Preparing Your Kids When Moving to a New Home

Moving homes can elicit a mixture of emotions. New chapters are always exciting. Most people move because of a better opportunity elsewhere. This reason helps to make the move easier to accept. But, changing locations can also be scary. Altering routines, acclimating, and building connections take time to happen.

The process of moving can run high on stress. The most sensible thing to do to mitigate any anxiety or hassle is to plan every step well. Getting the best team of professional movers can also relieve you of most of the burden of moving. But, if you have children, there is another aspect that you should not neglect. You should prepare your kids for this life-changing event. Here are some ideas you could try.

Inform Them as Early as Possible

Honor your kids’ emotions by letting them know of the move as soon as possible. Do not fall to the notion that they are only kids and should not have involvement in life-changing events. Explain to them in ways that they can understand why there is a need to move. You can help them process their emotions about this big news.

Letting them know early will help them to prepare themselves. Your home is their safe place. It is a big thing to understand that they have to get uprooted in their sanctuary. Assure them that even if you change homes, the security is not in the place alone but with their family.

Incorporate Art to Help Them Cope

Art helps people, even children, to come to terms with things. You can use this medium to help your kids process the change. You can encourage and assist your child to make two scrapbooks. One contains all their favorite things and memories in your old home. You may even include notes from their friends.

For the other scrapbook, help your child envision what they want to do in the new place. On the day of the move, you can give them a camera to help document the process. They can look at this scrapbook and realize that moving is not a bad idea, after all. Having these two scrapbooks alongside each other will help them through the transition.

Introduce the New Place to Them

Stir their excitement with the location of your new home. If it is far from your old one, you can first point it out on a map. Then you can browse together some pictures and attractions found in the new place. This will make them look forward to new experiences they can have once you get there.

In one of your visits before the move, you can let your children come to see the house and the vicinity. They will have a feel of being in the new place even before the actual move. You can stop by and treat them to a restaurant or ice cream parlor in the new place. This will help them see the new place as a fun place.

Immerse Them in the Preparations

It may be convenient if the packing and preparation would be an exclusive adult thing. But, your child may feel ignored or unimportant if they see their parents busy with things. Help them see the moving experience as a positive one. You can do this by including them in the activities before and on the day of the move. Give them a box or boxes where they can pack their favorite stuff. Make them man the garage sale for items that you no longer need.

When preparing your new home, you may ask their ideas about paint color or small decor for their room. You can even plan together for what they want to put in other rooms or areas of your new home. For example, they may want to have a swing chair on the porch. If you can, honor these requests to make them feel heard.

Include Familiar Elements in the New Environment

Being in a new place is a scary experience for children. Surrounding them with familiar things will help them feel at ease. The first room that you should unpack is your child’s room. Let them have a sense of the old home. When they see their old bed or favorite toys, they will feel comforted.

Familiarity does not end with items alone. Stick with the routines that you have in your old home. It may be bedtime routines or a Friday pizza and movie night. Make the transition seamless for the kids by not disrupting things so much.

Even with all these techniques to help your child cope, be ready for emotional outbursts. Let them process their emotions with this monumental change. Support them until they learn to settle down in your new home Fair price moving Morgantown