So you’ve decided to take the plunge and move into a new (or new to you) home! Maybe you moved into your home before kids (like me)! Maybe you’ve just outgrown your home as your kids got bigger. Moving can be a stressful time even when everything goes right but often times it doesn’t. Then you add a kid or two (or more!) to the mix and things get even more dicey! How do you handle it? I’ve got a few tips and tricks for you and I hope they help!
We purchased our home before kids – knowing we wanted them but thinking NOTHING of the logistics of it all. We walked into our home and fell in love, the raised fireplace hearth, the backyard water fountain, the ornate columns throughout the home. Then we had our first child and we realized all of those things were dang death traps. So we started to “baby proof!” I even looked up elaborate cushioned benches made on raised hearths that we, somehow in 4 years, never got around to making. Instead a pillow barricade became the only thing keeping my newly walking 9 month old from cracking her head on marble (thankfully it worked)! Then 7 months later along came her little babbling sister and we converted a guest room to a nursery. Then she got older and started walking and the toys started to overflow and that beautiful fountain in the backyard became a nuisance. We would much rather have a backyard; even though frog hunting in the summer soon became my oldest daughter’s favorite nighttime activity!
When the girls were 2 & 3, my husband came to me and asked what I thought about moving. I thought of the custom wallpaper on my daughters wall, the spot in the house I used to measure my growing baby bump (and then the babies themselves), the fact that this is where I brought my babies home and said I would look with him but I wasn’t convinced. Then as they do more toys came, more overflow, more wishing we had space for an office so he could be home more. It hit me – we had outgrown this home even though we had grown to love it so much. We started house hunting. We must have looked at 40 homes – y’all that’s getting 2 toddlers in and out of a car over 40 times! (Get a babysitter and do a marathon day of house searching!!!) In the midst of house hunting we also realized we would need to get our home show ready and on the market. In case I’ve let you forget because I went one sentence without mentioning them – I have two toddlers! This was going to be a challenge!
I started slowly boxing up things they didn’t play with, toys to pass down and toys to donate. I started cleaning out clothes closets to make room to hide more stuff. Then it hit me, not only did I have to keep the clutter cleaned up but I also had to keep it this way ALL of the time. I had to be ready to get out of the house within a matter of minutes sometimes for a showing. I made some rules for the girls (which were already in place but rarely followed and even more rarely enforced) that they must clean up what they were done playing with before getting something else out. Luckily, my oldest is a rule follower so she was happy to oblige. My youngest apparently needs to see every toy on the floor before deciding what to play with. I tried my best to enforce this new rule and then I got a box. And if we had a last minute showing – everything that was out went into the box while I ran around making sure dishes weren’t in the sink and toilets were mostly clean. Then we would just take the box and throw it in the trunk and drive to target. I mean what else are you supposed to do with an hour of “free” time?! I swear I spent more money during showings of our home than any other time this year combined.
Our search was still on, we knew the perfect house was out there but we weren’t quite sure where. Then we found it. Our new home. It had a backyard and room to grow and a basement for all those toys (including my husband’s)! Closing day was quickly approaching and we needed to get packed and get moved. In the middle of this crazy time I decided it would be a good idea to start a small business! We can revisit that later but the point is we were swamped. I started to pack and my girls wanted to “help.” Which was so cute but really not helpful at all! All I can say is thank God for preschool (half days, twice a week), oils (stress away – COME TO MAMA) and fire tablets. Go ahead judge me, I use the tablets when I need to get stuff done. There are two types of moms in this world, ones that use tablets for peace and ones that lie – kidding! Kind of! What’s my point and where are those tips and tricks?
1. If you’re already an oil user – get those diffusers out – let them be the last thing you pack and the first thing you unpack. The emotional support they offer is the BEST way to get through the stress. If you’re not, let us help you change that!
2. Get a box – fill it with your clutter stick it in your trunk and then dig through it to get what you need until you move. I promise it will help!
3. Distract the children – those toys you boxed up a month (or 3 months) ago when you started this process – get them out. They will think they are brand new toys. The buzz lightyear my daughter slept with for a year straight was like a brand new gift after being hidden for a while.
4. Go to the dollar tree and load up on those play packs with crayons and stickers and little books. For $1 you cant go wrong and when you have to be out of the house grab one for each kid (DO NOT MAKE THEM SHARE – IT WILL NOT GO WELL). It will usually distract them at least long enough for a showing.
5. Go to the park – use that time to take a deep breath and be reminded of your blessings – sit in that gratitude that you’re getting a new home – that someone is interested in your old home. And let the kids run off some of that energy so they nap while you pack. We loved doing this during showings unless it was cold and/or raining. Then Target – always Target!
6. Most importantly give yourself (and the kiddos) some grace. This isn’t going to be done in a day. In fact, I was still packing the morning of our move thank God for our parents help! Set an intentional goal – mine was 5 boxes a day. In hindsight it should have been more like 8-10 boxes per day. Apparently, we’re hoarders now. Don’t tell my husband how much I threw away!
Lean on friends and family for help. If someone offers it, take it! If you can afford movers, get them! They are worth it! Even though our move went relatively smoothly, it’s still a stressful time. It’s overwhelming at times and there are times you will think you’re just not sure what to do next. Make a list. Go for a walk when you need a break. Remember all the wonderful memories you have in your home and all the memories you’re soon to make. I promise, living in gratitude in that season will help shift the dynamic from stress to thankful. That will do a lot for you and for your kids. Oh and oil everybody up – just do it. I promise you won’t regret it.
xoxo,
Krissany
@essentiallyobsessedmom
Essentially Obsessed Mom 