We found ourselves a smaller place: across town - a three-bedroom/2 bath apartment with lots of amenities that the previous tenant left for us.
This house has gotten too big for us and harbors too many memories of our late son (6.3.2017).
“She Who Must Be Obeyed”* has begun kicking my sorry ass out of bed at the ungawdly hour of 10 am, to begin gathering small items and we will leave the large items for last when we’ll have some strong muscles and backs to take those over.
Any other tips for one slightly demented 67 year old and one beautiful 68 year old woman, both of whom do not need to do heavy lifting nor too much moving in one day?
After moving by myself and with family more than 15 times in my 51 years…hire professional movers, if you can at all afford it. Seriously, moving is a pain, and I know I’ve gotten too old for that shit.
If you must do it mostly yourselves, get more boxes than you think you’ll need, along with tape and padding. Plan out what you can pack up early, and what must go on the last trip.
Get rid of everything you can - donate, sell, trash. Look at this as a chance to simplify your life of some of the stuff you’ve accumulated over however many years.
Measure out the major dimensions of all of your furniture, then get a giant roll of butcher’s paper and cut out stencils of each piece. Go to the new house and lay out the furniture. Figure out what goes where and what you want to keep and what you want to get rid of. Once you’re agreed, keep the stencil’s in place. Write down the list of furniture from furthest to the front door to nearest to the front door. Have the movers load your furniture onto the truck in roughly reverse of that order. When it comes time to move the furniture, remove the stencils right before the movers set down the piece. That way, you’re not moving something twice.
Rent a skip for your old place a few days before the move. Everything goes into 3 piles, keep, donate, trash. Be ruthless about culling. Moving is the best time to slim down on stuff. If you haven’t used something in a year and it’s something you could buy in less than a week, then strongly consider tossing it. Having a skip means you have the freedom to throw out whatever you need without worrying about running out of garbage space.
Use the move as an excuse to buy new stuff. Did you buy something that you’ve been mildly annoyed by or was a grade below what you should have gotten but it’s still working just well enough to not need replacing yet? A move is a great time to finally do that upgrade (although don’t go overboard, obviously).
Have more boxes than you think you should need. Have more padding material than you think you should need. Fill boxes based on weight, not to the brim.
Make a plan for how you’re going to deal with trash at the new place for the first month. There’s going to be a lot of packing material and general detritus and it’s not all going to fit into the weekly trash pickup. Hoarding trash for a month, letting it go in drips and drabs every week sucks. Don’t end up like that.
Collect a minimal set of cleaning supplies (vacuum, broom, mop, sponges, cleaning chemicals etc.) and tools (hammer, drill, screwdriver, utility knife, saw etc.) keep them with you in the car, not on the moving truck. They should be the first things moved into the new house and, if you can, try to get multiples of each because you’re going to spend your first few days constantly searching for them.
If you have any decorative arrangements or other intricate array of small items, take photos of them, print them out and stick them on the walls above your stencils in your new home. When you get to the new place, you can use it as a reference to get stuff back to the way it used to look.
Moving’s also a great time to adopt new organizational systems. Do that in the new place before the day of the actual move. Install any racks, cabinets, hangers or drawers beforehand so stuff can go directly into them.
The goal is to get the house into a livable state as rapidly and painlessly as possible. People only have limited mental energy for big projects and when it stalls out, a project can stall indefinitely. You’re much more able to have the mental motivation to do something before the move rather than when you’re also physically exhausted by the move so do as much planning up front as possible so that the move will be, as much as possible, just slotting objects into preassigned slots.
Pack a box with sheets, towels, wash cloths, toilet paper and paper towels. Keep it handy, and not with the rest of the stuff you are moving. At the end of the day, a shower and a bed with clean sheets will seem like heaven.
If you use someone to pack and unpack your house, offer to buy them pizzas for lunch. I’ve used movers twice, and did this both times. I’ve had zero problems with the moves, and there seemed to be extra care taken with my stuff.
If you have stuff that you are keeping/moving, but won’t need right away, consider leaving those boxes in the garage at first. Having less stuff to move around each room will make it much easier to get re-set up, and the winter coats won’t mind sitting in the garage for a month or so.
If you’ve got lots of books, buy smaller boxes - books are very heavy.
Invest in a good quality two-wheel dolly - something with larger, pneumatic tires. Spend a little extra and you’ll get something a lot easier to move around.
If you rent a truck, check it out before you drive it off. Make sure the ramp works properly, etc. Get some cheap rope to secure loads to the tie-downs that are usually within. Within reason, too big is better than too small.
I don’t know if I agree with Tastes of Chocolate, to be honest. I’ve found it better to put everything away, as stuff left in the garage often stays there. YMMV.
We’re moving ourselves. The new place is about two miles away from here. We won’t have a garage and one parking space will have to do us. Most of the folks will be volunteers as we can’t afford to hire a moving service. There’s a young guy, who has been our “Go-To” person for mowing the lawn cleaning the roof, etc. who will be paid, as he will be the one to dismantle/remantle our computers and TV’s. Other than that, until later in the month it’s just gonna be the both of us and little stuff. I have to keep a close eye on Dondra since she tends to overdo and then gets dizzy.
We will be having a moving sale on a couple of Saturdays as we are actually moving. One of Dondra’s nieces will be here to help with that.
I really appreciate all the tips, my friends.
One thing I have already learned is “Never say never” , as in, “Okay we’re here and we’re never moving again!”
Buy each other two or three small trinkets as gifts. Then chuck them into random boxes as you pack up.
Trust me, you’ll enjoy unpacking a lot more. Moving sucks LARGE, unexpected tiny trinket gifts makes the worst part, “Oh my God, we’ve already done so much, why can’t it just be done?”, a little easier to bear. And always puts a smile on your face, when you’re the most worn down and need it most!
It’s a small thing that will make a big difference. Anything that makes you smile during the unpacking is a great thing!
You might want to invest in some hump straps. It doesn’t sound like you’re moving any large appliances (washers, dryers and such) but they still might save some wear and tear on your back schlepping heavy boxes hither and yon.
Your local Home Depot should sell them. They’re good to have around the house just in case and youtube has a number of tutorial videos on how to use them.
I have no advice, but I do want to say good luck and don’t overdo it! Sometimes you don’t remember that you’re not 20 any longer, till your back reminds you.
We are determined that when we move from this house, it’ll involve someone wheeling us out, but, yeah, never say never.
I really like the trinket idea and we are going to implement that sometime this week. Thanks elbows.
FCM, I have a back brace which I will wear today. Thanks for the reminder!
We DO have a washer, dryer and portable dishwasher (which we would really like to sell - with only the two of us, the dishes are just usually washed in the sink).
MMM going to the liquor store today for boxes.
Minlokwat , thanks. I will follow up on the straps.
I think moving across town is worse than a cross-country move – it seems to go on forever! My suggestion is to buy some cheap laundry baskets and pack them with unbreakable items (like pots and pans, towels and sheets, etc.). Drive them over and put them away. I have even done this with dishes using my dish towels for cushioning. I found the baskets much easier to lift and carry, since they have handles.
When my daughter moved across town she put all her clothes and linens in large trash bags (just watch the weight). The bonus was that after the move they were re-used for garbage, cutting down on the number of boxes to dispose.
I forgot to add something and it’s a major thing - sort of.
A year and a half ago, my wife had a stroke - not a debilitating one, it affected mainly her eyesight, but the doctor called it a “developing” stroke. THAT makes it major. I also don’t let her out of my sight. She can still drive - she won’t let me, since I caused a three car accident in 2011, So basically we’re always together and we’re all each other has - we are co-caretakers, I guess.
I will let her load boxes with little things, but I will not let her carry them to the car.
This what we’re doing right now: little things, in little boxes, transported in the little car.
[QUOTE=CheshireKat]
I think moving across town is worse than a cross-country move – it seems to go on forever! … When my daughter moved across town she put all her clothes and linens in large trash bags (just watch the weight)…
[/QUOTE]
If you’re hiring professional movers, don’t use bags or laundry baskets - the movers won’t touch them. Or, they’ll box up your bags and baskets using their rather overpriced boxes and tape.
Local moves do go on forever because you have that ability to start moving stuff over just as soon as you sign the lease, and any leftovers can be dealt with when you go back to clean the old place. On a long-distance move, you can’t start shuffling your christmas dishes and grandma’s crystal over one carload at a time - it’s all got to be ready on truck day.
The OP said he was moving himself, which is why I suggested the laundry baskets and leaf bags. I certainly wouldn’t recommend them when using a professional mover!
I’m moving across the complex at the end of the month. My plan is to take over the bathroom supplies one evening and get that completely set up. The next evening after work, I plan on moving everything in the kitchen cabinets and drawers. The next night, I’ll carry over my clothes and the other stuff and set up my closets. then I’ll have someone come and move the furniture and boxed stuff. But there’s a lot to be said for being able to find your clothes hanging up, being able to make a sandwich, and being able to take a shower without having to find the stuff first.
