This is sponsored content from BlogHer and Olay.
As you know, my husband is in the Navy and we have moved a lot. A LOT. And we’re moving again in January (not far, just to base, but still…), this move will be our 5th move in 4 years. And I’ve learned a few things about how to stay sane before a PCS or other military move. (For non-military folks, PCS means “Permanent Change of Station” which is ridiculously funny since there’s nothing permanent about it. It just means another move.)
- Before you have orders, allow yourself to look at the possibilities. If you might end up in Washington state or might end up in Jacksonville, Florida… feel free to check out real estate listings, craigslist, etc. It’s fun. It’s like a game. It’ll give you something to do to feel like you’re preparing when there’s really no way TO prepare. Just don’t get too worked up about whatever you find – don’t go signing rental contracts, buying houses, or applying for jobs yet.
- Another great way to pass the time while waiting is to declutter. That stack of magazines you’ve been meaning to read for the past year? Recycle! The coupons you clipped but haven’t used? Recycle! Clothes you haven’t worn since your last PCS? Donate!
- Keep living your life. Even if you know you’re moving soon, if you don’t have orders yet you’re not in the thick of it. Don’t let yourself be consumed by #1 and #2. Keep doing crafts, playing games, going for family walks, and baking special treats. Whatever you like doing, continue doing it.
- When packing up your house, label boxes by room. Instead of putting all of your books in the same boxes, if you have some you keep in the office, and others in the living room, keep them with the correct room’s stuff. It will make unpacking much easier.
- Keep everything organized. Every box should make sense. Don’t pack your fridge magnets with your throw pillows.
- BUT everyone has some stuff that doesn’t seem to fit in anywhere else. Allow yourself ONE “miscellaneous” box. JUST one.
- Set aside some things that you’ll need at the last minute before your move and that you’ll want first-thing when you get to your new home. This could include cleaning supplies, your favorite brand of toilet paper (don’t judge me for having a favorite!), bubble bath, Olay Total Effects moisturizer, a gripping novel to read, your guitar… or anything that makes you feel more comfortable.
- Don’t be afraid to outsource. If you’re doing a DITY move (or privately procured move) and you have a lot on your plate, don’t worry about cooking dinner – go out to eat. Or if you are moving quickly, hire someone to clean your house for the move-out inspection and instead go hang out with some friends you’ll miss. And if you’ll be driving cross-country, instead of driving in separate cars, spend a little bit of money to ship one of the cars so you can travel with your significant other, which makes the trip a lot more pleasant.
If you’re familiar with PCSing or moving, what tips do you have for staying sane before you get to your new home? If you haven’t moved, what questions do you have about the process? Leave your answer for a chance to win a $100 Visa card!
For 14 other chances to win, check out BlogHer’s Olay round-up.
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Hi! I'm Emily. I'm a Navy wife and stay at home mom of two beautiful children. I cook simple, delicious, grain-free recipes, do crafts, decorate my home on a budget, and keep a happy household. I tandem breastfeed, babywear, cloth diaper, practice elimination communication, homebirth, and co-sleep, but I'm not a hippie.
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I still haven’t recovered from our last move, 3 years agon. My best tip is you can’t throw out too much.
the best tip keep things labeled and organized!
ardelong2(at)gmail(dot)com
I found that reaching out to the pta or local daycares is a great way to find babysitters and kid friendly locations
Lovefool827 (at) yahoo (dotcom)
We have moved several times in the last several years. I like to mark each box with the name of the room that they go to, so it makes it so much easier to organize things when we get to the new place. I always put essentials like toilet paper in a box marked essentials as well as at the top of the box, since these are the things we will need right away and you don’t want to have to search for them.
nbalogh522 at gmail dot com
Mark each box as to the room it should go too. All kitchen items, should be marked kitchen
bepoia(at)hotmail(dot)com
i tweeted http://twitter.com/#!/purplelover04/status/19474894936875008
i say pack and head of time and try not to do anything but move on moving day it helps alot .
Twitter: repurrpussed
says:
my tweet http://twitter.com/#!/RePurrPussed/status/19448000837324800
Twitter: repurrpussed
says:
no military in my family but my dad was high up in the engineering dept of Union Carbide when I was growing up and we moved every few years…we almost moved to Saudi Arabia! The hardest part as a kid was making new friends, which I really didn’t do well. So my advice would be to try and be outgoing and make new friends easily to avoid being lonely!
Twitter: snowluvnferret2
says:
My tip is to color code your boxes. I use bright post it notes and paste them to the side of the box. Each color goes to a different room. Makes it really easy to load them into the new place
Lori Hart recently posted..Church
I have moved 3 times in my life. I’ve always gotten as much information about the new area that I can find. Find locations of things such as schools,supermarkets,churches and such.
Twitter: fotomacro
says:
I tweeted here: http://twitter.com/#!/FotoMacro/status/19446348369633280
angie recently posted..freshly fallen snow on fence railing
Twitter: fotomacro
says:
I have never dealt with PCS moving as no one in my family was or is in the military. That said, I have been a moving fool throughout my life, especially after getting married! In the first nine years of my marriage, we moved 10 times! I HATED it, but each move was a necessity. The best advice I can give is not to buy until you are SURE you are staying somewhere for at least five years. Its so much easier to pick up and go when you are renting.
tweeted
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braaisjo at gmail dot com
Does it take you a long time to get adjusted to a new place? I don’t like change and I think it would be extremely hard for me to have to move so much.
braaisjo at gmail dot com
This may sound like a crazy question, but how do you stand moving all the time? I lived in one house my entire childhood and my kids have lived in THIS house their entire childhood – I can’t imagine uprooting them… or me!
tweet
http://twitter.com/#!/ChelleB36/status/19415552468455424
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
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Start early! As soon as you know it’s move time, start packing here and there, and labeling the boxes. It makes it so much nicer than having to do it all at the final stretch.
Take many breaks! Enjoy the fresh air. Kellyeandjosh@aol.com
hi
My suggestion is a few days before you actual make a move keep track of what household items you use that day…ie a can opener, toilet paper and then put these items in a special easy to get box in your car.
Twitter: http://www.freebiescity.com
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the only question i have is why isn’t it possible to have someone pack and unpack everything for you-where I live?
jdmimi at gmail dot com
We have PCS’ed more times than I can count. The one thing I do is to make it as less stressful as possible. I like to pack our rooms myself as much as possible. I put the name of the room the box came from so when they arrive at our new station, I can put them in the right rooms and unpack at a slower pace.
Moving is never fun but make sure you keep those few essential items near so when you get there you aren’t running around looking for some toilet paper or dishes or pet food! You get the idea
I think if you stay organized and everything in its place(containers, boxes, bags, etc) moving should be good and unpacking easy if things are labeled and packed properly and securely and safely like your breakables and valuables
blogged: http://slehan.blogspot.com/2010/12/win-100-from-blogher-and-total-effects.html
I’ve lived in my house for 27 years now so I would have no idea. Long ago and far away I was in the Air Force for eight years and was never in once place longer than a year (some only 6 months). I was much younger and had very little stuff so moving was easy. Thanks for the contest.
It’s been many years since I’ve experienced a PCS. (retired)
I always looked at it as an adventure. We were going to a new place and would add new friends. We usually kept things fairly decluttered so that wasn’t a problem. The only thing that was somewhat difficult was preparing meals after everything was packed and removed. So we solved that with a couple of electric appliances that we could carry with us when we actually moved.
The biggest helping tip I had during our recent move is don’t buy anything that you “think” you need until you get everything set up. You might find you had more than you thought you did.
michedt (at) gmail (dotcom)
I think a little preplanning would involve starting to box up part of each room a week in advance and keep only the necessities out
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
I tweeted!
http://twitter.com/#!/FakeGradSchool/status/19275630164049920
I wish I had some good tips–I always lose my mind when I have to move! I guess one thing I should learn to do is to allow way more time than I think necessary to pack and prepare for the move!
Label your boxes with the name, items, and were they are going in your hosue!
http://twitter.com/#!/DesMoinesDealin/status/19266589643771905
I have moved, outside the military, and my one tip is to do two cycles of pitch/recycle/donate! if i don’t, i always find myself unpacking things i don’t need/want any longer.
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I tweeted: http://twitter.com/guettel78/status/19265097587232769
I haven’t yet had to move, but I’m wondering how difficult the process is to register your change of address with the post office, UPS, FedEx, utility companies, etc., and if there are any tips to streamline that process!
make sure you’re organized, it makes moving so much easier!
I’m looking forward to moving for the first time in 25 years, hopefully soon. I’m already overwhelmed with how much we’ve accumulated over the years and I’m not sure which route would be better..packing and moving it ourselves or hiring someone to do it for us. With 25 years of stuff, I’m sure I have tons I need to purge too. Maybe a garage sale is in order?
http://twitter.com/#!/prizepuzzle/status/19235474702864384
Awesome blog and thanks for the giveaway!
Would love, love, LOVE to win this!
Happy holidays!
=]
Bryanna P. recently posted..But I Tried So Hard…
I’ve only moved to college (not much ‘stuff’ involved there) and then to an apartment (still not too much stuff), and then to a house. Apt to house was probably the most, but still not bad, and since it was in the same city, we scoped everything out, knew what we were getting into, and just got some friends to help move.
How on earth do you even begin to figure out ‘where’ you are going to live when it’s far away and you haven’t seen it? Do you get to go scope it out and find a place before you move? I’m betting, military and all, probably not. Ouch!
I’ve only moved once, across town but I’m still missing stuff that I know I had before the move. So make sure you get people to help that you completely trust or do it yourself.
tweet
http://twitter.com/ohstac/status/19207780825038848
nrdunningATgmailDOTcom
I haven’t moved in 11 years but I remember that unpacking our kids rooms first (and getting them involved in the process) really helped get them settled.
nrdunningATgmailDOTcom
The last time we moved was 23 years ago-I rmemeber we had a moving company pack and move us-we smoked at the time, and the packers packed an ashtray full of cigarette butts! So communicate with the people who pack up your stuff!
dwellenstein at cox dot net
tweeted – thanks so much! http://twitter.com/DeeGee13/status/19206459573141505
I have not moved yet and was wondering how you can budget for a big move without breaking bank!
I’ve moved a couple of times and my big advice is to have someone help you pack. It really helps to have family or friends come over and help you get all packed up. Also see if you can take the kiddos to a babysitter if possible. It helps not having them under your feet. Thank you!