Moving with Baby...

My husband and I just moved with our 4 month old and the two things that we found essential were having someone to care for our baby on the three days that we were actually making the move, and marking everything we packed for her with one word, her name (Madelyn).

In the weeks leading up to the move we packed everything that was non-essential first, and waited until the last minute to pack up her room so that she would still have a space she knew and therefore had less of a chance to be really upset by all the clutter and chaos. Then, my mother offered to have her overnight the three days (2 nights) we were trekking the stuff to our new place. Maddy was uneffected by it all. She barely noticed we'd gone anywhere because the first night in our new place her crib was set up exactly as it had been in the old place.

Labeling the boxes with her name was a quick way for us to pack her stuff without having to inventory everything - we just assumed that if it was hers it was essential, and therefore we didn't need to take the time to list exactly what was in the box. Also, on the unpacking end, it made it easier to know exactly where her stuff was without having to open up every box we packed.

I won't say it wasn't tough to move, but I found that it was easier than I had expected it to be with our infant in tow.

Good luck!

Hello! You've gotten excellent advice on the packing part. I'd like to chime in a little with the traveling part! I have moved with my daughter twice, once she was 3 months (from ID to SC), and the second time she was about 20 months (SC to CT). The first time, she was still nursing, and she slept in the same bed as my husband and I, although we had about a week stay in IA with my parents, and we did set up her pack 'n' play w/bassinet then. The second time, we actually didn't have enough room in our trailer for the PNP, so we left it in Charleston and we just enforced her sleeping on her own "big girl" bed (the other bed in the motels). On a sidenote, that worked well for us because we have a convertible bed for her and we left it as a crib in Charleston, and then she's only known her daybed here in CT.

We are military, and move a lot, so I fully utilize a saying my mom came up with "New house, new rules" to grow our house rules and routines with my daughter as she ages and matures. :)

I wish you THE BEST of luck in your move and your future in a new place!! :)

I moved when my son was about the same age. It was hard to go looking for houses with him and get things done but I managed. When he napped I packed. I labeled everything into boxes nd where they should go once we moved(kitchen,living, bedroom, attic). It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I did have my parents nearby to help too, but did it mostly on my own. I think the thought of moving and finding a place seems a lot more overwhelmig than it actually is
good luck with the move anddon't be afraid to ask for help from family and friends

We moved when my oldest was that age, and I really feel like no matter what you do, moving is insane and never easy!! You do want to keep it as easy on him as possible, but at his age he really won't know what is happening. I remember packing when my daughter was napping and packing her room and toys last to keep things as stable for her as possible. If he is crawling/cruising, keep the boxes in corners of the room so he has some space. On the actual moving day, we had helpers take my daughter and occupy her, both in the place we were moving from, then she went over to my sister-in-law's so she didn't have to be in the chaos. We honestly couldn't watch her well with all that happening anyway. Moving is so stressful, but it's worth it in the end if you are going to a better place. When we got to our house, we set her crib up first and her furniture so she could hopefully stay on the same routine. She knew she was someplace different and slept badly the first couple of nights, but kids do settle in more quickly than we do. Good luck with the move!