Five Things I’ve Learned About Moving

Hi there! I’ve been knee-deep lately in boxes, painters, window-cleaners, storage rooms, and dust. It’s been a bit nutty here, with all the moving stuff going on. Here are five things I’ve learned about moving, from my experience so far:

1. Moving is like childbirth or getting really drunk.

And what do those things have in common?

They are events in one’s life where one might forget the pain caused the first time and still do it again. Many of my friends and I have discussed how you have a sense of amnesia about childbirth so that it doesn’t seem so painful in retrospect. You forget that part and have another kid anyway.

Or, hypothetically, one time you were a bit, ahem, over-served and proclaimed, “I am never drinking again.” Does that prevent you from having another adult beverage ever? Not usually.

That’s what moving is for me.

After we moved into this house, I said I was never moving again. And yet here I am, moving again. It happens. You forget how horrible moving was the first time and you sign up to do it again because you fall in love with a beautiful home.

2. Prepping your home for moving is like breaking up with your home.

Before we put our house on the market, our agent (who is awesome, by the way) suggested we paint pretty much every room in our home “Accessible Beige” by Sherwin Williams. It’s a great color, but, let’s face it, I’m not an Accessible Beige kind of girl. I’m more this:

Paint color: Sesame from Benjamin Moore

Or this:

So that’s why I say prepping your house for sale is like breaking up with your home. The new paint has covered up these projects – which were projects I planned and did – so that now it looks like they never happened.

There was a movie – can’t remember which one – where the guy breaks up with the girl and the girl then cleans her bathroom with his old t-shirt and throws it out. That’s kind of what this feels like. The old comfy t-shirt has been thrown out and replaced by beige. I broke up with my house.

3. Get ready for disruption a go-go.

Summer is usually a time when we don’t follow too much of a rigid schedule. But throw moving into the mix and it’s chaos.

I’ve had days where I’ve spent the day packing or putting stuff in storage and all of a sudden it’s 6 PM and there is nothing for dinner. Let’s eat out! Every night? Right. It becomes unsettling.

Plus, when your house is on the market, everything has to be kept clean and straight. That’s an unusual state in our home. My kids have been troopers about this, but it’s a challenge every day to remember to make beds and put everything away.

4. GET AN INSPECTION.

On my Facebook page, I asked what’s the most important advice you have about home inspections.  Overwhelmingly, the answer was, “GET ONE.”

I couldn’t agree more. The inspection for the house we’re about to own helped us understand what has been done in the house and what still lingers. The inspection allows you to understand your home’s inner workings and guts, and that’s important. It should uncover whether there’s asbestos or radon or anything else that could be dangerous. It’s really important.

5. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

For all the chaos and disruption, there have been beautiful moments, too. Like when my son told me that, rather than moving his stuffed animals to the new house, he wanted to donate them to the children’s hospital. Or the good conversations my husband and I had while I scrubbed the grout in the bathroom. Or thinking about all the fun memories we’ve made here and ones we will make in the new home.

And, at the end of the day, you end up in a home you love. So it’s all good.