Thoughts on the Move and Reviewing the Printables

The move was crazy!  Crazy exciting, crazy stressful, crazy planned... and now that it's over it is slowly becoming a distant memory, and before it completely dulls and loses its hold on me I wanted to share what worked, and what didn't work.

As you probably already know, I made up a bunch of printables to help keep us organized through this move, and I'm happy to report that, for the most part, they worked just like I hoped they would.  My original plan had been to put them all into a binder with neat, orderly sections ... yeah that one didn't happen.  I ended up putting most of them at the front of my HMB.  Despite not having a home all their own, they worked so beautifully for me, that I wanted to share my thoughts on them with you.

First up, the packing kit I put together I cannot say enough how happy I was with this.  

At first I thought I was just being a little on the OCD side of trying to organize our packing, but it really helped to make things that much easier.  (the post on that is here, if you want to check it out)  A quick summary of what was in it:

• Clipboard:  for holding labels once they're made, and the packing list
• Packing List:  because, this time, I'm determined to have a good idea of where everything is
• Pen: 
• Permanent Markers:  for the labels and/or writing on the box
• Packing Tape:
• News Paper:  for padding
• Plastic Bags:  I use them to cover dishes and breakables before wrapping in newspaper.  Makes it soooo much nicer when unpacking!

It made packing so easy, I could move from room to room, and I had just what I needed with me.  No hunting for anything.  The only thing I didn't end up using was labels.  I ended up just writing on the boxes.  

QUICK TIP:  Label to top right corner on all sides of the box, including the top.  This way, no matter how it is stacked, you can always see what is in it!  Thanks so much for that tip Dad!  It really saves the day!!!!

Next up, was the only real failure of the bunch, the Project List! 

 (find post here)  It was a great idea when I was organizing the house, and I've used it in the new house already for projects I want to tackle.  But when it came to the move itself, it didn't help at all.  

Then I had the Change of Address form.  

This was great, I didn't have to try to remember what was being cancelled, what was being transferred and so on.  And, it's a good thing I had this, because when we were up north at the old house, I looked at it and realized I hadn't called the utility companies to hook up the new house!  Eeek!  Thanks to the form, I had all the information I needed to get it done.  Whew!

QUICK TIP:  If you're thinking about moving, it's a good idea to double check cancellation and transfer policies for all the companies you deal with.  Some might require up to 30 days or more notice.  It's always a good thing to check that out.  Also, if you had to pay a deposit, find out how you go about getting that back.

Move-In Day Checklist!  What can I say about this little baby?

It helped!  Alot! (see post here) We had brought a fair amount of stuff with us to my parents, and thanks to them (I will never be able to thank them enough for their love, support, and for how much they helped us.  I am truly blessed with the best parents in the whole universe!!!) we were able to leave much of it with them when we headed back up north to do the final pack and move.  This little checklist helped me make sure I packed only what we needed to bring.  It also helped with the final packing, and unloading.  I was able to have what I needed at my finger tips!

And finally, we have come to the STAR of the show!  My Packing List! 

I'm going to be super honest here.  When I made this one up, I was thinking in my head, "This is going to be a waste of time for me, but maybe, someone out there will get use from it."  Ha!  The packing list was, by far, the best printable of the bunch. (see post here)  I kept a detailed list of what got packed where, or in what.  I numbered the boxes from each room as I packed, so the higher the number, the greater priority it was to us.  (with the exception of the summer shoes, they didn't get listed on this, an oversight on my part!)  It came to the rescue more than once.  Especially when the inevitable "Do you know where this is?" happened when got back up north, or the "Did you already pack that?"  There were a few times when we needed an item I had already packed, and I was able to quickly find it on my list, we were able to retrieve said items with relative ease, and put them back with no problems. When it came to unpacking, oh my, it was so nice to have an idea of where everything was.  And it was soooo handy to know, just by looking at the list, what boxes could wait to be unpacked, and what ones we needed right away.  Because of this handy dandy little printable, I was able to whip up a simple lunch on unloading day, and not have to resort to paper plates!  LOVE LOVE LOVE it!  I will use it over and over, and not just for moving.  I plan to use this to help keep track of what is stored in the garage, in the garden shed, and under the stairs, if we ever decide to use the crawl space, I'll use it for that too.  If you have a storage unit, something like this would be perfect for keeping track of what you have it in.

And there you have it!   My review of the printables I made up.  All in all, I'm quite happy that I took the time, not just to make them, but to use them.  I hope that some of you find them helpful too, after all, that's a big part of the reason I share them here.  Right now they're scattered through the blog in various posts, and I was thinking that maybe they need a page all of their own, what do you think?  Would it be easier for you if the printables were all in one spot?  Leave me a comment and let me know.  In the mean time, if you would like the full "moving" package, (all of the printables you see in this post)  leave me a comment, (make sure your email is either linked to your comment, or in your comment) or send me a note to:  scatteredsquirrelblog@gmail.com  and I'll send you a copy of all them!  

I hope all of you are having a wonderful Friday!  Have a safe and happy weekend, and I'll hope to see you here on Monday when I'm going to be sharing a new free printable with you!