Let's be honest - moving isn't an easy task. In fact, calling it challenging will also be an understatement. This is especially true when you have kids around. It can become messier and more difficult. However, if you know how to manage to move with kids, you can make it an adventure for them.
For kids, anything presented playfully and creatively can become fun. So before you think about moving as a hectic job with kids, consider the following top seven tips on how you can make moving fun for your kids as well as a little easier for yourself.
1. Pack Together
To start with, packing and boxing things up is the most demanding and tiring tasks of all. But if you have your kids actively participating in packing with you, this task could become a lot easier and fun. If you have big kids, you can give them their own boxes to place their stuff. Also, give them a few stickers, decorative tapes, markers, and other craft supplies so they can decorate their own boxes.
Allow them to tape the boxes too. Most kids enjoy this task. You can do the initial run of taping and then leave this task to your kids. Let them put an interesting final touch. This will not only keep them involved but happily busy.
For younger kids, you can just give them their empty boxes and let them figure out what to do while you quickly get done with packing.
2. Take their help for cleaning
To minimize the workload of cleaning the house once you have packed, you can seek assistance from your own little helpers. Your kids can have fun helping with:
· Cleaning lower cabinets
· Cleaning or washing low windows
· Wiping off baseboards
Give your kids a reason to become a helping hand. Hide little surprises for them to find when they start a certain task. It could be their favorite candies, stickers, or notes with riddles. Just be creative and do whatever your kids like more.
3. Introduce cardboard play
If you do this too seriously, your kids will find it boring and may start nagging you - making the moving task even more difficult and time-consuming. You can introduce an imaginative cardboard play where they can use the extra boxes to play in.
Since you will be having a lot of empty space in your house, they can use it to build a fort and keep themselves busy with indoor games.
4. Use the space around the house to keep them entertained
With all their belongings and toys packed, it can become very boring for the kids to participate in the moving process. Of course, they need some sort of entertainment. To create a win-win situation, play some nice, rocking music and use the empty space as a stage for your little ones to perform.
While you can enjoy some of it as an audience, you can use the music to keep yourself going too. The music will keep you on your foot so you can quickly get done with all the packing while the kids are busy enjoying it.
5. Indoor camping
Just like packing, unpacking can be a task too. Kids usually feel too tired to do anything once they move to a new space. To make unpacking fun, think about setting up a tent in your new living room instead of setting everyone's bedroom right away.
An indoor camping experience can be really fun for a family. It will also save you from lots of unpacking. The kids are surely going to love it.
6. Let them take charge
Keeping their age in mind, you can give them the authority to think about setting up their own rooms. Don't allow them to set everything up by themselves but do ask for their suggestions.
Ask your kids to create a plan for how they think their new room should look like. Sit together and discuss. Try to incorporate their ideas when you are actually setting it up for a touch of motivation.
7. Decorate together
Not only for their room, but you can also ask for their suggestions for decorating your new home. For creative and crafty kids, this could be their chance to show their talent.
This is a great way to involve your kids in setting up your new home. If you really want to become experimental with this - again, keeping their age factor in mind - dedicate them a wall and hand them a brush and some paints and see what they make out of it.
Final Word
Moving can be frustrating for kids if you put it that way. Following a moving checklist, however, can make a lot of difference to how your kids enjoy this stressful transition. It's not always easy to move with kids but if you involve them in the process, it will not only keep them busy but also help them adjust to the change quickly.
So use these tips for a hassle-free move!
Author Bio:
Jenny Harrison is a passionate technology and lifestyle blogger. She loves to get engaged with the readers who are seeking for home, lifestyle and tech related information on the internet. She is a featured blogger at various high authority blogs and magazines in which she shared her research and experience with the vast online community. Follow her on twitter @MJennyHarrison for more updates.
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