Move day to do!

The day before and the day of a move are super busy days.  Make sure you are well prepared.  The more you do ahead, the easier these days will be.

-We like to vacate the premises.  Get your family and everything they will need on the road out of the house.  Stay in a hotel or with friends (if possible).  We will be staying in our travel trailer.  *If you can't do this then designate one room to put the things you want to stay with you.  You may even want to pack things up in the car.  Make sure you have a good sized place designated as "do not pack" and keep all of your stuff for the trip in there.

  -Since you are not staying in the house you can wash all of the sheets when you get up the morning before the official move day.  Now they will be all fresh and clean for you on the other end (packing up a set for each bed and taking them with you is a good idea.  That way you are not frantically looking around for sheets at the end of your first move in day.)

-You need a Hardware box with a sharpie and lots of plastic zipper bags.  This is where you will put all hardware as things are disassembled.  Label each bag and put it in the box.   TAKE THIS BOX WITH YOU; do NOT send it with the movers.  This way you have all of your hardware and can put things together as they come off the truck instead of searching through boxes late into the night so that you can put the baby's bed together (or yours).

  -Is everything set up the way you want your movers to be packing?  In bins?  In the room you want it packed in?  Window treatments down (and washed)?  Electronics unplugged?  High value items marked (to make inventory easier)?  Professional (Pro) gear marked (if needed)?  Kitchen cleared out? (You really don't want any perishables or liquids packed.  The movers shouldn't pack these things, but sometimes they do).  Make sure money, jewelry, and medications are in your stash of things to take (this includes the kids' piggy banks!).  Think about any special instructions you need to give the movers.

-Are drinks, snacks and meals set up/planned for the coming day(s)?  These are junk food days for us.  I try to start our days with a healthy (but easy) breakfast.  Hard boiled eggs, yogurt, fruit, muffins are some great (easy) options.  Lunch is take out/delivery we like to do pizza and sub-sandwiches.  I'll try to do some home-made dinners; now is the time to pull out those freezer meals you prepared.  I'll have a couple of casseroles available and we will likely do tacos (pre-cooked meat makes this easy to do).

-Keep your internet connected as long as you can; if you are addicts (like us).

-Have your older kids hang out with your packers (and you wander around the house).  The kids will be able to spot things that should not be packed (or should be, that are not), and keep things moving along.