Moving to Madison, Don't Know Where to Start.... with Anything

We just moved in August. The biggest mistake we made was not starting with the packing and purging process soon enough. We kept putting it off and then ended up just throwing stuff into boxes to have it ready for the truck (we just had family and friends helping us move). The most frustrating part is that we are throwing away a lot of stuff NOW. During these cold winter months we are going through all of the misc. boxes in the basement and realizing all of the junk that we spent effort on bringing from one house to the other. We did take quite a bit of stuff to the local Goodwill (furniture, clothes, toys, etc.) before we moved; which is also nice for tax write offs, but we found it was nowhere near enough.

A few helpful tips:
1. start gathering boxes now
2. start packing anything you don't use regularly, now
3. label each and every box with what is inside and what room you want it in
4. go through your clothes and your children's clothes and take anything you won't wear again to Goodwill (or Salvation Army or whatever). Same for toys, books, furniture, accessories, etc. Ask your kids to help decide what toys they can give to needy kids.
5. keep important papers/information in one spot and ensure that you keep that with you during the moving process so that you can always find it
6. look for daycare and school information now
7. if you are not familiar with the area get a map, look on the web, figure out if your fave chain restaurants deliver, etc.

Good luck to you with your move!
K.

E., I moved from a Detroit suburb to Waterford, WI almost two years ago. I think you've got the first step correct, start eliminating stuff. Pick a room of the house every week. If you haven't used it, don't really like it or it doesn't fit, put it in a bag for Goodwill (excellent tax write off which you'll need after the sale of your house). Might want to allow extra time for the basement and garage. We also used a moving co. and it was wonderful. You don't have to do anything, they just come in, pack it all up and deliver it to the new place. The movers are wonderfully skilled in packing so things don't break and aren't as worried about getting 10 things to fit in a box. They pack everything as it though, so if you have a special/original box for something, you might want to pre-pack it. Also, they mark the boxes by room, so if you have something in the kitchen now, but it will be going in the dining room at your new house, put it with your dining room(if you have one now) or keep it separate on moving day. Good luck and I admire your pizza delivery work - I used to deliver the newspaper but now work full-time in an office in Milwaukee. Until you do a delivery job, you can never fully understand or identify with the challenges.

Kris did a great job of breaking things down so I would defiantly use her reply as a guide line. If you have not used it in 2 years get rid of it (unless it is important paperwork) you don't want to haul junk along. We moved a year ago and there are still a few boxes in the basement that have not been unpacked (guess we really did not need that stuff).

Ask what the moving company is going to do, the more you pay the more they do. Some companies will even pack everything for you (but can be $$$) others will load the truck but you have to pack everything. So figure out what you are willing to pay (or if your husbands business is paying for it what they are going to pay for) that will determine what you need to do. I would reinstate that starting sooner rather then later is a good idea.

If you are packing and not a moving company here is what I would do. I would start with things you use the least:
holiday items
seasonal clothing
knick knacks/decorations/pictures (if you are selling this will help uncluttered the house and might help you sell)
toys (keep the favorites out till the vary end)
books (keep the favorites out till the end)
Anything in the kitchen you don't use often
Anything around the house that is not used often

As the moving day gets closer pack the items you won't use in the next week. This will leave you with about a weeks worth of stuff and very little to pack the day before moving.

And label all the boxes with details, don't just put clothing put winter clothing (that way you know you don't need to unpack that box right away). Also put on the box where you want the box to go, ex garage, master bedroom, kids room, kitchen, basement and so on. The more organized you are the easier it will be on everyone. Get the kids to help (if old enough), they can pack their clothes and toys or anything that is not breakable.

I have moved many times (7 times) while I was a kid (due to dad's job), including over seas and back... and 3 times with my family (hubby & daughter). Start as early as possible and try to knock out room by room, instead of doing a little in this room and a little in that room.

Hope this helps... sorry for it being so long winded!