Changes in life, such as new work opportunities or the chance to study at a great university, sometimes require you to move to a new place. Although few might move to another country, moving within your own country has become increasingly common, and the reasons may vary for each family or individual. And among all the world’s populations, Australians are amongst the most mobile as 43 percent of Aussies aged 15 and above have moved in the last five years, and 85 percent chose to stay within the same state. Among the cities of Australia, the most common internal migrations are of people moving away from Sydney.
8 Tips for Moving Homes With a Baby Onboard
Moving is an extremely strenuous task whether you’re moving within your state, to a new state, or to a new country altogether. This is even truer for families with toddlers since packing, moving, and unpacking can become even more difficult when you’ve got a baby’s tantrums to handle. So if you have little kids and are planning to move any time soon, here are a few tips for Moving Homes With a Baby Onboard.
Hire Professional Help
You may think that you can do it all yourself or enlist your family members and friends to help. However, your friends and family might bail at the last moment for multiple reasons, or you may run out of packing boxes. Any unforeseen circumstances can occur, leaving you in a very stressful situation. If you’re moving from Sydney or within the city, avoid all this hassle by visiting https://www.optimove.com.au/removalists-sydney/ and hiring professional movers.
They will take care of everything for you, leaving you free to ensure your little one feels comfortable and safe during the move.
Prepare Your Child for the Move
It may sound unusual, but toddlers can understand much more than we think. A move will disrupt your child’s routine, and once they find themselves in a new place without prior warning, they might not feel at home. This may lead to crying and tantrums due to their stress. To avoid this, explain the moving procedure to them in simple terms if they are old enough to understand you. Make it sound exciting and fun, so they look forward to it and are not caught by surprise.
Pack for Your Child
Your child’s non-essentials can be packed and moved in the moving truck, but you will need to pack some essentials separately and keep them with you during the move. These will include diapers, some clothing items, pajamas, pacifiers, formula, food, snacks, a bottle, and a sippy cup. If they have a favorite toy or blanket, keep it with the essentials to help calm them during the trip. Most importantly, don’t forget the car seat.
Ensure Their Safety When Packing
When packing, keep dangerous objects like scissors, furniture with sharp edges, and cleaning supplies away from your baby. Try to get most of your initial packing done during your baby’s nap time or while they are at daycare, or with a babysitter. If they are present while you’re packing, create a safe area for them to play, like a playpen, so they don’t get in the way and hurt themselves.
Try to Maintain Your Baby’s Routine
If your baby is well-rested, they will be less likely to cry or throw tantrums. So it is important to get most of your packing done while they are asleep. The actual move should also be scheduled when the baby is awake to cause minimum disruption to their routine. This will make the transition go smoothly for you and your baby.
Arrange a Sitter for the Move
Parents of young children can use all the help they can get, especially when they are in the middle of a move. This is why hiring a babysitter or getting a family member to watch over your child while you move out of your house is a great idea. It is even better if they can take the baby off-site, away from all the chaos and commotion that comes with moving. Something even better would be to arrange childcare for both ends of your move, so you can get most of the heavy work done before you bring your baby to their new home.
Baby Proof the New House
Baby proofing is essential to avoid small or serious home injuries to your child. While your old house was baby-proofed, you might delay in baby-proofing your new home because you’re so busy. However, the safety and health of your child are the most important thing in the world. So get to this task as soon as possible. Crawl on your hands and knees to ascertain the steps you need to take to ensure your new home is safe for your child. Block all stairways with safety gates, put child-resistant locks on the lower cabinets and drawers, cover electrical outlets, and anchor your heavy furniture to the walls.
Unpack and Set Up the Baby’s Space First
Your new home may represent an exciting and joyous moment in your life, but it will be an entirely alien environment for your child. Set up their nursery or bedroom first to make them more comfortable and help them settle in their new home much faster. The familiar furniture and décor will help them feel at home. This will also provide a safe space where your baby can play and sleep while you’re unpacking and setting up your new home.
Moving Homes With a Baby Onboard
Regardless of why you’re moving and how excited you are to start a new chapter of your life, moving to a new house can be very stressful and tiring, even more so for parents of toddlers. The best thing you can do to make this task less stressful is to hire professional movers who will do most of your hard work for you while you take care of your baby. Other than that, follow all the tips mentioned above, and hopefully, your move will go smoothly, even with a baby onboard! Good luck with your new home and an amazing new life.