7 Simple Tips For Moving House With A Baby Or A Toddler

Being someone who has moved a few times, you could say that I know a thing or two about moving house. If you didn't know, getting ready to move house, packing, dealing with estate agents and solicitors before finally settling into your new abode is known as one of the most challenging life events. Moving house at any stage in your life can be difficult, the most difficult one for me was moving house with our daughter. We moved house from rented accommodation into our owned home when our daughter was just 7 months old! Let me tell you, it certainly wasn't a walk in the park. Everyone hates moving. Packing up all of your belongings and then unpacking them is just a hassle. Very few of us are fortunate enough to be able to have someone do all of this labour for us so it tends to be stressful. So, today I thought it would be a great idea to share some tips we have picked up along the way which might help anyone else with an upcoming house move, especially for anyone moving with children. With these top tips I hope that they will help ease the stress levels and perhaps even give you a few ideas to inspire you to use when you do move. 



BEFORE THE MOVE

When is comes to moving house, pretty much from the word get go it is essential that you try and plan everything. As a geek, there's nothing I love more than making lists and it's the perfect way to try and keep organised to help ensure that there is nothing that may have slipped my mind! Planning is everything, from changing utility bills, booking removals, figuring out how to pack each room and even contemplating packing with a toddler around. So, you'll have lots to consider. Try and arrange your utilities at least a couple of weeks before hand so they have details of when you will be leaving your current home and the date you'll be moving into the old house, you don't want to be paying for two lots of bills. We have learned from that mistake! I would also recommend that you accept any help that is offered either with packing, with the help, it may also be an idea to ask a family member to watch your little one for a few hours leading up to move day and perhaps even on moving day. 

PACK & DE-CLUTTER

Even though it may be tempting to throw things randomly into boxes, it may be worth while to actually make some form of plan when packing your boxes and make sure that you clearly label them which will make life so much easier when it comes to unpacking your life at the other end. Start with rooms you need the least, it make more sense to pack the items you don't need on a daily basis. For us, we worked our way from the top of the house, all the way to the bottom, but it is always an idea to try and pack one room at a time, which we failed to do during our first move. By packing room by room will help you ensure that you are organised throughout the whole move with elevate those stress levels. As we have had our fair share of moves and with every move we have had the opportunity to de-clutter, as a rule of thumb, belongings that haven't been used in the last twelve months need to be tossed! 

Don't forget to prepare a box of essentials, which is a small selection of items you will need straight after you move. Start packing it early, so it can be half way full by the time the moving day comes. Leave room so you could later add last minute items. Put this box last in the moving van, so you can later have easy access to it when you’re done relocating. So, whether you are hiring a van or using a furniture removal company such as Shiply to do the moving for you, make sure you clearly label each box so you know immediately which room it needs to go into in the new house. 

HAVE A PLAN FOR MOVING DAY

As with everything with a house move, make a plan for moving day! Making sure that you have that box of essentials containing items that will get you and your family through moving day, such as toiletries, phone chargers, water, etc. You could even try and pack a picnic basket full of sandwiches and refreshments and some provisions for hot drinks for when everyone needs a break. It is important to have easy access to the supplies that will keep you well-fed and hydrated on this busy day, and that you have everything readily available so you can fall straight into bed at the end of it including packing some tools that you will need to put that bed together. As a priority once you have unpacked get your children's bedrooms set up first, ensuring that they feel more at home.

TAKE PLENTY OF BREAKS

When it comes to moving house, you won't realise how quickly time flies by and even so it is very important to take breaks when need be. It stressful moving house and a lot of work for adults. But there is one thing that you have to remember when moving with children and that is that they are trying to process everything with the move in their own way. With our daughter it took a few days for her to slip back into a routine, but we did figure that her routine would be up in arms with the move. So, for the first couple of nights she came into our room, giving us plenty of time to set up her room. 

FIRST OFF THE VAN

Like I said before, making the children's room as a priority is essential, so try and make sure that all their belongings including their cot, clothing and highchair are the last few pieces that are packed into the removal van, ensuring that it is the first off. Once we had taken apart our daughter's bed first thing on moving day, we washed all her bedding so it smelled fresh going back into the new house. As soon as the cot was unloaded and assembled, my husband got to work putting her bed back together. I think it definitely helped that her room looked instantly familiar. Once the rest of the toy boxes came in, our daughter wasted no time making herself comfortable in her new space, while the rest of the house was still being moved into.

CELEBRATE AS A FAMILY

After all that it's finally time to enjoy your new home. Every time we move house we kind of began a tradition, almost, of having a picnic dinner on the floor of the new house. We got a take away and all plopped down the floor for at feast. It's essential!

EXPLORE YOUR NEW SURROUNDINGS

Don't be surprised if your child becomes more clingy after moving to a new house, this is natural. Stick as much as possible to routine around bedtime and meals. It may be a couple of days after your move that it hits your child, this can be when all the fun and chaos have finished and when tears appear so spend time exploring the new area with your child especially parks, swings or walks pointing out all the new exciting things they can do. Local baby or toddler groups are ideal for meeting new mums and finding out about your area

During a house move, with the multitude of tasks that need to be completed it can seem like there is no time to relax. Although you may think that working through lunch time until late at night is a constructive way to spend your time, it is vital that you don’t neglect your needs. Make sure you are getting enough rest and plan into your schedule evenings off to spend with friends and loved ones or have a relaxing night. Have fun moving....

What would be your top tip when moving house? Leave a comment below...

*Please note that this is a collaborative post.

2 comments

  1. It's a great tip to bring the little one into your room for a few nights. Moving can be very unsettling so that would be a good reassurance. Having a celebration is important too - it's such a stressful time it's important to remeer this is a positive thing after all!

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  2. Fab times and one for me to pin as we are hoping to move very soon! Fingers crossed x

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