If you live in an area of the country that’s a buyer’s market, you may be thinking about purchasing a new home and moving soon. However, the more things you have and the bigger your family is, the most complicated the process of moving becomes. Especially when you have kids, moving can be a stressful time filled with lots of emotions and tears. But when a move is necessary for your family, there are things you can do to make this transition easier for yourself and for your kids. To show you how, here are three ways to prepare your kids to move into a new house.
Focus On What Will Stay The Same
When you tell your kids you’ll be moving, they’ll likely be focusing on what is going to be different in their lives. They’ll have a new room, potentially a new school, and likely some new friends. They may have changes to their schedule and overall different surroundings to get used to. If your child begins to feel overwhelmed by everything new, Caroline Schaefer, a contributor to Parents.com, recommends helping them to focus on what will stay the same. Let them know that everything within the house will stay the same; that they’ll get to bring all their toys and clothes with them. Your family will still be together and still do the same things you did at your old house. By showing them how there will still be routine and consistency, your child may find the changes easier to handle.
Help Them Say Goodbye
If your new home will be far away from your current home, it’s likely that your kids will rarely if ever see their old friends again. This can be an especially hard thing to deal with for kids. To help them come to terms with this, Diane Schmidt, a contributor to TheSpruce.com, suggests allowing your kids to hold a farewell party. At this party, your kids will be able to have one last time to see their friends. If your kids are old enough, you may want to encourage them to exchange addresses or phone numbers so they can write or call their friends when they’re no longer seeing each other on a regular basis. Throwing a party such as this can help them feel closure about leaving the home they know. If they are into costume party, you can look for onesies that are best for cosplay. They get to wear their favourite character and can try to have a great day. Since liking towards anime and cartoon isn’t restricted by age, toddlers to teenagers are likely to enjoy them alike. If you have older kids, it is now more commonplace for them to chat to each other on Snapchat and Instagram, so your teens might be thinking more about whether the new house will have internet than what their friend’s addresses are. To help them stay in contact with old friends, consider getting the wifi ready in your new house before you move in with a provider like centurylink internet. That way, your teenagers can get straight back online as soon as they arrive, helping them with the transition.
Let Them Help Set Up The New House
Once you’ve gotten to your new home, to help your child feel ownership there, Kat Saks, a contributor to DMV.org, recommends letting your kids help you set up the new house. This could mean allowing them to choose where certain pieces of furniture will go, what color to paint their room, or how to decorate around the house. Feeling like they have a say in what happens in the new house will help your child feel like this new house is their home, too.
If your family will be moving soon, use the tips mentioned above to help your kids cope with this scary transition.
