moving Tips- Jan. 2010

30 New Year Tips For Moving On...

1. Eat right
2. Exercise
3. Take vitamins
   
4. Treat yourself to a double-dip ice-cream cone!
5. Read that book you always wanted to but never took the time for.
6. Splurge and get a manicure - or pedicure - or both.
   
7. Rent an old classic movie that lasts three hours.
8. Go window-shopping.
9. Try one new thing each day.
   
10. Don't compare.
11. Buy yourself pretty stationary to write on.
12. Enjoy a free make-over at a department store.
    
13. Browse all afternoon in a bookstore.
14. Visit the library. Sit and read your favorite magazines.
15. When you meet someone for the first time, look them in the eyes, and give them a firm handshake and a smile.
    
16. Focus on being, rather than doing.
17. Seize the day!
18. Buy something wonderful and frivolous for yourself.
    
19. Expect a positive outcome from your move.
20. Don't feel like you have to be productive all the time.
21. Turn over a new leaf with this move.
    
22. Pin a fresh flower on your lapel or pocket.
23. Remind yourself it is okay to cry if you want to.
24. Visit a museum or art gallery.
    
25. Treat yourself to a gourmet cup of flavored coffee or exotic herb tea. Enjoy!
26. Take a class in something to expand your interests.
27. Go to a park that has playground equipment and swing!
    
28. Walk as much as you can.
29. Count your blessings every day.
30. Say your prayers every night.

moving Tips- Dec 2009

Gift-Giving Ideas for Far Flung Friends and Family

If you’re far from family and friends, but plan to send them Christmas gifts, how do you do it in a way that doesn’t require collecting boxes from the produce department of the grocery store, searching for the bag of packaging peanuts that you’re sure you saved last summer, and standing in line at the post office? Here are a few ideas to simplify long-distance gift giving.

Give to a favorite charity
Does Mom volunteer at the Humane Society? Your brother, Bill, sings in a community choir? Let them know that you will be giving a donation to their organizations to show support for what is important to them.

Pay for a helpful service
Is your closest friend hosting family or the company party for Christmas? Arrange to pay for a cleaning service to spruce up her house and give her one less responsibility.

Gift Cards
Purchase and send gift cards for restaurants or stores that you know are in the area. National chains like Starbucks and Home Depot are everywhere!

Event Tickets
By using the internet, you can learn about upcoming concerts and events in any city in the world. Do a little research in the area where your loved ones live and purchase tickets for them to an event you know they’ll love.

Buy online
More and more people are turning to the internet to purchase gifts that can be mailed directly to the recipients. Many mail-order businesses offer free shipping for a minimum purchase. Be sure to shop online using goodshop.com to have a portion of your purchases benefit Just Moved. Just designate Just Moved as who you support.

Magazine Subscription
Buy a gift subscription for a magazine that pertains to the interests of a long-distance loved one. There are magazines to suit everyone’s interests: from outdoor living to needlepoint, from Civil War history to video games.

Outdoor Adventure!
Through the internet you can purchase an exciting adventure for the outdoor enthusiast on your list. With just the click of a mouse you can find hot-air balloon rides or river kayaking lessons that are offered around the country.

Invest in an Interest
Does your brother-in-law enjoy playing golf, but wishes he was better? Arrange for a lesson with a golf pro in his area. Does your sister enjoy cooking? Purchase a gift certificate for her to take a cooking class at a local kitchen store. Do they wish that they had more time together? Pay for some ballroom dancing lessons! (Dancing With the Stars is bringing ballroom dancing back!)


No matter what you choose to send your loved ones this Christmas, be sure to express your love and appreciation for each person. Be specific! Tell each person at least one quality that you love about him or her.

Moving Tips

Tips for Moving On
Over the Thanksgiving Holidays
When you move, the memories of family and friends you've left behind come to mind so vividly over the holidays. Some of you can't go back to be with loved ones for Thanksgiving after just having moved. You have to face the holidays in a new place, a different home and possibly alone without family and friends.

Try the following tips to help you in your transition at this time of the year:

Invite another family or a neighbor over for Thanksgiving dinner or for Thanksgiving dessert.

Volunteer to serve food on Thanksgiving Day at a local community service organization.

Visit an elderly care facility and befriend someone who doesn't have a family for Thanksgiving.

Start a new Thanksgiving tradition in your family. Get your children involved by asking what they would like to do.

Have everyone in the family choose a favorite recipe for the Thanksgiving menu. Give everyone an assignment in food preparation, table setting, and Thanksgiving decorations.

Go to a nice restaurant and make it a special date if it's just you and your husband.

Count your many blessings - go around the dinner table and have everyone share what they are most thankful for. Dwell on the positive, not the negative.

Just Moved! wishes you a heartfelt Thanksgiving!

Moving Tips

Contentment

According to the American Heritage Dictionary, contentment is being “satisfied with things as they are.”

How would you describe your state of mind... your attitude? Are you content? Are you satisfied with things as they are?

The greatest prescription for contentment can be found in Matthew 5:3-11 and comes from the Great Physician, Jesus, in his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus gave us the best “Tips for Moving On” when he shared these nine ways that we are blessed. The Greek word for blessed in these verses is makarios and it means happy!

Are you seeking happiness and contentment? Fill your prescription for contentment by reflecting on these nine tips:

You're Blessed...
...when you’re at the end of your rope.
With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

You're Blessed...
...when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you.
Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

You're Blessed...
...when you’re content with who you are—no more, no less.
That’s the moment you find yourself the proud owner of everything that can’t be bought.

You're Blessed...
...when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God.
He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.

You're Blessed...
...when you care.
At the moment of being "care-full," you find yourself cared for.

You're Blessed...
... when you get your inside world—mind and heart—put right.
Then you can see God in the outside world.

You're Blessed...
... when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight.
That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.

You're Blessed...
... when your commitment to God provokes persecution.
The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.

Not only that—Count Yourselves Blessed...
...every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit Me. What this means is that the truth is too close for comfort and has made people uncomfortable.

From "The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language"
Paraphrased by Eugene Peterson
Navpress Publishing Group, 2002
http:/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Message_(Bible)

Moving Tips

Steps to Smooth the Bumpy Road of Change

Perhaps you need hope and encouragement to get you through the major impact of change in a move. This is what helped me emotionally survive and understand the process of adjustment. It all began with the choice to be either open or closed to change.

The first step I had to take was to choose to let go and leave behind any encumbrances that would prevent me from starting over and moving ahead with my life. Next, I had to actually choose to start over, even if I didn’t want to! Until I accepted the reality of having to start over, I couldn’t be ready to move ahead with my life. Finally, I had to choose to move ahead. It was time to come full circle with my move, put aside my pity party, and do whatever it took to move ahead. I quickly learned that the journey after a move is one of action.

To encourage you on your journey, try these action steps to smooth the bumpy road ahead.

Stop And Smell the Flowers Along the Way
Take time to be good to yourself! Schedule some self-care by taking a break to rest, restore, and renew your mind and body.

Ask for Help
Don’t be the "lone ranger" and feel like you have to do it alone. Let others be a part of the relocation process with you.

When the Heat Is Up, Stay Cool
When stress is rising and the pressure is on, keep a sense of humor and be flexible.

It’s Okay To Cry If You Want To
With change, comes loss and grieving. Your release valve may be tears.

Rise To the Occasion
Stretch beyond your comfort zone. Embrace the changes this move brings as an opportunity to learn and grow personally.

Take One Day, One Step at A Time
Remember the saying, "Rome wasn’t built in a day!" Some days you may feel like you’ve taken two steps back and only one step forward. You can do it! Don’t lose heart and never give up!

The anchor and firm foundation in any change and transition in my life has been my relationship with Jesus Christ. His promise of hope through scripture, the assurance of His comfort, the peace that comes from trusting Him, and the knowledge that He will always be with me, has sustained me over the years in even the most difficult changes I have faced.

Never give up and never lose heart in the transitions of your life. You canbecome a "moving overcomer." I’m standing on the sidelines cheering you on every step of the way!

- Susan Miller

Moving Tips

(Our thanks to Multiple Mover, Dawn Cartwright, for submitting these great tips!)



How to Move Without Losing Your Mind or Your Children

I love to travel. However I had no idea that by marrying a football coach that I would be traveling all over. All over the country… A lot… And far. With one (a Buckeye), two (a Hoosier), and then three (an Illini) kids and 15,000 pounds of “stuff” in tow. I should have gotten my real estate license five states ago. And my tax certification. And a master’s degree in packing.

You may wonder what I have learned in all those moves. More than you hopefully will possibly ever need to know, but I will share a few tips with you anyway in the hopes of saving someone out there from the unique experiences that I have encountered.

Things that are helpful to consider:

Prior to your move, check the refrigerator and freezer to be sure that they are empty if they are going into storage for any length of time. (see #2)

If by some quirk of fate, a chicken did make the journey in your now unplugged refrigerator and sat in storage in 90 degree heat all summer, do the following:
Wash it out with bleach, and stuff it full of charcoal briquettes (the kind you had to dispose of prior to moving because it is considered flammable and a moving company will not allow you to pack it) and crumpled newspapers. Leave tightly closed for 7 days. Do not peek. Yes the smell does go away.

Make sure your garbage cans are emptied prior to the movers coming. They WILL pack it and it will not be a nice surprise when you open it 2,000 miles away.

Upon arriving at your new destination, if you happen to find a box that has been unopened in the last 4 moves (evidenced by the numerous blue, yellow and orange moving stickers plastered all over it) throw it away. Do not open it. If you have lived without it for the past 4 years and not missed it, you do not need it. Trust me on this one.

Make sure your children know where they live. We were between moves, having vacated our home in Indiana, living in Ohio with my mother-in-law while our house was being built in Michigan when a clerk in Colorado (where we were vacationing) asked my 5 year old where we were from. She turned with a puzzled look on her face and asked, “Mommy, Where DO we live?”

Do not order more than 500 address labels at any given time. They will become stickers for your children to play school with. Ditto for boxes of checkbooks. I always seemed to run out of money well before my checks were utilized.

Go ahead and paint your house the colors you want. Where is the research that backs up neutral colors making a house easier to sell? P.S. If you need to remove black permanent marker from foyer wallpaper, Q-tips and bleach work really well if you don’t scrub too hard. Red food coloring removed from textured cathedral ceilings in the kitchen is a little trickier (don’t ask). Let’s just say that I have some very creative and artistic children.

Don’t hesitate to jump into your new community. Send your husband knocking on doors to find kid for yours to play with (this actually works!) Don’t wait for neighbors to come to you- surprise them and take them a plate of brownies. (They’ll feel bad that they didn’t get to you first, but oh well!)

Get your kids involved in community/church/school activities, sports, and clubs. You will meet lots of moms in the same stage of life that you are in. This worked for me, even if my daughter’s peers thought I was her grandma. I’d like to think it was because of my prematurely silver hair!

Last, but foremost, pray for your needs. I desperately needed a walking buddy and found one was living two doors down. As an added bonus, she was an avid cross stitcher, one of my passions at the time.

Five states, seven cities, eleven houses later it has been an interesting 27 years of being a football coach’s wife. Moving is what you make it. I would never trade the precious friendships and memories that have been made across the country for the three houses that have been struck by lightening, the house that sank, or the money that was lost on real estate fees and paying movers. Reach out to those new in your neighborhood. Perhaps you too can share some words of wisdom for your fellow nomads and make some lasting friendships in the process.

Moving Tips- Moving With Kids

Moving With Kids: Keeping Them Happy on the Road or in the Air

It’s summer and families around the world are planning a move. If you’re one of them, your life is full of boxes to pack, phone calls to make, lists to keep and tick off, and emotions to sort out. But how have you helped your kids to cope? They may be feeling this move just as strongly as you. And if they are facing long hours of travel to their new home, how do you keep the peace and your sanity?

Here are a few ideas to pave the road ahead and avoid an emotional collision.

· Share your biggest concerns about the trip. Talk about how you can avoid those problems. It’s amazing what you can learn about your kids by simply listening while you’re on the road or in the air. Settings like these help to promote an atmosphere of openness and vulnerable sharing.

· Practice these words: “This is our big adventure!” Building enthusiasm produces excitement for what is to come. Even if you have to look for the positives, learn to “make lemonade out of lemons.”

· Start your trip with a “God hunt.” This is something parents and children can do that will give each person the opportunity to look for God in everything. It also helps your children think about seeing God in every aspect of their lives. Some of the ways to go on a “God hunt”:
“I see God in the beauty of the sunset.”
“I see God in our move. He did...”
“I see God in this day. Look what He did...”

· Choose a game or two ahead of time that everyone in the family can participate in together. Try these for fun:
Someone picks a color, like red. Then everyone looks out the window for anything that is red. Keep score of how many objects are found by each person in a certain amount of time.
Look for cars that are all a certain color, have license plates from the same state, are the same kind, or have luggage racks on top. You can add your own list of similarities.
Kids take turns “packing the moving truck” by adding an item each time they get a turn. Then the next person has to repeat all the items packed before adding one more to the list. When a player misses an item, he or she is out of the game. (“I’m packing the moving truck and I’m going to pack my toys.” Next person says, “I’m going to pack my toys and games.”) Try this game, but name items in alphabetical order.

· When everybody is in the car or airplane, give an example of what it looks like to be kind, thoughtful, and patient with one another. When everyone has been traveling for hours or days, a little kindness, thoughtfulness, and patience go a long way.

· Before you begin the trip to your new destination, pray together as a family.

(Find these tips and many more ideas and encouragement in the book But Mom, I Don’t Want to Move! by Susan Miller.)

Moving Tips- Moving Count Down

• 
  Moving Countdown
  
  If you’re preparing for a move, you’re in good company. Last year 35.2 million Americans relocated. Though you may be a seasoned mover, the task of moving is never easy and rates as one of the greatest sources of stress in a person’s life.
  
  
  Planning, organization, and preparation can help the job go more smoothly. Below is an eight-week countdown that may prove helpful as you approach the big event
  
  
  Eight Weeks
  
  
  Gather information about different moving companies by using the internet or making phone calls. Get estimates in writing. Make a decision as to whether you will use a mover or rental truck service. Things to consider will be cost, packing, loading, delivery, and claims.
  
  Six Weeks
  
  
  Obtain school, medical, legal, and tax records (new providers will want to have them) and ask for referrals for professionals in the community you’re moving to.
  
  Four Weeks
  
  
  Send change of address cards to magazines.
  Obtain change of address kit from the post office.
  Clean out closets and other storage for a garage sale.
  Start packing seldom-used items and stack these boxes in an out-of-the-way place.
  Schedule any work to be done on your new home: painting, carpet, roofing, etc.
  Arrange transport of vehicles or pets, if needed.
  Reserve rental equipment, if moving yourself.
  Change your property, auto, and medical insurance policies.
  
  Three Weeks
  
  
  Make travel arrangements and reservations.
  Check with the Department of Agriculture if you are moving out of state to see whether you are allowed to bring in houseplants.
  Have a garage sale
  
  Two Weeks
  
  
  Arrange for disconnection and changeover of utilities.
  Confirm with the moving company and/or storage company.
  Continue packing.
  Cut back on buying perishable food.
  Make a list of those items that you will move personally.
  Close unneeded accounts, such as your club membership.
  
  One Week
  
  
  Return library books.
  Pick up dry cleaning and laundry.
  Reserve a baby sitter, if needed, for moving day.
  Drain gas and oil from power equipment.
  Give away plants not being moved.
  
  Two Days
  
  
  Clean and defrost the refrigerator and freezer.
  Close bank accounts, if needed.
  Finish packing.
  Pack a “survival box” of things that you will need at the new house: flashlight, light bulbs, bandages, soap, paper towels, toilet paper, some linens and towels, two pans, coffee, coffee pot, can opener, plastic cutlery, paper plates, cups, napkins, dish detergent, trash bag, scissors, utility knife, screwdriver, hammer, pliers, telephone. Load this box last or keep it in your car,
  
  Day Before
  
  Pick up rental van, if using.
  Tie closed any sofa beds or trundle beds.
  
  Moving Day
  
  
  Confirm delivery address, directions, and delivery date with movers.
  Be present to supervise.
  Read moving contract before signing and keep it with you until your things are delivered.
  Designate one person to stay with the rental truck to be in charge of loading. Load heaviest items first. Distribute weight evenly.
  Thoroughly clean your house before leaving.
  Check thermostat.
  Lock doors and make sure appliances are turned off.

26 Moving Tips From Family Life Today

I hope you caught Susan Miller’s interview with Dennis Rainey and Bob Lepine on the radio program, Family Life Today, March 2-4. For years, Family Life has offered a "Moving On" group and has given Susan’s book, After the Boxes are Unpacked, to employees making the adjustment following a move. They surveyed their employees for their best ‘moving tips” and we would like to pass these valuable tips on to you! Here is a portion of the great ideas that they shared.

1…embrace the new things God provides for you in your move. Focus on what you can learn in your new culture. Cheer for the hometown football team, try a regional recipe, tour a local art museum, etc. You will miss the “old”, but you don’t have it anymore. Be content with today, and look for the gifts God has for you in your move.


2. Expect that God has gone there before you and be looking for evidence of His hand, particularly when things are tough.


3…don’t expect to “recreate” the life you had in your previous location. Accept that it will be different and enjoy the new adventure.


4. Make a master list, or obtain one from a moving company, of all the details that need to be taken care of. You will forget things; the list helps.


5. This too shall pass! Be proactive meeting people/getting involved at your new home…don’t wait for them to come to you.


6. When you get to where you’re going get involved with a small group whether it be an exercise, bible, or volunteer group. Involvement in a new community is key to resettling. Step out and make a friend.


7. Be organized. The better organized you are at packing (specifically label boxes by room and area that items belong), the easier it will be to find and unpack things.


8. Plan ahead, but go with the flow.


9. Take an honest look at your stuff while you’re packing. If you don’t use it, is it really worth packing, lifting, unpacking, and storing in your new home? For me, a clutter-free life takes a real load off---figuratively and literally!


10. Reach out and make new friends as quickly as possible. In our 26 years of marriage we have lived in 3 different countries, 7 different towns or cities, and have made some lifelong, wonderful friends along the way. We never knew how long we would be in a place, so we wanted to “sink our teeth in” as soon as possible. We now have friends that live all over the world! Awesome!


11. Don’t expect to completely “feel at home” for a year. It takes longer than you would think likely.


12. You are not leaving the only place in the world where you can be happy. Go into the move with an open mind, there are many people living in your new location who are happy there. Keep your attitude positive, if you look only for the negatives you will probably never be happy.


13. The Apostle Paul tells us that contentment is learned, you can learn to be happy anywhere God takes you.


14. Evaluate your expectations of this move, are they realistic or wishful thinking.


15. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6


16. Make up all the beds in the house first because by night you are too tired to do it. Also set up the children’s rooms with toys before any other and the children can begin to feel at home while you work on the rest of the house.


17. Find a good church home!


18. Fill each box with things from just one room and clearly mark that room on the outside of the box.


19. Initiate! Invite people over to your house to get to know them, rather than waiting for people to come to you.


20. Mother’s Day Out


21. Research where you are moving to so you can talk about positive things and places about your new area with your family. If you have a house-hunting trip, take pictures of everything to be able to show your children.


22. Be pro-active in making friends. Invite people over to your house and into your life.


23. Don’t sit and wait for people to come to you, the invitation may not come!


24. Be flexible with a sense of humor. Some things happen that you did not plan for and some things you planned don’t happen!


25. Start packing early the little things and the things you don’t use on a daily basis. Label every box and keep an inventory list of each. Organization is the key to a successful move.


26. Read the book “After the Boxes are Unpacked.”

Do you feel as if every time you turn on the television or radio you are bombarded with more “doom and gloom” about the economy? To top it all off, you may be trying to sell a home or find a job – never easy, even in a good economy. It would be easy to get discouraged and to imagine a bleak future were it not for one thing: Jesus is in that future and we must never forget to picture Him in it. Our “boat” will not sink while He is in it! (Read Matthew 8:23-27) When your “boat” is tossed about by the “waves” of circumstance, practice these ten steps to...


...Winning Over Worry.

1. Don’t give up. Hope in God.


2. Walk by faith, not by sight.


3. Take time out for a good laugh.


4. Use the Bible as a window to see your world.


5. Never trouble trouble until trouble troubles you.


6. Make choices based on God’s Word.


7. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.


8. Ask for God’s strength to get you through.


9. Stop and enjoy the moment.


10. Pray as if everything depended upon God – it does.


From Love’s Little Recipes for Life by Linda Shepherd