Managing Your Move Without Overloading Yourself

Three Time Management Strategies To Get Everything Done Without Going Insane Moving is an exciting time.  It means the start of a new chapter in your life.  But it can also be a time of unparalleled stress and anxiety.  With all the pressures of life, adding a major disruption like moving can be too much. But it does not have to be overwhelming.  There are simple things you can do each day to make sure your move goes smoothly and you keep your sanity.  So read through the three steps below and find the time management strategies that could keep you from the looney bin:   Time Management Strategies For Moving: Create a Master List: Our brains are poor task lists.  We may tell ourselves that we need to remember to do something - but we never remember when we should do it and remember when it is impossible to fulfill the task.  But a master task list, on the other hand, is the perfect place to get everything out of your brain and into one spot that you can regu ... Read the rest of entry »

How To Help A Hoarder When The Hoarder Is Your Aging Parent

Many times adult children of aging parents are faced with the task of paring down their parents belongings when they transition out of their homes into assisted living facilities.  This is an emotional task - but it is made all the worse then one or both parents are hoarders. The parents tenaciously cling to items of little value or use, making the process difficult, stressful, and straining on relationships. For those that do not know, hoarding is the accumulation of things out of a compulsive need to acquire items either through purchase or scavenging.  For those that suffer from it, each item has immense value and most find it difficult to part with anything.  For the average person, most of the items are junk or useless - thus making the job of downsizing almost impossible. How To Help A Hoarder - Understand it is a disease The word "disease" is bandied about and for most it has lost its import.  But hoarding is a mental disorder that is as powerful as an addiction.  Just t ... Read the rest of entry »

The Pineapple Express and Northwest Moving: How To Stay Dry During Your Move

Winters in the Northwest can be just as wet as they are cold.  But it looks like we will be having the Pineapple Express coming to town this winter.  This means the warm, wet air from Hawaii will be visiting us for Christmas.  And while most want to bring a little back while visiting paradise - I don't think this is what they had in mind. The Pineapple Express normally means a wetter, warmer winter.  And for those moving, this means a greater risk of items getting wet and damaged in a move.  It is hard enough to get your belongings to your new place.  But add slick roads, mud puddles, and downpours - and you have a recipe for disaster.  Fortunately, professional movers have a few tricks to keep your furniture dry and safe, even in the worst conditions. Beating the Pineapple Express: Clear the decks:  When it comes to your driveway, you want it as clear as possible.  The closer the movers can park their truck to your home the better.  Preferably, the mov ... Read the rest of entry »

How To Avoid Nuisance Neighbors When Purchasing A House

Moving to get away from nuisance neighbors is more common than you might think.  With all insane bass music, loud cars, obsessive power tool use, and over the top road noise, some modern neighborhoods have turned into a war zone.  And if you are thinking about moving because of the people around you, the last thing you want to do is to move next to a new set of problem people.  A home is a sanctuary.  It is a place you go to get away from the rest of the world and relax with your loved ones.  But a quiet home is determined, in large part, by the people you live by.  And that is why it is important to do a little investigative work before you purchase.  Use the tips below to help you put a game plan together to make sure the next place you call home is a quiet one: It is time for a stakeout:  Nothing beats first hand experience.  Yes, you could look through listings and look at only the homes that have "quiet neighborhood" in the descriptions, but "quiet" is ... Read the rest of entry »

How To Find A Handyman That Is Honest And Ethical In Three Easy Steps

One of the hardest things to do when selling a home is the repair list.  With our busy lives, selling a house is hectic enough, but adding a to-do list of repairs can be overwhelming.  That is why many home owners seek out the services of a professional handyman. But that opens up a whole new can of worms.  Having a person work around your home can be nerve racking. Are they honest? Will they steal from you?  Will they do the work to your satisfaction?  If you hire a bad apple, it could cost you more than just a days wages. So below are three easy ways to narrow down your list of candidates to find a handyman that is honest, ethical, and reliable: How To Find A Handyman That Is Right For You: The BBB:  The Better Business Bureau has been around for more than a hundred years and is a free service to the consumer.  They compile both good and bad reports of businesses in your area.  They monitor complaints as well as resolution.  So you can get a pretty go ... Read the rest of entry »

Three Ways To Stay Cool Without Air Conditioning

Trying to stay cool without air conditioning can be easier said than done while moving.  But when you are in the middle of the summer, you must do all you can to beat the heat.  Yet many of us in Washington State do not have air conditioning.  Since we only use the A/C 2 to 3 months out of the year, we tend to put it on the end of the "to do" list.  And that seems like a good idea, until the 90 degree days hit and it is time to move. But here are some great tips to keep you house as cool as possible on hot days.  Use these tips together and you will feel the difference. Three Great Tips To Stay Cool Without Air Conditioning: Close all your shades One of the best and easiest things you can do is to keep the sun out as much as possible.  Make sure that if you have both venetian blinds and regular curtains, close them both.  The more you can block out the sun, the more heat you will keep out.  It may be a little darker inside, but you will keep the house considerab ... Read the rest of entry »

Eco-Friendly Moving - Moving To Reduce Your Footprint

Many times moving can seemed rushed, unorganized, and stressful.  We want to do things right, but we have little time.  And with little time comes little time to think things out. And eco-friendly moving can seem next to impossible.  We want to do right buy the earth, but with all the boxes, paper, shrink wrap, and gas - we can feel like we are consuming like a 19th century coal burning industrialist. The good news is, there are simple things that you can do to do a great job of eco-friendly moving.  Follow the steps below and not only will you help save the earth, but you will save money as well. Four Tips For Eco-Friendly Moving: Give away unwanted items - You will be surprised at how much stuff you accumulate.  As you start to pack, create three piles in each room you go through: Give Away, Throw Away, and Keep.  Use the "one year rule:" if you have not used it in one year, it can probably be given or thrown away.  There are many charitable donation sites in your a ... Read the rest of entry »

Moving In Hot Weather - Keeping Your Cool On Hot Days

Moving in hot weather, no one really likes to do it.  But many times, it cannot be helped.  The only thing we can do is make sure that we keep our cool as we move into our new home.  So follow along and learn how you can keep your cool and get the job done. Moving in hot weather: Twelve Ways To Last All Day: Get an early jump on the day - from 1pm to 6pm is the hottest part of the day.  So getting an early start will mean that you will avoid working at the hottest parts.   Drink plenty of water - do not wait until you are thirsty.  If you wait till then, you have waited too long.  On a normal day, the average human body will loose a gallon of water due to breathing, using the restroom, and sweating.  So on a hot day on the move - you will loose a lot more. Avoid caffeinated drinks - caffeine is a diuretic.  It naturally speeds up the rate of urination, which can leave you dehydrated.  So if you are to drink caffeine, drink it in the morning - but th ... Read the rest of entry »

Moving While Pregnant? Follow These Three Tips

There is so much joy and stress that are bound up in being pregnant.  There is so much to get ready for.  But planning a move on top of all that can really put a lot of strain on an expectant mother.  We all know that staying calm and learning to relax is the best medicine for you and your baby.  Yet moving while pregnant can be next to impossible - if you do not have a plan. Here are three things you can do to keep yourself on task and calm while you are moving: Moving while pregnant: the three do's Plan early:  The more you make your task list the boss, the less you have to think about what you have to do.  But this means that you will have to sit down and plan all the steps of your move. What utilities need to be turned off and when What utilities will need to be turned on at the new place and when Are you going to pack or will your movers pack for you Will you have the movers move everything or just furniture When will everything need to be p ... Read the rest of entry »

How To Create A Simple Yet Effective Move Task Organizer

Moving is a stressful time.  With all the things you have to remember, get done, transfer over, and coordinate - no wonder people dread doing it.  And truth be told, there is no easy way to do it.  But for those that have been in the business a while, we have seen some tricks that have helped the average person save time and their sanity. The trick I am about to share with you today is one of the best I have seen.  It is an easy way to take all of the stress out of your brain and put it in a place that you can manage it, one task at a time.  And the good news is, it is low tech and costs about $10 to create. The Task Organizer: Let's face it, getting organized is hard.  We all want to stay on top of the demands of our life - but moving can be overwhelming.  What you need is a system that gets 100% of your tasks out of your brain and into a place that you can schedule them and take care of them as you have the energy.  Welcome to the task organizer.  This is ... Read the rest of entry »