Relocation is a big deal, especially when you are moving with a family that includes kids. Even if the move is across the town, moving can take a toll over you as well as your kids. You need to go through a lot of stress while packing your belongings, moving to the new place with all the inventory, and then sorting out your belongings and life. The complete household system changes and you have to make peace with it. As you struggle you must know that the little bundle of joys finds it even more troublesome.
The best moving companies in the network of MovingApt, state that relocation affects the kids in a different manner. They lose friends, they are introduced to a completely new environment and they have to restart their life. The changes can make children react in different ways. While some may become clingy and cranky, others may feel sad and alone.
Child health care experts claim that this is a very crucial time in a kid’s life and it is really important that the parents attend to the changing needs of their child. So, how have you planned to make the move easy for your family? Well, in this post, we have compiled a few tips that would help you plan and execute a successful while keeping your family along:
As you announce the move
When you first make the moving announcement, stay prepared that your child will react. They can be angry with you or extremely sad to hear the news. Because it was you who thought of moving in the first place and must be excited about it, your child did not initiate the process and probably be worried about the outcome of the decision for her life.
You need to be very patient when dealing with such situations. You need to reassure your child but make sure you do not talk your child out of her feelings. If your child is not mature enough to know what a move is, it is important that you help her realize how her life will be changing soon.
Prepare your children but first prepare yourself
You must be too invested in the moving process and often this means you are not able to take proper rest. Before you become too engrossed with the move, make sure you have a time table, sleep enough to feel rested. If you do not feel at peace with your body and mind, you won’t be able to patiently handle your child at their worst. The child may become frustrated and stressed during the moving process. If you do not keep yourself composed, you can never help them overcome the change.
Explain your child, what to expect
It’s important that the child knows what they are going to experience. Helping them know what to expect will be a great help. If possible, take your child for a visit to the new place. Besides visiting the house, exploring the town, the neighborhood and some kid friendly places around this will help you child think positively about the place.
Be creative
Why not you make the moving process fun and memorable for the kids. Ask your child to take photos of the moving process. They can click a picture of you pacing with your partner, their stuff before it is packed, and then again when it is packed. This way, the child will have a collection of photographs that he/she can revisit anytime in the future. Even better if they paste these photos on a scrapbook and add taglines to it.
Let them grieve
If your child is feeling sad about leaving a place and finding it tough to say goodbye to everything they have ever known, it is good for them. Let the child grieve as it will help them overcome the pain. They will find it easier to adjust if they do not have anything to feel sad about.
However, you must help them grieve healthily. For this you must:
- Take them to their friend’s house for saying good bye and exchanging contact details.
- Go to your child’s favorite places in the town and let them say goodbye, take pictures and make some last memories.
- Let the kids plan an outing where they can visit their favorite places in town.
Let your child control the process
It is important that you let the child take charge of the moving process, whenever and whatever way they can. Some of the ways you can let the child control the move include:
- Let them take the minor decisions including the color of the paint in her room, the way to organize furniture, how to decorate the room and more.
- Decluttering has been preached as one of the best ways to minimize your moving size but if your child does not want to give away her belongings, do not force her.
- Give the assurance to your child that all her belongings will be safely transported to the new house and also ensure that the same happens.
- Ask the child to make a box of her own. This box must have her most important things that they want to take in the car with you.
- If you have mature kids, let them be the navigator under your supervision.
Do not play with their schedule
No matter what you do, try to keep the schedule of your child unchanged. The child is already going through a lot of changes and let us not add any more. Give them time to adjust while they lead their life in their old schedule.
Your child might be behaving in a different way and it is completely acceptable. You are asking the child to have a major change in life and it is her right to feel disturbed. However, to ensure that the change does not cost her big, you must help her adjust to the moving requirements. As you help your child adjust and prepare them for the move, make sure you too are ready for the big change. You ensure the first day after the move is easy going, pack a bag of essentials for you and the family. The moving process is tough but with the right management, it can be made easier for you as well as the children in the family.
