Moving house is certainly a difficult thing to do, it will also drain a lot of energy, especially if you are moving with a baby or toddler. In addition to having to take care of many things, you also have to take care of your little one. A hectic and busy moving atmosphere is also prone to stressing a baby or toddler, making it easier for them to be irritated and end up crying or fussing! This is definitely a nightmare.
To help you reduce your stress level when moving house, what you can do to make everything go according to plan is by following the tips below. Guarantee your moving process will be very smooth, though you have to juggle everything with your children in toe!
Involve Your Children In The Process
You may not think that this is important, you think just because they are little children they won’t be able to comprehend what you intend to do. Well, this is wrong. Remember, your children will also live in your new house. Bring them prior to the moving date to the new house, and let them see the new home environment to make them able to familiarize themselves with the new surroundings. If they are old enough, ask them about their opinion. This will be a great way to ensure that children are not shocked when the moving day has arrived.
If you build your new house from scratch, then you have to ensure that your construction company has finished building the majority of the house, so it will be safe for you to visit with your little one.
Ask Them To Help You Pack
If your children’s age is above 5, you can ask them to help you pack their toys. This will help them to be occupied for some time, and thus you can focus on cleaning up other things that need your attention. To make it more interesting for your children, you can buy special storage containers with their favorite cartoon picture on it to put their things and toys in.
Prepare Their Food And Water
Your child will tend to be fussier if they are hungry or thirsty. Thus why, when the day of moving comes, be sure to separate their food in a separate container –where you can access it easily whenever your child feels hungry. You can also prepare some snacks for them to nibble on when you are busy.
Let Them Say Goodbye To The Old House
Before departing from the old house, ask your child to take a look once again at your old house. Make them understand as best as you can, that you will not go back to this house again. You can ask them to say goodbye before moving. Making children understand is crucial, this will help to avoid children throwing tantrums during the first night at the new home –because they want to be back in their old bedroom.
Again, Let Your Children Familiarize Themselves With The New House
Though you have brought your child to your new house before, you should let them familiarize themselves again with the house. After arriving at the house, the first thing that you should do is walk your child through the house. Inform them where is your room, where is theirs –what the things that you want to do in the new space.
Clean Their Room First
Finish your children’s room first, rather than any other area in the house. Make their room as comfortable as possible, so you can put them there and tuck them away safely after arriving in the new house.
Secure The New Home From Dangerous Objects
After cleaning up your little one’s room, another top priority is securing the whole new home. This means placing dangerous objects (scissors, matches, cleaning products, knives) in a safe place, installing safety pads in sharp corners, installing door restraints and baby fences, and installing smoke alarms or other safety devices.
Have Someone Else Take Care of Them on Moving Day
If you can, it will be better if, on the moving day – you ask your family member to take care of your children. You can also put them in daycare, to ensure a more smooth sailing and faster moving process. This is because sometimes it will be safer for children to be away from the movers when they are loading or re-loading the boxes and furniture that you have. Having your children away will also help you to be able to be more focused during the move.
It is very understandable if you feel stress-out during your moving process. Especially if you need to clean the old house, pack, sort out all necessary arrangements, and even clean and arrange the new house. This will drain your energy completely! Though you love your children, sometimes they can bring extra headaches for you. Hopefully, these tips above can help to reduce your stress, and make your plan go smoothly!
