If you're thinking of moving and it causes you extreme stress, follow my tips to keep everything controlled and stress free.
Book a mover asap! Good movers book up fast and you don't want to be left with inexperienced movers that might break something, charge you extra to get your items or worst yet, run off with your stuff. Get at least 2 quotes and have them come to the home to physically see what you have before giving you a quote. Leave room in the quote for less items to go because of our next step. No surprises is the goal of a smooth easy move.
Now that the movers are booked, it's time to sort and edit. Take a look at what you really use and want to take with you. If it hasn't been used and most likely never will, it shouldn't be moved. This doesn't apply to memorabilia. Get help from friends, family or hire outside experienced help, if you don't have the time or are not able to do it. Having impartial eyes to help you make the decision about items can make the job go quicker with less stress.
Make a master list of all contact names and numbers, dates and important information regarding the move. Keep it all together either in a notepad, binder or in a file, labelled accordingly. Make it easy and quick to find. Assign 1 person to be the contact because if phone calls get sent to different people, important details could get missed or misunderstood.
This notepad should also contain the list of boxes and what's in each box. Number and label each box with a coloured sticker. For example: staples has coloured dot stickers and you can also get corrusponding room stickers. Number the box and select the room sticker and also attach a dot sticker (same colour as the room sticker ) to all sides of the box. This allows the movers to quickly identify which room the box goes into. (red dot means bedroom, all red dot boxes go there) On the list of boxes describe what's in each box. This saves you having to go through numerous boxes in search of a certain item.
4. Purchase packing paper, bubble wrap and tissue paper from a big box store or from a moving company. Be aware that if you pack your items yourself, the moving company may not cover any damaged items. Check with the movers about this. If this is a big concern, then let the movers pack your belongings.
Scrunch up a layer of packing paper in the bottom of the box, wrap glass in tissue paper, a layer of bubble wrap and fill any gaps with more scrunched up packing paper. Never overload a box of breakables, the weight can cause breakage. Use fragile tape to show boxes that need to be given more attention. If you have any special instructions, write them on the box. (For example: do not place anything on top). This lets everyone know how to load this on the truck.
5. Unpack the kitchen and bedrooms first. This ensures that you can get to bed the night of the move and in the morning you aren't opening boxes trying to find items to make breakfast. You should also have a "Day of Move" bag packed with whatever you need, treat it like a overnight bag at a hotel. Pack personal care items, pajamas and any medications needed. Each member of the family should have a bag. Remember any pets too! Pack a bag for them, don't be scrambling trying to find #__ box with the cat food in it so that they can eat. It helps to have the boxes numbered and the list showing you what's in them but make it easy and pack a travel size food bag for quick meals.
Lastly but definately not last, have food and water available for the movers and family. Moving is a hard and long job, you can get dehydrated easily. Arrange for a cooler of drinks (no alcohol) and snacks or lunch. Happy movers make a happy move. Also if the movers start to get dehydrated they could possibly drop something or be a little off balance and hurt themselves.
I hope this helps you to make your next move an easy one.