Whew- I haven’t posted here in FOR-EVER and it is for good reason- we moved!!!  The whole process of buying/selling was a whirlwind -we weren’t even looking to move but our realtor called us up with a home that was exactly what we had mentioned we were eventually looking for in our “forever” home.  That started a chain event of craziness and today we are happily hanging out in said “forever home.”

Last pictures in front of our old home

I was SO overwhelmed by the whole moving process so I thought it would be helpful to give my experience for prepping my house for sale, prepping my kids for the move and packing up our house.

Prepping and selling your home…

Tip #1- Make it look like no one lives there! I am a real estate addict so I constantly browse listings. I am always amazed at these pristine homes that have kids rooms- how the heck do they  sell a house with KIDS living there??!! No way could mine look like that! Well…it eventually did! My first order of business was to get rid of the excess.  I have a large SUV and I moved 4 car loads full of boxes (mainly toys, kitchen items and other clutter) to a spare room in my grandmother’s house.  If you can temporarily get rid of stuff in anticipation for your move- do it!  Otherwise, donate, declutter and tuck things away!

Tip #2- Buy some “oh, sh!t” bins– I had 2 large storage bins that I kept on each level of the house.  When we had a showing, I would run around loading them up with last minute things- ALL personal items from our bathroom (shampoos, toothbrushes, etc), toy clutter, laundry, etc.  I would put the full bins in my car when I left during showings and unload when we got home.  I also kept a small bin under my sink so I could clear off all the soap, brushes, sponges, etc from the counter for showings.

Tip #3- Make it smell fresh!– Do a quick wipe down in each room right before you leave for a showing to make the home smell fresh!  I always quickly wiped down my counters, tables and other random surfaces in each room with Mrs. Meyers Lemon Verbena Cleaner.  It was funny because an agent who had been in my house a few times told me it always smelled so clean and fresh!  My little secret…

Tip #4- Take your pets with you–  One of the most annoying parts of selling my home was the fact that I took my dog with me for all showings.  It made chilling out at a coffee shop for an hour impossible but luckily, I had relatives nearby that we visited during longer showings.  While it was a pain to take my dog with me, I wanted the buyers to be able to spend their time admiring my awesome house rather than listening to him bark his head off their entire showing.

I thank my lucky stars that all the preparation seemed to work- we received multiple offers and our home was under contract within a week of putting it on the market!

Prepping for the move…

Tip #1- Once the move is imminent, start reading books to the kids!- I was especially nervous about breaking the news of our move to my 4 year old since he was seemingly very attached to our house.  I  purchased 3 books off Amazon- Big Ernie’s New Home, Boomer’s Big Day, and The Berenstain Bears’ Moving Day. I read these for a couple weeks before we told him the news.  To my shock, he was SO excited (mainly about the moving truck) and we really had a seamless time with the transition.

Tip #2- Ask around for boxes!  I got all of our moving boxes (nice large Home Depot boxes!) for FREE just by asking in local Facebook groups!

Tips #3- Color code boxes as you pack– I purchased a pack of multi colored duct tape on Amazon and used a different color for each room in my new house. This was SO valuable when we were moving in.  I also put that color tape on the doorway to the room so the movers had no questions as to where each box was supposed to go (cut down on time and money, too)!!!

Tip #4- Change your address online then opt in to the special offers. Initially I was annoyed that i had to pay $1 to change my address online BUT I opted in to receive offers- including one for “Amazon Move.”  I had no idea this existed but I got emailed a link to sign up.  I thought it was for 10% off a purchase on Amazon BUT I have been receiving 10% off ALL my purchases!!! I am not sure how much it goes up to but I have read online that it is 10% off $1,000 worth of purchases (so $100 savings).  AMAZING!!!

Tip #5- Keep the end in sight!!! Moving is the worst.  It seriously kind of sucks but that is ok because (hopefully) it will be over soon!  Just try to do a little at a time and know that it will get done eventually!

We are now kicking back in our new home among a million boxes but that is ok because we are HOME!!!!

Below are links to the products I referenced above (click on each picture to shop):

Happy shopping and good luck with your move!