It’s not a secret that moving to a new home can be a tough and challenging business that requires an extraordinary amount of time, effort, and attention to each house moving detail.
And if you happen to be moving with a child, then things will suddenly become even more complicated and trickier than you need them to be.
Moving with children is a unique experience – a formidable yet remarkable adventure that doesn’t need to be too stressful or too difficult for anyone. As a caring parent, your priority should be to make the upcoming move as easy for your kid as possible. And safe too.
In reality, how you approach the whole relocation situation will depend primarily on your kid’s age – whether he or she is a baby, a toddler, a preschooler, a school-age kid, or a teenager.
Here are the best ways to make moving easier for your child.
Stick to your child’s routine, whenever possible
One proven way to make moving easier for a child is to keep their routine as unchanged as possible. That’s especially important for young kids who take comfort in their daily routine as they tend to feel safe and calm when things happen in a highly familiar way.
But because of the impending house move, change is coming and it’s coming fast. As a result, children are likely to get stressed out or upset whenever there are any serious disruptions in the normal order and way in which things are done at home.
While it’s almost impossible to keep your child’s daily life routine perfectly intact, you should still make a genuine effort to do so. The key to achieving minimal disruption of the family’s daily activities is to organize your time well with the help of a practical MOVING CHECKLIST that actually works.
Must-read: Moving Timeline: Interactive week-by-week moving checklist
Discuss the move with your child
One of the very first things you have to do when moving with a child is to discuss the upcoming move with them. It’s critical that everyone in the family is on the same page to prevent any instances of hard feelings due to unfortunate misunderstandings or poor communication.
How exactly you choose to tell your child that the family is moving will depend primarily on how old they are. For a toddler and a preschooler, you should use a simpler language that you know they will understand. Borrowing one of their stuffed animals to play out the scene of moving may help them get a basic idea of what’s really happening.
Most school-age children won’t be too thrilled about moving house because of the dreadful idea of having to say goodbye to the school friends they will have already made. Either way, your best bet is to be completely honest with your child about the move, pointing out the specific sacrifices everyone has to make in the process.
Don’t forget to give your child enough time and space to process the big news on their own.
Read also: How to tell your child you are moving
Pack the kids’ room last and unpack it first
Another way to make a move easier for your child is to pack their room last of all so that they can have their safe haven for as long as possible.
You shouldn’t underestimate the time it’ll take to pack up the kids’ room but you don’t need to start packing it up in the very beginning either. In most cases, it’s important to get the timing right, especially when your kid is too sensitive to the inevitable changes that are happening around the house.
If your child is old enough to give you a hand with packing and you know you can count on their help, then you can basically leave the children’s room to be the last premise you pack up for moving.
When you reach the new place, unpack and set up their room with priority to hopefully give your kid a sense of familiarity in a completely new environment.
Good to know: How to pack a house with children around
Focus on the positives
Inevitably, the upcoming move will have a number of advantages and disadvantages for the family as a whole and for each family member in particular. And while some of these pluses and minuses cannot be really disputed, many aspects of the relocation will be subject to how each person perceives the newly-formed situation.
Be sure to focus on the positive aspects of the move when speaking with your son or daughter – more space in the new home, a better school for them, new friends, new adventures, and so on. Your upbeat attitude towards the whole relocation process will surely make moving easier for your child in their mind.
Be careful not to resort to lying to your child only to win him or her as your ally for the move. Instead, look for specific reasons that are likely to make them enthusiastic about the changes that are about to happen soon.
If at all possible, visit the new place in person together with your kid to arouse their curiosity and spark their interest in the new chapter of the family’s life.
Read also: How moving house affects children
Include your child in important decisions
One excellent way to make moving easier for children is to make them feel like they play a key role in the entire house moving process.
Don’t forget that moving house is an emotional time for everybody, especially for your kid since they may not be able to grasp the whole concept of moving from one place to another.
But that’s where you should come in – by keeping your child perfectly involved throughout the moving process (unless they are too young to be of any help), you will help them feel like they are a part of your team as opposed to feeling neglected and helpless.
Having an extra pair of hands for decluttering, packing, and cleaning is great, but those are mundane tasks that your child will not really enjoy. However, add in the bonus task of mapping their new room and watch them feel a surge of excitement at the thought.
Let them sketch where they see each furniture piece in their new room and how they would like to have their living space set up and decorated.
See also: 5 ways children can help during a move
Prepare an essentials box for your child
Moving with children is definitely not easy but you can make it more bearable by employing clever little tricks that will benefit both you and your kid.
One tactic that you should not underestimate is to pack an essentials kit for your child while the family is on the road. In its essence, the essentials box should contain everything that you think your kid will need during the relocation trip.
Basically, what you pack into the essentials box will depend on your child’s age. For babies and toddlers, you should include diapers, wet wipes, suitable baby food and drinks, an extra set of clothes, and suitable toys. For school-age kids, you should surely take their favorite electronic gadgets (a music player, a smartphone, a tablet, a music player, or even a portable game), a change of clothes, some snacks.
Whenever possible, it’s best to prepare the essentials kit together with your child so that you don’t skip to include any important items.
Useful info: How to pack an essentials box when moving
Ensure your kid’s safety
Things will be definitely easier for your child and for yourself when you make sure he or she stays perfectly safe on Moving day.
Keep in mind that the move-out day can be rather dangerous for children so they need to stay away from the moving epicenter. Ask a family member to babysit your child on Moving day while you’re busy packing, moving, or dealing with professional movers.
If your kid is old enough to take care of themselves, ask them to stay in a room away from any danger during the most unpredictable day during a house move. First and foremost, you want to make sure your child will be 100% safe before you can concentrate on the tasks at hand.
Make sure there are no pets running around on the move-out day either.
See also: How to make Moving day less stressful
Encourage your child to keep in touch with their friends
During a move, most school-age children will get really sad because they are parting with their good (school) friends. Chances are that your school-age child will also get upset at the thought of having to say goodbye to their pals.
Goodbyes are always tough but sometimes there just isn’t another option. One thing you can do to make moving easier for your child is to encourage him or her to keep in touch with their best friends after the move is complete. Nowadays, it’s really easy to keep in touch with people over the Internet despite the great distances.
Also, if possible at all, you can have your child invite their best friend over to visit as a way to help your kid cope better with the post-move adaptation period. Another idea is to go back to the town or city you’re leaving so that your child can see their friends again.
Must-read: 10 common mistakes parents make when moving with children
