mafi39 Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 We got a contract on our house on Thursday night, we close in two days (wednesday) Part of the agreement was for us to be out by August 1 (to give them time to get settled for school, which starts Aug.11 here) I have 14 days to pack up a house (1900 sq.ft), we don't have another apartment/house yet to move to. I am stressed and stressed some more. It has all happened so fast, that I can't wrap my head around what needs to be done first. We are looking for a place but they are far and few between. My husband is in construction so he has tons of tools, ladders, etc. We will probably put these at my dad's house who has lots of room for them. One option if we can't find a place quick enough is to stay with my parents until something suitable becomes available. That is a last resort because I really hate to move and then move again in a month or two. I need advice. And lots of it. We were scheduled to start our new school year Aug. 2. That's out of the question. I also have a huge garden and we can a lot. All of my tomatoes are coming in and they need to be put up. I can work on that 4-5 cans at a time in between packing and stuff. Please don't tell me not to can or put up food, because we need this for the winter (jobs are scarce in construction in the winter) but I honestly just want to cry at all that I need to do. I need a plan and I need your help. So if you've been in my situation, what do I need to do first? If you are a christian, pray that I have strength to make it lol! Thanks in advance! mckinsey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 Do you have a church? I find those that do (we don't, but want to...better get on w/that!) are able to tap into a wealth of support and help that way. You mentioned your Dad...do you have any other extended family? Otherwise, do you belong to any groups? Homeschool, etc? You may find help there. Last resort, if you can swing it, hire help. Movers that also pack, house cleaners, etc. Rent a storage unit, have a moving sale to get rid of anything you don't 'need'. Also, many churches will help non-members in need. Give them a call if you don't have a home church. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyinTN Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I'm moving in 2 days and have basically done everything myself--except I will not have to pack it, but I have done that before as well. Make a list starting today of the things that must get done today. Delegate and check to make sure everyone is doing their jobs. Can you do your canning after dinner and focus on the moving part during the day? Packing and cleaning can be done during the day hours. Prep dinner in the morning in the crockpot and make quick dinners so you can can your veggies at night. I feel your pain and you are not alone!!:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoyfulMama Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 For packing, only keep out what you would need for a 2-week vacation. Seriously. One set of sheets for each bed. One set of towels for each person. Label boxes VERY well. Don't be shy about asking for friends/family to come help pack/move. Be sure you are ready for them when they get there, and be sure to feed the help well. Pack one box for "ready to start school" with everything you would need to start school if need be without being fully operational. Give yourself the permission to start school light if need be - remember, you would have to lift the box. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 First of all deep breath in. Deep breath out. There is no sense stressing over this. Only a few things can happen. You need a plan for each one. The thing you need to do is start packing all non-essentials. Keep a tool box near by with things you may need - hammer, duct tape, small first aid kit, thumb tacks, stuff. Since you are moving across town not across the country you can be a bit less careful in packing. It it won't break just toss it in a box and move on. If you find a place, great! Move it and get settled. If you don't find a place, put your stuff in storage while you continue to look. Consider the time at your mom's as a vacation of sorts. Dedicate your days to specific tasks. You've got 12 days. Pack for 5, can for 5 and use the last two to finish packing and moving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alicia64 Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 Definitely look into getting a POD. Especially if you end up staying at your dad's. It's a huge moveable thing that can go to your dad's and sit there until you make your next move. So, that way, you don't have to move twice. Put long term things into the POD -- and have short term stuff that you put in your car to take to your dad's. (Like necessary stuffed animals kids can't live without, your summer clothes etc.) PODS will be delivered to your drive way -- you pack it up -- and then the company picks it up and takes it where you tell them to take it (3,000 miles away or 3 miles away it doesn't matter to the company). Hang in there (in times like these I hum "I Am Woman" song -- silly, but it gives me some strength), Alley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 ((hugs)) Wow! That's a lot to handle and I don't blame you for feeling overwhelmed. My first suggestion is that if you attend a church, call on some ladies there for help. Our church ladies do things like this all the time. There may also be men willing to sacrifice some evening time to help your dh move his tools and supplies. Additionally, there are probably several women who know how to can and if you were to give them the produce and supplies, they would can it for you. My mother and mother in law have done this for me in the past because they know that we too count on my canning, freezing, and dehydrating to offset our grocery bill in winter. Additionally, did your contract specify that you can return for the produce as harvest approaches or that the new owners had to pay extra for the garden? When my brother sold his house, his realtor made sure that they could go back and pick twice per week until the first freeze and that if the new owners wanted the produce from the garden, they either had to pay at closing for the fair market value of the food or they had to pay by the pound for anything they picked after closing. The new owners didn't want the garden and so they opted to let my brother and his wife come back and harvest as necessary. If you have a lot of stuff you do not want to take, call the salvation army. Many times if you can guarantee a certain amount of items, they will send a truck to your home to pick them up and that will save you a lot of time. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 We got a contract on our house on Thursday night, we close in two days (wednesday) Part of the agreement was for us to be out by August 1 (to give them time to get settled for school, which starts Aug.11 here) I have 14 days to pack up a house (1900 sq.ft), we don't have another apartment/house yet to move to. I am stressed and stressed some more. It has all happened so fast, that I can't wrap my head around what needs to be done first. We are looking for a place but they are far and few between. My husband is in construction so he has tons of tools, ladders, etc. We will probably put these at my dad's house who has lots of room for them. One option if we can't find a place quick enough is to stay with my parents until something suitable becomes available. That is a last resort because I really hate to move and then move again in a month or two. I need advice. And lots of it. We were scheduled to start our new school year Aug. 2. That's out of the question. I also have a huge garden and we can a lot. All of my tomatoes are coming in and they need to be put up. I can work on that 4-5 cans at a time in between packing and stuff. Please don't tell me not to can or put up food, because we need this for the winter (jobs are scarce in construction in the winter) but I honestly just want to cry at all that I need to do. I need a plan and I need your help. So if you've been in my situation, what do I need to do first? If you are a christian, pray that I have strength to make it lol! Thanks in advance! mckinsey :grouphug: and prayers. You CAN do this. My dh is in construction so I understand, it's like a whole house of tools. At least it feels that way when moving. 1. push back the start of school. Leave the window open. How old are your dc? Get them involved in the packing etc, that's a wonderful family project, btdt. 2. If possible rent a storage unit and start moving things out. If you're like us we have to move ourselves, so every little bit of action helps. Depending on proximity to your parents decide if you want a storage unit near YOUR house or theirs. We had to live with my parents once for a few months. we moved our stuff to a storage facility near the house we thought we were going to buy. The contract fell through before closing and we ended up with our parents and our stuff 20 miles away. Those were fun times. :tongue_smilie: 3. Start purging and making piles for donation. 4. Breathe! It will be okay. ETA: I like the POD idea, they weren't around when we moved last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supertechmom Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 Skip school and go get boxes form the store. Tons and tons. I hate spending money on boxes but if you have to move in a hurry and have nowhere to go (been there twice due to quick home sales) that's the ticket. I don't know the ages of your kids and how many but give each one 3 toy choices. Then pack everything else up but their bed and enough clothes that can be contained in SMALL suitcase. Label each box with a sharpie and a code. Make a clipboard or spiral notebook. (talking 10-30 minutes hereon this part) take the first page and write down each room that needs to be packed and anything special in it that needs special care when packing (pictures, plates, breakables too big to fit in a box). Once you do that, make your code for the boxes. Kitchen, Bathroom kids, bathroom guest, bathroom adult, mom's bedroom, kid 1 bedroom, and so on. As you pack up the rooms, mark them off. In your spiral notebook, put the number of boxes that were packed for each room and list where anything special might be. (little girl's pony collection is in Girl bedroom box 5, baby doll clothes in girl bedroom box 8 and so on.) Make sure your boxes are labeled with this info. This sounds like it is more work but it makes it way more simple when you are trying to sort through everything at the other place or have to store stuff for awhile. Especially if the kids are getting buggy about their stuff and really need that one thing you didn't think they needed. You can check the list and then locate that box. Start with the least used room FIRST. Box it. Be brutal. If you don't' love it, forgot you had it, or hated it and was hoping it would be broke by now, LET IT GO! Right into the trash. Just dump it! But once it is boxed, slap tape on it, mark it with your code for that room, mark your spiral notebook ( a pen on a string taped on the front of the notebook comes in handy) Make a packing supply basket that holds packing tape, pens, notebook, bubble wrap. Then you can just carry your supplies from room to room and not to hunt for them. Then just shove the box against the wall and stack up boxes for that room against a wall. In every room, leave only what is necessary for you to survive for a day or two. The bathroom, soap towel, waschloth. I've even packed the medicine cabinet and left the box open so we could still get into if we needed any medicine or bandaids. My order of packing up first is least used room, living room, my room, bathrooms, kitchen, kids rooms. The garage and shed gets regulated to hubby and usually winds up being the stuff that just needs to be shoved on the truck. Breathe! You can do this. Can the food after dinner. Tell the kids you are on a race. Count the number of rooms in the house and tell them you want to surprise daddy and have this and this packed when he gets home. Even a 2 year old can throw stuff in a box. Put the boxes in the room and point to the "stuff" and tell them to filll up those boxes with that. You can either pack bigger stuff in their room or go work on another room. I moved once in two days and I was amazed at just how much work a 3 year old can actually do. He derived great joy from putting stuff in the box and it kept him occupied and me sane. He packed all of his toys, all the tupper ware and plastic ware in the kitchen and all the videos and cds in the living room. Wasn't perfect but it was packed! :grouphug::grouphug: Short moves are a whirlwind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I agree with the others -- it's time to call in the troops! If I lived near you I would be happy to come do your canning while you pack. Got any neighbors or church ladies who you could call for help with this? I would start by choosing one room to be your "do not pack" room. In there you will actually pack the things you want to keep available - as suggested in another post, no more than 2 weeks of clothing, essential school items, one or two books or toys per child - so they won't get mixed up with the rest. Then, based on the fact that you've got 10 days, "divide" the rest of the house into 8 areas (including garage/outdoors - or maybe have dh be responsible for those areas separately) and plan on an area to completely pack each of those days. Everything into boxes, boxes taped up so kids cannot unpack because they "need" some obscure item. Getting things done on this schedule should give you 2 days at the end to tie up loose ends and actually get your items moved. Also, it will provide you with a sense of order and purpose through this stressful time. Craigslist is a good source for moving boxes, people who are transferred by moving companies often list their used boxes, often for free. You will just need some packing tape and paper to wrap glass items. Pack the kitchen last. Also, as you pack, have a give-away pile. Don't take along anything you know for sure you don't want at the new place. If this pile gets big, end each day with a drop-off at the local Goodwill. FWIW, with a short time window like this, you have to be very strict with the kids. Less is more! Give them a short list of what they can put in the do not pack room and do not deviate. You don't want to get bogged down with kids' flotsam and jetsom. If you can send your kids to a friend or relatives house while you pack, you will get things done faster, unless they are old enough to truly be helpful. You can do it! It will seem like a whirlwind when you look back in a month or so, and you will have survived! Two moves ago, dh had to go ahead for a job assignment 1500 miles away. I was 9 months pregnant with a high-risk pregnancy when he left. When we sold our house (literally, within 1 hour of listing it) I was faced with a high speed relo. Though we had packers, I had 3 kids and a newborn, and to top it off, we did not even know what state we'd be moving to - dh's employer had decided to do some "shuffling" and told him to hold off on buying a house, just to keep staying in hotels as he traveled his new region. :001_huh: It all worked out. Your move will work out, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 If you are part of a church, then call around and see if anyone in the church owns rent property or apartments. They might be able to have something ready for your family to move into or they may know someone who does. A house can be packed in a day or two if you have enough boxes. Relax, the worst that can happen is that you move everything into storage and live with your parents for a few weeks. You won't be homeless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ma23peas Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 1. Drop school...what's 2 weeks when you can make up the time!! 2. Days 1-2 What a blessing you can purge and start fresh! In 2 days time have cleared everything from all drawers/etc that you can...make 3 piles...KEEP, TOSS, SELL... 3. Have dh be on the lookout for free boxes...when we moved I found homes (now is a good time!) in my neighborhood who had families moving in...they were stacking their boxes on the side of the road...I asked if I could take them, they were happy that they were being reused! We had enough boxes to move a 3000 sq. foot home! for FREE! I had to buy packing tape, but had enough paper/boxes to do the job... 4. Days 3-4 Do your canning, ask friends to help and enjoy the fellowship..some can help prepare the tomatoes or another could be putting books into boxes, towels/sheets etc...just leave out one for everyone. 5. Days 5-6 Start moving boxes to your father's house/tools ladders etc...tackle one room at a time, this is the most time consuming b/c you don't realize how little it takes to fill up a truck! Just focus on lightening every room...your job is to box up and tape, his job is to move it...find a storage unit and just start moving there... Last days for last minute items...consider this a vacation, have the kids create a 'bag' of things they don't want packed up...favorite clothes (3 outfits) and just put those things in laundry baskets...easier to move...I bought 8 laundry baskets for this purpose...easy to carry wherever we needed. Hope this helps, I'll say prayers and be thankful your house sold, ours was on the market for 31 months while we had 2 mortgages...:) Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I did our last move with 10 days notice. My advice (echoing much of what was posted above)- *Get help. As much as you possibly can. *Purge ruthlessly. *Don't waste a lot of time tracking down free boxes. I always move with cast-offs from stores, but when we did our 10 day move, I had to suck it up and buy boxes. I just didn't have time to hunt the free ones down. *pull out your suitcases and pack them with a week's worth of clothes, pack everything else. *Make your dh pack the garage. It always takes way longer than it looks and he has the ability to purge more stuff than you. *Start in the bedrooms and end in the kitchen. *Get help!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AHASRADA Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I agree with the other posters who say to "make a plan" and then "call in the troops". Speaking from experience, though, I would call in the movers. It is highly unusual to be closing less than a week after accepting an offer. They are giving you an unreasonably short time to get packed and moved out in order to make their lives more comfortable (getting settled before school). I would work in some provision in the price or closing costs to have them reimburse you for the cost of "help" in order for you to be moved out as per their schedule. This seems totally reasonable to me. Once, and only once, we moved as part of a relocation package, and the movers packed every last one of our belonging before loading them on the truck! Of course, they weren't labeled as clearly as I would have liked, but they were packed extremely well, since they had all the boxes and packing materials at their disposal. If you are able to use such a service, I would spend my time organizing items that you want packed together into "zones" so they will indeed end up together. Beyond that, I agree that you should pack as if you are going on vacation, as in enough clothes, games, books, etc. for a couple of weeks. Set those items aside for your "homeless" period, and put everything else in storage, either a POD or otherwise. Try to put items that you may end up needing (like school books, toys) into storage last (so they are easy to access) in case you end up in transition longer than you expected. And don't forget important papers, phone numbers, etc. that you will need to have on hand. I hope you can find some "troops" to help you with this, but being organized and having a clear plan of all that needs to be done will be your lifesaver! Sorry you are going through this... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I did our last move in 2 weeks. We were moving 700 miles away to a different state and living in a Residence Inn ( everything went into storage) while we house hunted. We were homeschooling at the time, so we just quit school and picked it up again after we settled in the hotel. I invited my family over and cleaned out the freezer and gave away the rest. I started with walls (photos, book shelves, etc) then linen closets, sewing room things like that. Mostly I just wanted to offer support as you have received a lot of really great ideas. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 (edited) You've gotten lots of good advice. I like the idea of packing during the day and canning at night. I wouldn't worry at all about delaying the start of school for your children as they're young and it's easy enough to make up for lost time later. You can also get them some of the comprehensive curriculum work books that are very inexpensive and will fill their time without too much input from you. Congratulations on the sale of your house!!!! :) It's amazing what you can do when you have to. ;) You'll do just fine. First thing I'd do is get as many boxes as you can and newspapers for packing. You can also buy packing paper - which is perfectly clean and doesn't have any print - from U-haul or other sources. I'd recommend getting some as it will save time on washing the kitchen items. Then, just do one room at a time. Pack things you want to save, but won't need for the next six months or so and label them well. Anything you want to get rid of, pack that separately. Honestly, a yard sale take a lot of time and work. I'd think about having that at your dad's house or at your own after your move. Maybe you can ask your husband to move the garage stuff to your dad's and then you'll have that clear as a staging area for the boxes. PODs are great, but they aren't cheap. If your dad has room, try to put as much there as you can, and put the rest in a storage area. Your husband probably just needs another pair of hands to help move the major furniture. If there's any furniture you won't want in your next house, offer it to the buyers for low cost - you can do the same with appliances if they weren't included with the house. As far as canning, if you really don't have the time, maybe you can ask the sellers if you'd be able to come back to harvest from the garden, and say you'd be happy to share some. But if the tomatoes are coming in, I know it's not possible to wait. I would definitely ask friends and people from church for help. If you have the option of staying at your dad's, I think this would be a good plan as you don't have much time. Look at it as a temporary visit, and work on finding another permanent home, or a rental while you are there. I think it would take up too much of your time to do that at the same time as packing up your house. Also, ask your children to each pack the things - one or two boxes each - that they really want to make sure will be with them at all times - and label them well! You can leave these boxes open so they can take things in and out as they need to over the next two weeks. I also like the idea of packing as though going on a two week vacation - this could be used for the time you're at your dad's, and the rest can be unpacked when you find a longer term solution. I'd also start packing the rooms which are used the least - dining room, living room, school room, then to the bedrooms and finishing up with the kitchen. Use sturdy boxes - liquor store boxes are great! - and pile them high, and they will take up little room. They can be stored in the room they came from, or in the garage, until you're ready to move. If your husband can take any time off, that would be a big plus!!! :) I'll be keeping you and your family in my prayers. Edited July 19, 2010 by Teachin'Mine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisOR Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 (edited) We got a contract on our house on Thursday night, we close in two days (wednesday) Part of the agreement was for us to be out by August 1 (to give them time to get settled for school, which starts Aug.11 here) I have 14 days to pack up a house (1900 sq.ft), we don't have another apartment/house yet to move to. I am stressed and stressed some more. It has all happened so fast, that I can't wrap my head around what needs to be done first. We are looking for a place but they are far and few between. My husband is in construction so he has tons of tools, ladders, etc. We will probably put these at my dad's house who has lots of room for them. One option if we can't find a place quick enough is to stay with my parents until something suitable becomes available. That is a last resort because I really hate to move and then move again in a month or two. I need advice. And lots of it. We were scheduled to start our new school year Aug. 2. That's out of the question. I also have a huge garden and we can a lot. All of my tomatoes are coming in and they need to be put up. I can work on that 4-5 cans at a time in between packing and stuff. Please don't tell me not to can or put up food, because we need this for the winter (jobs are scarce in construction in the winter) but I honestly just want to cry at all that I need to do. I need a plan and I need your help. So if you've been in my situation, what do I need to do first? If you are a christian, pray that I have strength to make it lol! Thanks in advance! mckinsey Congrats on the sale! First, most people I know do not really start "moving" until 2 weeks prior anyway. The end is always a frantic push, no matter how long the closing period was. You can do it! Secondly, if you don't want to move everything to your parents' house, get a short-term storage unit. Once its moved there, moving it out will be easier than actually moving out of a house since its all in once place and packed up. Finally, about your food storage project -- you have a good plan to just keep it going between moving tasks. You could freeze anything and can it later too. ETA: I just read everyone else's replies to purge ruthlessly. I do agree ... eventually ... if its too stressful for you right now to get rid of things hastily, just pack it all quickly and purge upon unpacking. That just depends on your personality though. ;) Edited July 19, 2010 by ChrisOR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lara in Colo Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I don't know if they have these where you are but I really like the movable storage units. http://www.pods.com/?eadid=campaign::vantage|ownership::corporate|phone::8776137637|kid::GOG0035406243 You can fill as you go, store it and they will deliver it to your new place (you only have to unpack the truck once not twice) I like the idea that you can empty the house as you go and aren't constantly looking for a place to put the packed stuff. I cannot function in chaos. Get help where you can, esp babysitting, (I can work 7 times faster without 'help') If I were you, and I could, I would send the children to a grandparents for the entire time and do the whole thing alone (except for moving heavy things) For me, even well intentioned people get in the way and I would rather just do the packing and canning alone--but that's just me. Lara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mafi39 Posted July 19, 2010 Author Share Posted July 19, 2010 Thanks everyone for the awesome advice. I like the idea of doing one room a day. That makes it seem manageable to me. I can not put up harvest at nights this week. We have vbs at church and I am in charge of gym activities. So if I do any canning this week it has to be during the day. My children are 6,7 boy/girl so while they are some help, they also get in the way. My son thinks if I am packing we are moving that day, lol! I like the idea of packing a suitcase with a week of clothes in it. I can do that easily as I am caught up on laundry! The good thing about vbs is I don't have to cook dinner this week as we have meals at church before it starts. I will call on a few church ladies to help me pack up as I get closer to Aug. 1. My husband will be totally responsible for the garage and his tools. He knows what he needs and uses, I have no clue. My mother works at Kroger so she can get me tons of boxes for free! I need to just get packing tape and newspapers. Hiring a moving company is out of the question, but I have lots of friends and family that can help. I will pack up math and reading only for beginning school and we will delay by a few weeks probably so we can get settled first. I feel more in control now as I have read the responses and more able to do this!!! Thanks so much:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomLovesClassics Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 We once found ourselves having to move immediatly. We were renting a house, and the owner wanted to move back into the house. We wanted to purchase a house and stop renting. We found a house we adored, but it had big problems attached. The house was part of an estate, it had been on the market for a while. The owners agreed to let us move into this house, so we did. The house appraised for less than the asking price. If the owners would have lowered the price, we could have got the house, but hey refused to budge. They refused to grasp the concept a bank would not loan $20,000 more than the house was worth. One of the siblings came over the morning after Christmas telling us to get out immediatly. We were so embarassed by this, not to mention heartbroken. My husband had already spent a week reparing walls in two rooms, and painted them. The house needed major work. I literely packed in a day, non-stop. We put everything but a few changes of clothes into storage. We found a cheap motel that was in a small non dangerous location. We lived in a motel for 2 months with our kids and 2 cats until we found another house to rent. While this was not ideal it was the best we could do at that time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahousefullofjs Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 We are only considering a move and just the idea of it seems overwhelming to me. Please know that you are in my prayers. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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