Moving is the grown-up equivalent of middle school—everyone is super gungho about the thought, but it is only the folks with realistic expectations who end up having a good time. Sure, it is a new home, a new start, and the possibility of a wonderful new life--but once that last empty moving truck pulls away and you are standing there in the middle of your boxes, you have still got to do the actual work.
Managing your move with realistic expectations is essential to starting that new life on a positive note--and that means not only acknowledging the fact that a new house won't wondrously suck up the twenty pounds you keep meaning to lose, but that moving is emotionally draining even in ideal circumstances and you and your family should allot the time and space to accept that.
One of the odd things about a local move--new home, neighborhoods, schools--is that can be more difficult on the children than a long-distance relocation. A new home hundreds of miles away takes away the non-stop requests to go see their friends in the old neighborhood, and it could be less difficult to adopt a new life and new friends when your old ones are in a different time zone.
But let’s get back to the main point. There are three Ps to think about when managing your move to or in Tulsa--Purge, Pack, and Pay. What you don't purge must be packed, and the more you pack, the more you will pay. Expectation—I will get rid of old stuff and only hang on to what I love. Reality--you love lots more than you realize you do. No matter if you handle your own packing or hire professional movers, you've got to choose what is worth the time and money to pack and move.
Purge
Purging is one of those strange terms you don't hear very often, at least in a affirmative implication. In actuality, releasing the old baggage is one of the best ways so that you can allow your new abode to meet your expectations of grandeur. There are all kinds of rules and tips to help you figure out the best approaches to get rid of your old things, from down-to-earth--"if you haven't used/worn it in a year get rid of it"; to a little wacky--"toss all your negative energy out with the old towels". At its least complicated level, purging is simply going through all the cupboards, closets and drawers and forming three piles: take with you, throw away, donate. Or you may have four piles if you've got a lot of next-to-new items that you do not use anymore, and consign those items.
A difficult thing about purging is keeping up the aloofness in order to be merciless about getting rid of things. If you kept all those pre-school art projects, how can you get rid of them and be a good parent? Here is a tip—have a friend assist you to pick through items and talk you through why you are saving things that are really best out of the house. Having a friend ask you out loud why you want to keep the 1980s cassette tapes does put things in relative importance and you will have a pain-free time growing the get-rid-of pile if you've got someone to back-up your decisions.
If your partner is the one with the hoarder habits, here is a tip for assisting an unenthusiastic participant part with their treasures. Think small, and begin with the kitchen junk drawers, try to limit handling of old matchbooks and old crayons to one time only and progressively get to larger things, like collections (for example, pick out two or three porcelain bunnies and donate or consign the rest).
Catch up us next time as we discuss managing your move topics: Pack and Pay, in Part 2 of this blog series.
