Big life changes usually come with a new house. When you get engaged, you may move in with your new fiancé. When you get married, you move from the cosy, one bedroom apartment to a house with extra space for a growing family. When you get pregnant with another baby, you need more space – thus, a new house!
Moving is one of life’s stressful events, but moving whilst carrying the next addition to the family can be even more stressful. Add in hormones and aching hips to a house move and you’ve got yourself a recipe for tears. There are ways, however, that you can keep your blood pressure levels within normal range and not overly stress yourself out. One of the benefits of moving while pregnant? You get to do all the organising and none of the heavy lifting. Handy, huh?
Get Organized. The last-minute scramble of packing that you did when you moved into your first home together was fine back then, but now you have a toddler and a bump to think about. Baby brain is a very real thing and so being organised is so important. Research your chosen moving companies thoroughly and get to know the local self-storage centres and their costs. You’ll need them!
Start Early. Okay, so packing the kitchen two months before you go may feel strange, but you’ll be thankful for it later. Keep only the essentials in the cupboards. If you’re not going to be using the panini press or the soup maker, wrap them in bubble wrap and box them away. There’s no reason you can’t start packing the non-essential household items as early as possible to make things easier for you when the day comes. Gradual packing also means that you have less to do on moving day besides being a cruise director.
Break Out The Labels. We mentioned pregnancy brain earlier, and you can read more about the effects of that online here, but if you don’t label the boxes appropriately you’re going to forget what’s what. Make concise labels room by room, and add a list on paper in the inside of the box so you can learn what’s in there at a glance.
Think Ahead. You’re pregnant and you’ll be needing a doctor so if you are moving to a place you need to change yours, do this early. The day you move, call in to the new practice and make an appointment. Make the contact with them a few weeks before the move so they can be prepared for a new arrival.
Accept All Help. Don’t try and do things yourself. If you have friends and family offering to help you pack, or want to take your other children off your hands while you do it, then let them help you. call in a cleaning company to do the house clean when you move, so that you’re not on your hands and knees scrubbing floors while heavily pregnant.
All of these tips can make your move smoother for all of you while you’re carrying your own precious cargo. Be smart about things and you’ll be able to enjoy your brand new house – along with all the unpacking!