Ok, so, yeah, we’re moving in six days. I was being psycopathically delusional overly optimistic in thinking that Makes-Me-Smile Monday would carry on as normal. Hello! Next monday I will be driving a minivan full of wretched demon recidivists children through Iowa, and unlike the winner of this weekend’s straw poll’s children, no one has recently accused my girls of being too wholesome. (my linking to an article about the Mormonator candidate is not an endorsement; I might still flip-flop (get it?) on my position on MR, but haven’t yet.)
Church was pretty emotional today. Not as bad as when we left Cairo. That was tough. And not as bad as when the Carpenters left us a year ago. But bad enough still. Things we love about Florida: Dick’s family, the beach, winter, Busch Gardens, green, Libit, Sis. Milbourne’s enthusiasm for the gospel, awesome visiting teachers (Tiffany and Danielle and families), the best visiting teach companion who became a great friend (hmmm, I’m sensing a pattern here) — Jill (and her twins), the Jones boys, and the cool moms (the blogging ones 
) in spmommies club.
It may get sparser before it gets less-sparser again. (the blogging I mean). And we’ll see on Makes-Me-Smile Monday. Maybe the 27th, if I haven’t gone to prison for urging Dick to exceed the maximum recommended speed for a UHaul truck towing a car. Which is 45 mph. Is that a joke? Because, really. Can you imagine travelling from Florida to Utah at 45 mph?
Oh, but if you have any moving advice (or advice about moving, even if it’s not emotionally affecting), please do share it now. Because that’s what we’re doing. Moving.
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Ahhh, but now we’ll be reunited so all this moving craziness will have been worth it. Right? Right? Well, at least we’ll only be 1 state away and actually be in the same time zone for half the year. Wonder what that will do to our phone time? Could be harder, the way you guys stay up late and sleep in. Well, you know – as much as parents of 3 girls like yours can.
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Marcy’s Moving Tips Dissertation (I wrote these up and am now realizing that they don’t all apply to your situation since you don’t have a house waiting for you (except ours!).
Don’t procrastinate (I always procrastinate packing)
If you have time, go through your stuff and throw or give away the stuff you haven’t used for a while (6 months, right Shannon?). It will save you packing it, hauling it and finding a new home for it in your new place.
Write on each box not only what is in the box but which room you’d like it to go in in your new place (that way the movers can take it straight where it goes and it’s one less step for you to find something).
If you’re using boxes that already have writing on them buy a sharpie (or 2) of an unusual color and use it for labeling. Then tell all your moving helpers to only pay attention to that color writing.
When it gets down to it, throw your perfectionist tendencies to the wind and just pack the stuff. You probably don’t have time to sort through every junk drawer. Just throw the contents in a Ziploc and deal with it later.
Pack a clean garbage can with the following things you will need right away at your new house (several of each, if necessary): rolls of toilet paper, soap, paper towels, all-purpose cleaner, garbage sacks, etc., and keep it separate from all other stuff (like in your car).
Pack your suitcases like you’re taking a trip for a few days (in your case, Shannon, you are, since you aren’t moving only 3 cities over). That way you don’t have to frantically search for your pj’s and toothbrush your first night in a new place. Keep separate from all other stuff (like in your car).
We moved into our last house and didn’t have gas for a few days because we didn’t know it was separate from our city utilities hookup. I started this list so something like that wouldn’t happen again. People to inform of address changes:
Utilities for new house
Gas for new house
Cancel old Utilities & Gas
Phone, Internet, Cable TV? for new house
Cancel old phone, internet, TV
Forwarding address at post office
Ensign (and/or other magazine subscriptions)
Family & Friends
Get new checks?
Bank(s)
Credit card companies
Forward labels to give people moving in old house
All Dr.’s
Current dentist?
Insurance (Health, Life, Home, Car, etc.)
Register to vote
Church membership records
Work/State records for tax purposes
State Motor Vehicle Registration
Anyone we owe money to (like hospital after having baby, car
payments, etc.)
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Well Marcie gave like a million awesome tips so I dont have much to add. I will say markers, tape and boxes will be your best friends for a while, LOL. Try to especially get rid of junk you havent used in a long while. When we moved, and granted only down the road lol, we threw out alot of stuff cause I am the biggest pack rat in america
Im still going through boxes of stuff to get rid of cause I am the biggest wait to the last possible moment person, so alot of junk just got thrown in a box with more junk to sort later. I have been in this place for 6months and still we have boxes, I will get organized someday. Remember, throw away, give away and then pack.
Just remember to breathe, even if you dont know how to meditate you can still take slow cleansing breaths to help you calm down and stay organized and get the demons, I mean kids across country with out too much hassle.
Good luck!!!! We will miss you!!
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Need boxes??? I have some I could bring to you
Will miss you!!
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My tips will be a little unconventional.
1. As you pack, make sure not to mic things you won’t need for awhile, like clothes that don’t fit or photo albums or knick knacks or lingerie (lol?) separate from thing you will need right away such as toilet paper, microwaveable dishes, and Mountain Dew. Mark the unessential stuff clearly. That way when you get into your new place you can immediately chuck the non-essentials into c closet to be deal with later. If you try to unpack everything at once, you will go insane. Just do the important stuff first, take a break, and get to the other stuff later. I still haven’t got to my “other stuff,” it continues to rot in the closet. And that’s okay with me, what use do I have for Brad’s gnome collection?
2. The trip will not be as bad as you think. We went a lot further than you and it wasn’t half as bad as we had anticipated, even though the portable DVD player broke before we pulled out of the parking lot in Florida. REST STOPS ARE YOUR FRIEND! Stop often and let the kids run. Admire the various forms and configurations of dog poop. And be aware that not all rest stops have bathrooms. But I was really impressed by many of them, some even had gift shops. As much as you can, stop at grocery stores for food instead of restaurants. Hotel breakfasts consist of three forms of sugar and coffee, which you don’t drink, and which is really bad coffee anyway. When you stop at a chain hotel, be aware that the price is always negotiable. The best rate is usually the “corporate”rate, and if you ask for it they will give it to you. I highly recommmend Best Westerns. REmember I used to manage one. Best Westerns have to have certain amenities to be Best Westerns, which other hotels will skate around, such as shampoo, and many have restaurants attached with breakfast at that restaurant included in your stay.
3. Spoil yourself. A happy mom = a happy family. If you want to drink Mountain Dew from a Camelback, you go right on and do it. If you wnat to stop and see the world’s biggest ball of twine, you’d better do it. If you feel like taking a break after unpacking one box, do it! Everyone will be happier for it.
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Hey Shannon, To avoid the stress of moving, I have the easiest answer….simply do not move! There you go, all of your moving stress will be gone!! While that is probably unreasonable, here are my other suggestions:
The uhaul thing, we did it from New Hampshire to Florida towing Ryan’s car that is like the same size as Toms car. While illegal, we did exceed the speed limit (or should I say, Ryan did!! I refused to drive the uhaul.) making it up to 80MPH withouth any problems. Ryan did not want to test it any higher….I must add, I did object to the 80mph, but we made it and the car was fine. The only problem that we had was gas, when towing the car at higher speeds, as well as the weight of the truck, we averaged 5 miles per gallon. Awful gas mileage.
As far as packing, I have moved too often and have actually started packing myself for our hopeful move in December. I have started packing already and dejunking I am hopeful that Ryan will find a job out of Florida the day that he graduates and then we will (if I am lucky) be moving in December.
Marcy mentioned about marking the boxes…this is very important. To add to it, the Uhaul store has printed tape that you can use, like purple is kitchen and says kitchen, red is livingroom, you get the idea. So you would just tape up the boxes with the correct color tape.It is expensive though, but easy. It keeps your stuff organized.
Also, if letting people from church help you move, just remember that they do not care about your stuff like you do. We had a couple of things broken, scrached and dented from this move. So pack the things that you value carefully, and if moving furniture, just supervise while they are moving it.
Thats it really, I can’t really think of anything else that Marcy, didn’t add. Good luck!! I will really miss you!!
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My biggest thing is to always watch those that help you load the truck- they aren’t very careful!! my husband says to “think tetrus” when loading the truck– he’s moved probably as much as you or more (all since after he graduated high school). oh also, i was thinking of a great tip i got fom my sil. she flew from virginia to california with three small kids- i know, you’re driving so it is different- but she said to she had small paper bags (lunch sacks) with a “surprise” in it that they could open every hour on the hour. they were of course, just things from the dollar store- but it kept the kid’s interest and gave them something to look forward to. for your situation you could do the prizes every couple of (daylight) hours. include a few new DVD’s and maybe even some of that “fun stuff” out of avery’s closet that she hasn’t used in a long time. amy just drove/moved with her five kids from san antonio to boston. she had a box full of “new” stuff that she would randomly pull from when in need of a new distraction. she also had a good tourist book that she could use to tell them about some of the stuff they were driving by- even if they didn’t want to stop to see it- but at least she had a “new” story to tell them and stuff to talk about/entertain with. good luck! just remember how you felt when you first made the decision and let that keep you going! can’t wait to see you when you get here!
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Try to think positively about Utah- it’s not so bad. The heat’s crazy in Zion right now, but the scenery is gorgeous. If there’s one thing Utah is good for (besides being able to locate an LDS church on just about every corner), it’s the outdoors. Being a bit of a hippie nature freak, I love it out here. I’m a bit north of where you’ll be, but the outdoors of Southern Utah are well known and I’d really like to spend more time out there this fall when things cool off a bit.
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Shannon loves Utah!!! She’s been dying to live by her favorite sister(s) for years!
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