Moving Organization

Whether your move involves kids, pets, or only adults, it's important to have strategies for keeping your move organized and efficient. Here are some ideas for you to check out:

• Packing tips from About.com, including the importance of color-coding and keeping a list: http://interiordec.about.com/od/moving/a/org_movetips.htm
• MovingTips.org offers checklists, starting at one month out from your move: http://www.movingtips.org
• Some "big picture" tips from Realtor.com: things to think about in advance as well as detail tips like taking pictures of your electronics' cables before disconnecting. http://www.realtor.com/home-finance/real-estate/buyers/summer-moving-tips.aspx
• 33 simple but non-obvious moving tips on Buzzfeed: http://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/brilliant-moving-tips
• A great packing material source: UsedCardboardBoxes.com offers quality previously-used boxes that save trees and save you money. http://www.usedcardboardboxes.com/index.php

Here's to the smoothest move possible!

Tips for Moving with Kids

Moving is already a big transition, but it's even bigger when you have children involved. If your family includes children and you're moving this summer, whether across town or across the country, here are some resources for you:

• From the American Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, a fact sheet to give you an overview of what to expect and what to watch out for: http://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/Facts_for_Families_Pages/Children_And_Family_Moves_14.aspx
• From TLC, ten tips for moving with children, including some you can do over the internet like taking a virtual "tour" of potential new houses or apartments so your kids can give input on your selection and start thinking about how their new rooms might be set up: http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/home/10-tips-for-moving-with-children.htm
• KidsHealth.org offers two resource pages, one for parents about how to help prepare children for a move - http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/talk/move.html - and one for kids to read - http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/home_family/moving.html
• From PBS, six more tips for easing the transition, including the great suggestion to provide self-addressed envelopes to friends and other important people so they can easily send a note or letter to your family in your new place: http://www.pbs.org/parents/supersisters/archives/2010/08/moving-with-kids.html
• And from GreatSchools.org, recommendations for books to start your conversations about moving, at a range of age levels from toddler to twelve-year-old: http://www.greatschools.org/students/books/2293-best-moving-books.gs