When moving with children to a new home, sooner or later you’ll reach the stage where you’ll have to pack your child’s toys for the upcoming move. Of course, provided that your son or daughter is old enough, they should give you a hand with that seemingly straightforward packing task.
And yet, packing children’s toys for moving may prove to be a bit harder than you think due to some specific packing steps that you may not even know that exist.
Here’s what you need to know when packing stuffed animals for a move – those plush toys you thought of simply throwing inside a big cardboard box. Well, you could still do it but it may lead to untimely damage to the precious soft toys.
It’s important to know that stuffed animals play a very important role in a child’s world. Oftentimes, those soft toys are more than mere toys – they are true friends that are always there for the kids they belong to, ready to listen to them or console them in difficult moments.
Follow these 5 steps to learn how to pack stuffed animals for moving – the correct packing technique that will let the toys arrive in the new home perfectly sound and safe, fully ready to be unpacked and played with.
Step 1. Sort out all soft toys
As a parent, one thing you must have noticed is how fast stuffed animals can multiply – every month there seem to be new additions to the animal kingdom. Yes, all those plush toys are super cute and fluffy and soft and lovable, but they also tend to take up too much storage space, and that can become a real issue, especially right before a house move.
When packing soft toys for moving, the very first step is to go through the entire collection of stuffed animals with the purpose of discarding the ones that, for some reason or another, are not worth moving to the new home.
Look for plush toys that your child never plays with anymore or ones that are in a really bad condition, like having their stuffing halfway out. The good news is that many organizations will accept new or gently used stuffed animals and put them to good use, most often for a good cause too. Explain to your child that there are too many less fortunate children out there and that any soft toys you donate will fill other kids’ hearts with joy.
Recycle properly all the stuffed animals that have definitely seen better days.
Read also: How to pack a kids’ room for moving
Step 2. Remove any batteries from the stuffed toys
The second step when packing stuffed animals for moving is to remove any batteries from the soft toys that have extra abilities such as singing, talking, walking, dancing, and so on. Your kid’s plush animals are not alive, so the ones that are able to make sounds or move on their own must be battery-powered.
Make sure you remove the batteries from any battery-operated stuffed animals prior to packing them up. Why?
First of all, you won’t be really in the mood to keep hearing any croaking, howling, meowing, bleating, squeaking, quacking, mooing, woofing, cackling, or trumpeting sounds from the boxes during the haul.
And secondly, batteries left in children’s toys may leak or corrode, thus potentially damaging the battery housing unit, the stuffed animal itself, or other soft toys as well.
Bonus advice: 5 ways children can help during a move
Step 3. Clean the stuffed toys
Now that you’re left only with the plush toys that you’re taking with you to the new home, the next step is to clean those stuffed animals. And the best way to do just that is to leave them at a good dry cleaning place that accepts plush toys. The only issue with this cleaning option is whether you’ll have enough time to get the teddy bears back before you move away.
If you don’t really have the time to complete this task prior to Moving day, then you can always have them dry-cleaned in the destination town or city. In which case, you should still make sure the stuffed animals are dust-free before you pack them up.
Use a vacuum cleaner to remove the dust from the plush toys but make sure its suction power is set to its lowest setting to prevent possible damage to the long-haired representatives of the animal kingdom.
See also: How moving affects children
Step 4. Set aside a few favorite stuffed animals
Just before you start packing up your kid’s stuffed animals, remember to set aside 2 or 3 of their most favorite plush toys. This way, your young son or daughter will be able to continue to play with and cuddle (at night) the plush toys they love the most. By having their most beloved stuffed animals with him or her, your child will hopefully breeze through a stressful house move that could have a negative effect on children in general.
Keep in mind that plush toys can provide a great deal of comfort for children during a residential move, keeping them calm and stress-free, so don’t make the mistake of underestimating the significance of the occasion by stuffing all those “dumb” stuffed animals into a big cardboard box.
Did you know: 10 common mistakes parents make when moving with children
Step 5. Pack the stuffed animals
The final step is, of course, to pack up your child’s stuffed animals in the safest way possible. Here are the steps that’ll show you how you should do it:
- LINE a big cardboard box with soft wrapping paper, covering both its bottom and sides. Luckily, plush toys are not heavy and that’s exactly why you’ll be using a large moving box to hold them during transport.
- PREPARE a roll of perfectly clean (brand-new) garbage bags to keep the stuffed animals protected from moisture during the actual transportation between the two homes.
- PLACE one or several plush toys inside a plastic trash bag depending on the sizes of the animals. If a stuffed animal proves to be too big to fit inside one plastic bag, then feel free to use several ones to cover them completely. And no, your kid’s soft toys are not garbage, it’s just that those plastic bags are ideal for the purpose.
- CHECK each stuffed animal as you’re packing it inside a plastic bag – the toy needs to be completely dry. If it’s not, leave it out to air dry or use a hair dryer to speed up the process. Be careful about this step as wet or damp plush toys packed up in plastic will eventually form mold – the last thing you’d want during a house move.
- TIE UP the plastic bag with some tape once it’s full (don’t overfill it), then place it inside the pre-lined cardboard box.
- KEEP adding plastic bags with stuffed animals inside until the large cardboard container is full. DO NOT TRY to squish down the soft toys in an attempt to fit more toys in the box simply because the extra downward force may damage them – get them to wrinkle up or cause their stuffing to shift, possibly leaving some of the animals deformed.
- CLOSE the lids of the large moving box when you fill it up with stuffed animals that have already been pre-packed in clean plastic bags.
- SEAL the box with packing tape and label it accordingly using a marker pen.
Must-read: How to pack a house with children around
Bonus packing advice #1: Remember that plush toys can be used as excellent filling materials for other boxes filled with other types of toys. Just place stuffed animals inside plastic bags, secure those bags, and position the soft toys between the gaps in the said boxes to stop the other toys from shifting inside and getting in contact with each other.
Good to know: How to pack toys for moving
Bonus packing advice #2: If you intend to store your kid’s stuffed animals for a long period of time after the move, then it’ll be best to pack those toys in a plastic storage bin without placing them first in plastic bags so that they can breathe. Most plastic moving boxes are also airtight, which will keep the precious plush toys from getting damaged by pests or mold while they are being stored away in the new home.
See also: Benefits of using plastic moving boxes
