent move, I had to make two different after the fact WTH inquiries.... one a full week after the start date. Yes, you can call over the phone, but it's much better to go in and deal with someone face to face. Which brings me to my next point...
10. Only use the USPS to forward the mail. I had never heard of anything else until I went to check out what was going on with my mail. The clerk dismissed it as useless because she said it was through some mail forwarding service. She said that people use that because it’s free (the USPS charges $1 online), but that it’s “really no good at making sure the mail was forwarded”. Once I corrected her and showed her that my confirmation email was from the USPS and was a week earlier, she immediately straightened the issue out. That was so worth the $1 to do it online.
***I'm sure I will add to this as I unpack.
