We all know that moving can be challenging. It’s not only about packing and cleaning but also about the stress of getting everything done on time and adjusting to your new environment. There are several ways to get your kids on board with the process and even settled enough to enjoy the overall experience. These moving tips for families will help make things easier when the time comes.
Be Open About the Move With Your Kids
Your children have an uncanny way of picking up the mood in your household — it’s almost like a sixth sense — and if you hide this major change from them, you might find they start acting up. Believe me, if I knew why, I would share it with you. The bottom line is that you want to share the big news with them as soon as possible, as doing so will immediately create a more settled home environment as they adjust and get involved in the preparations.
Try to take your time when telling them, and explain it like they’re 5-year-olds, which they could well be. Moving with children often means they need a little time to understand the new information and its implications when you break the news. Sit next to them and allow time for them to process and comprehend things — keeping them up to date as the plans materialize into actions can go a long way to making the move smoother.
Visit Your New Home Beforehand
If you’ve got time before the move happens, plan a road trip to show your youngsters their new home and town. Seeing is believing for a child, so giving them a chance to experience a new environment beforehand will help settle your kids. It could also potentially raise positive expectations that will assist in getting them more on board.
On your road trip, highlight things like parks and playgrounds in the vicinity — for teenagers, a nearby mall or movie theater could make a huge difference in their attitudes. Remember, they’ll be leaving friends behind and attending a new school, which can be daunting over and above the actual move itself. This could make raising their enthusiasm challenging, so drive by the school and visit the playground so they know what to expect.
Allow Your Family Enough Time to Prepare
Those last few weeks will likely involve some unanticipated delays. Your neighbors and friends will stop by with parting gifts, offers of packed dinners and invites to going-away get-togethers, so allocate some extra time for these visits. Of course, your children’s friends will also visit, which may lead to some tears and distress. Expect them and take the time to console your youngsters where and when necessary.
Allow yourself the time to accept the offers of dinner assistance and neighborhood farewell functions — while you and your children may see your friends again soon, understand that leaving an environment without the proper goodbyes can adversely affect relationships, even if they’re long-standing and close ones. Your kids also need to say goodbye. Remember, a year or two of close friendship with a peer is like a lifetime to them.
Involve Your Kids in the Moving Process
When it’s time to start packing, encourage your children to participate. When we moved last time, I got my youngster involved in selecting cardboard boxes to pack his room contents — he chose the box sizes that would do for his clothes, toys and books, and we folded and put things in the boxes together. It was an incredible bonding experience and heightened the positive anticipation of moving even further.
If you have younger kids, involve them in the packing process, but ensure you’re around to check that they’re doing things properly. You’ll want hardy boxes and enough bubble wrap and newspaper to protect breakable items. Pack your children’s rooms with their help, and show them how to secure things correctly before they go into the boxes. To further promote their participation, allow them to label the packed boxes from their rooms — your kids will feel like they’re involved and contributing.
Prioritize Your Kids’ Rooms
Whether you’re packing your old house or unpacking at your new one, you must consider your children’s feelings and attachments. Encourage your kids to take their time boxing things up before you move, which allows them more time to get used to leaving their current environment. On arrival at your new home, prioritize unpacking their belongings in their new rooms so they can get familiar and comfortable in their new environments.
Being organized makes accomplishing this feat easier than you’d imagine. Whether you’ve hired a moving container so you can pack slowly or are stacking boxes in your living room for movers to load on the big day, ensure your kids’ boxes are loaded last for easy accessibility on arrival at your new home.
Move After a School Year if Possible
Often, external factors define moving times. If you’re starting a new job or have accepted a promotion in another state, you have no choice but to move when your tenure begins. However, if your relocation falls at the end of a school year, the transition for your kids will likely be easier. Moving will already be an anxious and testing time for children, but arriving midway through a semester as “the new kid” among settled classmates can make moving more harrowing.
While tweens and teenagers may find a move stressful, younger kids have also built relationships, and starting over in a new school without familiar faces also affects them. Speak to your older children about embracing new opportunities and making new friends, and introduce the town with a celebratory mall trip with gifts. Enlist younger children into toddler networks or play groups, depending on their ages.
Get Into a Routine Soon After Moving
It’s essential to establish a routine in your new environment, for yourself and your kids, as soon as possible. From school buses to mealtimes to weekend activities to bedtimes, the sooner your family sets into a set schedule after a move, the more easily your children will adapt. Keep your eyes open for any behavioral changes and check in on how the move is affecting their lives, whether they’re making new friends and if they’re enjoying their new teachers.
On weekends, particularly to begin with, arrange activities that encourage play with your children. Explore the new location by finding local parks or trails for nature walks or relaxed family bike rides. These encourage familiarization in their new environments and get your kids away from their screens while they’re still short of new friends. Exploring the local malls, finding ice cream shops and visiting nearby restaurants can also be helpful.
Also, remember your “you” time — the move was an adaptation for you, not only your kids. Getting out for a round of golf or going rock climbing for an adrenaline boost will allow you the psychological fulfillment that will help you do the best things for your children.
Your Kids Are More Adaptable Than You Think
For a while after our last move, I felt like wrapping my child in bubble wrap, but I didn’t have to. After an initial settling-in period, the adaptation to his new life and environment was quick and pain-free. Occasionally visiting your old neighborhood helps this process, but in the digital age, it is much easier to maintain old friendships while forming new ones. Moving with kids is never easy, but if you exercise these tips, it can be easier than you might ever have thought.