Don’t know where to start when it comes to moving with kids?  Feeling overwhelmed and looking for tips to make moving with kids easy?

Take a deep breath – We’ve got you covered in this blog! Kate Morse, our COO here at Little Z’s, is here to share her top tips for moving with kids.

Not only is Kate a Pediatric RN, and a mom to two, but she’s happened to move a lot with her family.

In the last five years she has moved eight times, and nearly half of her moves she has had babies and toddlers in tow!

If you are getting the boxes out and making plans to move with your family, these tips are for you.

Grab your Calendar 

The first step to preparing to move with your family is to decide what day you will be moving totally out of the house and set it on the family calendar.

Then, write out all the things that need to be done logistically for the move.

Mark it on the calendar when you will have water and electricity turned off, switch your mail carrier, and change your addresses on your billing statements.

Give each of these tasks a due date on your family calendar so that these time sensitive tasks don’t overwhelm you at the end.

Identify What Stays and What Goes

Next, create a list of what needs to be sorted, donated, and packed as well as how you are going to do it (when, in what order, by room, by floor level, etc)

Purging and sorting each room will allow you to pack everything you actually want to keep and transport during your move!

Keep the items that are helpful to your family’s lifestyle and donate what isn’t. 

Pack the “Heart” of the Home Last

When you’re moving with kids, begin packing the less trafficked areas of your house and leave the “heart” of the home, like your kitchen, living room, and bedrooms, untouched until closer to your move date.

This will help to streamline some normalcy and structure to your days in the midst of the chaos of packing and boxes.

Packing the less trafficked areas will also allow your household to function normally without too much disruption.

In the early stages of packing this is the time to take down your curtains, clean up your outdoor furniture and organize the inside of your garage! 

Once you are in the final week or few days out from your move date, then you can begin packing up the vital areas of your home like your kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms.

Since we want to try and preserve your child’s sleep as much as possible, we suggest packing the bedrooms last so everyone can continue to be well-rested during the packing process. 

Wondering about what to do if you have to spend a night on the road, while traveling to your new home?  Have you tried a SlumberPod? The SlumberPod is a great solution for sharing a room while traveling with your baby or toddler!

>>✨ Use code LITTLEZSLEEP to save 5% on The SlumberPod.

Recruit Help

Moving with kids is not for the faint of heart and hiring movers can save you a lot of time and sanity.

If you can, hire movers to do all the heavy lifting and take the stress out of trying to move furniture with little feet underway!

If hiring movers isn’t in the budget, reach out to friends and family who can watch your little ones while you organize and pack boxes.

Many hands make light work, and it’s crucial to have help during the moving process, no matter the age of your kids. 

Implement a “Faux” Bedtime Routine 

So it’s time for the actual move out day! You’ve made it!

Depending on your family and timing preference, you may end up driving to your new destination through the night. 

If you decide to do this, we highly suggest to implement a “faux” bedtime routine with your child around the time that they would normally do their bedtime routine!

Grab a quick dinner out and then wash your child’s face and hands, change them into pajamas and their sleep sack, read a book or two, and hop back on the road.

If your child doesn’t currently have a bedtime routine, check out the ideal toddler bedtime routine and the ideal baby bedtime routine blogs as well. 

Communicate With your Kids

Phew! You’re almost there! Remember that moving is a huge change for you AND your kids, so be sure to communicate the moving process with your entire family.

Share with them where you are moving to, why you are moving, what their new house is going to be like, and who they will meet once they arrive! 

Unpack the “Heart” of the Home First 

Once you arrive at your new home or destination, we suggest to unpack the most vital parts of your living space first.

Immediately set up your child’s sleeping space so they can jump right back into their typical sleep schedule.

Even in a new space, you will likely be amazed at how well they do with bedtime! When a child has a solid bedtime routine and an expectation that they can put themselves to sleep, even a new house doesn’t stop making sleep a thing!

(Wait, sleep isn’t a thing just yet? If you have a month until you move, or you are settling into your new space now- this is a great time to grab a sleep plan to get the sleep we all need to recover!)

Be Flexible 

“If moving with kids was seamless and perfect, people would move all the time. There is a reason why people don’t love to move and that’s okay.”

It’s helpful to remember that moving with kids won’t go perfectly (especially with little ones in tow) and that’s ok!

Have a plan, but be flexible and gracious to yourself and your family when that plan doesn’t quite happen.

When it comes down to it, moving is such a brief period of time. It may seem chaotic right now, but next month, everything’s going to be in place and you will feel settled, and it will be great.

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