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Overwhelmed About Packing



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BusyBeeMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 9:15 am
So I have about a week to pack up my house as we are moving across town. The last time I did this I had no kids and plenty of help from my mother. Now I have neither. What are your tips and tricks and ideas? Where do I start? I need specifics. We are moving to an apt that is a 6 min. drive away, I don't want to bring things there yet as there are construction men working but I do want to get started. I have one week.

I'm so overwhwelmed. YAAAAAAAAH!
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NotInNJMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 9:24 am
Tackle 1 room at a time. Pack up anything you don't absolutely need now. LEave the boxes labelled with their destination room in their current room.

Just focus on 1 bit at a time, not the whole monster! Hatzlochah! Sheina makom, shaina mazal (l'tova!)..
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greenfire




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 9:27 am
BusyBeeMommy wrote:
. The last time I did this I had no kids and plenty of help from my mother. Now I have neither.


sorry I couldn't help notice - now you have neither ?!?!?! Scratching Head I got the mother can't help you ... but I'm confused about the kids - you got em or not ... What

anyways - take one room at a time - box it and move it to the designated room in the new place ... I think it's harder to move a short distance than a long distance - somehow the packing takes forever cause you don't think you need to put "that" in a box for just over "there" ... it will avoid needing a million boxes as well and get you unpacked quicker than piling up the boxes ...

stop buying food (like the week before pesach) so you don't accumulate that ... have kids pack the toys and their dressers - you'd be surprised how much they can help and it keeps them busy whilst you pack some big stuff ...

and one silly tip - don't forget while you're busy moving that the kids still need to pee Wink - just saying that happened to me for a down the block move - it was way harder than moving from brooklyn and well needless to say the kid who never had accidents had one Sad it was so hectic ... oh and pack a cooler with food for moving day and eat picnic style - maybe in your empty living room that you are moving from - a good-bye party of sorts ...
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mommy24




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 9:55 am
Are you using movers or are you doing the shlepping yourself? If using movers, focus on the harder/heavier things to carry, ie dishes, etc.

I was told by my movers to leave clothes in the dressers, I don't think I even taped it bec they put those blankets on them. It made things so much easier.

not sure how old your kids are but if old enough, my 3 yr old was helping, have them pack up their own toys. If there are special toys they love to play with, I would keep them separate and have them ready for them to play with in the new home.

Also make sure you have cold drinks and some food for kids and movers (and of course yourself) to drink and nosh on- try to get it there during the week. And order dinner that night. We happened to have moved on a friday, don't ask- it was the only day my husband could take off and all my kids were home, I think that was the only shabbos we ever had take out- which we bought thursday and kept int he new house's fridge.

Make sure you have washed sheets for everyone, I sent fresh sheets over with my husband the week before we moved so that once the beds were in place we could get everyones rooms ready.

Like everyone said I would try to takcle one room at a time- and if you are using movers focus on the heavy things, you don't want to have DH shlep those heavy boxes himself, if he doesn't need to.

Can't think of anything else now, sorry!

Good luck!
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dainty diva




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 10:10 am
I'm doing the same thing now, the best advice I can give you that worked for me is, don't just label the boxes, write what is actually in each box! For example, I write "girls room" on the box, and in smaller letters write "summer dresses" or "shoes" or "sweaters". You can't imagine how much heartache it will save you when your looking for a certain "belt" and have no clue in which of the "master bedroom" boxes it is in, and have to start opening a gazzillion boxes to find it! I also bought colored masking tape and color coded all the rooms. And yes, start with the things you don't use now. Try to pack everything washed and folded the way you will keep it in your new house. And as an added note, try figuring out BEFORE you move where everything will go,in which closet, room, and pack accordingly. It will save a lot of time unpacking. Hatzlacha and Tischadesh on your new home!
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Amital




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:36 am
I find it really, really helpful to pack one or two boxes of essentials. These are things you will need that first day, and having it all in one place really helps! Things like a roll of tp for each bathroom, essential toiletries, a few boxes of kleenex if you're near Shabbat, stuff for cleaning the kitchen in a minimum way, a roll of paper towels, a package of paper plates, plastic spoons, whatever diapers/wipes/spare clothes you might need, sheets for beds, pillows, comforters, a complete spare outfit for everyone (or let everyone pack a suitcase for their own outfits, if that works better), a few essential toys, and important for me--a few new small toys, wrapped. Those toys can be mitzvah presents when the kids are behaving really nicely, bribes if not...

Take those essentials boxes with you--don't let movers move them! Know where they are.

I also let my kids each take a small suitcase with their lovey and favorite toys. They are "in charge" of them--my boys like to be in charge of things, no matter how small! LOL
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BusyBeeMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:45 am
greenfire wrote:
BusyBeeMommy wrote:
. The last time I did this I had no kids and plenty of help from my mother. Now I have neither.


sorry I couldn't help notice - now you have neither ?!?!?! Scratching Head I got the mother can't help you ... but I'm confused about the kids - you got em or not ... What


LOL Green you make me laugh! I didn't realize how that sounded when I wrote it, but I guess I meant that now (BH) I DO have kids. 2 of 'em and the oldest aint 2 yet so neither can really help me pack.

I am having movers to move the furniture, but most charge by the hour so I want to transport all the stuff besides furniture on my own to save money. I plan oon putting e/t in a box. I wonder if I can keep the clothes in the dressers. I know that they'll have to take apart some furniture in order to fit it out the doors, but I wll put that on my list of ? to the movers. Thanks.

I plan on tackling the toys first, then the bookcases and then the china closet. How does that sound?
I make myself think that I'm actually doing something by writing it here.
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NotInNJMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:47 am
Can you get more babysitting this week just to pack?
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BusyBeeMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:48 am
Yup, I did that. Cna't imagine doing it w/ 2 kids underfoot.

DH is in school now so he can't atke off. Not even for moving day. I'm pretty much roughing it myself.
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NotInNJMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:48 am
Oy, hatzlochah! This too shall pass!
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NativeMom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 11:53 am
When we moved my DH got a bunch of his friends together to help us pack. It made things go a lot faster with more people around to help. I sent my son to play group (he was 18 months at that time) so I could focus more on organizing and packing. We didn't hire movers, we rented a truck and my husband and a friend of his drove it to our new place. It was a shlep and a lot of work, we're moving again in August and this time we're hiring movers. We figured it would be easier to save up and find a reliable moving company because I'll be finishing school and my husband has to work.
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BusyBeeMommy




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 12:45 pm
Good luck NativeMom! I'm still really terrified. I just threw out half of DD's toys. We need to get proffesional movers cuz some of our furniture needs to be disassembled since it won't fit through the door and I have a piano. Plus, I can't be the one lugging all the stuff on and off the truck. Good idea about getting frinds to help, maybe I'll ask DH to have some of his single friends come.
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avigailmiriam




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 1:19 pm
There was a period in my life where I was moving once a year for almost a decade.

1. This too shall pass.

2. Sort items as your pack into high priority boxes and low priority, rather than by room. Even thought your blankets, pajamas and toothbrush all belong in different rooms, you'll want them on your first night in your new house, so pack them in the same box.

3. Purge stuff as you go. Get a box for goodwill/gemachim and a box of trash. You don't want to move more than you have to. I discarded stuff with every move.
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Mimisinger




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 04 2009, 3:18 pm
I feel so sorry for you bee, hatzlocha and simchas. I've moved 6 times in the past 3 1/2 years and it's horrible. We are moving again in about 6 months and I'm getting hives just thinking about it. We have so much stuff. I really need to start getting rid of stuff now...
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