With millions of people moving every year within the United States, one wonders how everyone gets comfortable in their new surroundings.

Most certainly, everyone has their own way, but today we want to share this seven-day approach, which seems to work wonders!
 
First day

On your first day, do some organizing at home but do not try to do it all; instead, go for a walk and explore the neighborhood. Take this time to decide to open yourself up to this new experience and to welcome the new.

Understanding what’s around you will make you feel safe and excited about the new possibilities.
 
Second day

Get a bit braver and try the subway or bus services to understand how these work. Get familiar with the city and how to get there.
 
Third day

Do a reality check. Acknowledge that your new community has good things but maybe also not so good ones. Every place is the same and at the same time it isn’t, so find out how safe the area is, how traffic works, how the weather treats it, and focus on the good.

One piece of advice: do not believe what others say; find out for yourself what the truth is. You may discover this place is your idea of paradise.
 
Fourth day

Absorb and enjoy the differences between this place and your old home. Every city has something great and unique to offer.
 
Fifth day

Get in touch with people you know who live around. Before moving, contact friends, colleagues, or family who live near your new community. Ask them about their favorite places, activities, and tips.
 
Sixth day

Move around. Be it by car, bus, or subway, venture into new parts of the city with a good map. Find your own places: choose a favorite cafeteria, restaurant, bookstore, museum, and/or movie theater.
 
Seventh day

Meet the neighbors. Once you get acquainted with the area, it is time to get acquainted with the people.

You can approach a neighbor you see working on her garden or picking up the mail, talk to the clerk at the grocery store, or walk along someone walking their dog.

If you have children, go to school meetings, mingle with the other parents, and ask their teachers to recommend good entertainment options.

It is no secret that we must try to keep waste down to a minimum in everything we do daily, and even more so when we are moving, since we are not alone… millions of us move every year and at this pace, the amount of waste is far from manageable.

Recycling has grown importantly in the last 20 years; however, the amount of garbage keeps increasing, and it is everyone’s responsibility to do their part to reduce waste in general.

Here we show you 11 ways in which you can reduce to a minimum the waste you produce when moving:

1. Do not buy boxes; instead, ask for leftover boxes at local supermarkets and other businesses, or ask neighbors who have just moved in.

2. If still you need to buy boxes, buy the corrugated kind with the highest recycled content.

3. Pack your clothes, linens, and other appropriate items in your suitcases.

4. Recycle the boxes you use as soon as you don’t need them anymore.

5. Ask your moving company if you can rent reusable storage crates.

6. Use old newspapers to wrap items that can break.

7. Choose environmentally friendly packing materials, and recycle them afterwards.

8. Ensure you correctly get rid of non-recyclable dangerous materials before moving: household cleaners, paints, and car supplies, among others. Research where you can safely dispose of these in your community.

9. Prefer recycled latex paint for your home projects.

10. Hold a garage sale before you move to sell everything you don’t need anymore.

11. What is not sold, donate to a local charity.

12. Research if your new community has a recycling program. If it does, become an active member.

13. As part of your new life, become a smarter shopper. Prefer recyclable products and items that can be repaired or upgraded. You can also buy at recycling markets and flea markets.

These tips come from people who have gone through horror story moves and are still kind enough to not wish that nightmare on even their worst enemies. These 5 are not the normal kind of tips; they relate to the move itself and how to help you move without tears:

1. Sell, sell, and then sell more

Yep! Sell everything you can before the move. You can never sell enough!

Host a garage sale, donate, and throw away, but don’t keep things just because you “may need them later”.

The benefits:

- You get rid of things that are blocking your energy because they are stacked up just gathering dust.

- You free up space that will make your home look organized, clean, and spacious.

- You will earn some money that you can put to good use.

- You save money because the moving company won’t have to carry so much “dead” weight.

2. Fix your car

A few weeks before moving, take your car to the shop for a general check up. Pay close attention to the tires, anti-freeze, air conditioner/heater, and water pump.

The last thing you want is to stay on the road without an engine while tons of boxes are waiting for you at your new home.

3. Check your insurance

Make sure you have coverage for your trip between houses. On your auto-insurance, you should have a roadside assistance rider, where you can call a phone number any time of day or night if your car breaks down.

Contact you home insurance company to tell them that you are moving and that you need coverage from your old house to the new one.

Before you move, make sure you photograph and videotape all your valuables and appliances to record their condition. In this way if something happens, you will have proof to show the insurance company.

If you hire a moving company, ask everything about their coverage, specifically what is and isn’t covered, and the coverage’s limitations.

4. Transfer utility services

Imagine this:

You get to your new home and are ready to start your new life. Filled with excitement you open the door to go in and start organizing your new place and… SURPRISE!!!!!

No electricity, no air conditioning/heating, no hot water, no phone service, no gas, no nothing!

Do we have to tell you this can become your worse nightmare? We don’t think so!

5. Plan your drive

This is especially important for long trips. You may have been down that road before, but even so, select a chief navigator and plan your drive.

Take the right maps, plan some interesting stops to release stress and take a break, take enough (and good) food for the road, play some good music, and remember to select a few good movies for the little ones to watch on the road.

More and more people today are changing and simplifying their lifestyles; they are moving into smaller spaces, getting rid of “stuff”, and focusing on enjoying the simple pleasures of life.

One of the best ways of getting rid of things that you don’t need anymore without adding to the garbage we already produce worldwide is to hold a garage sale.

Let others buy what they need from your “stuff” and earn some money to help you enjoy this new phase of your life.

Here we give you 16 tips to make your garage sale a hit, because if you are going to invest your time and energy into such a project, you better ensure it casts a good omen over your new plans:

1. Research if there are restrictions for garage sales in your area.

2. Some days in advance, advertise through your local newspaper or shoppers’ guide, and post notices on your grocery store and local bulletin boards.

3. Partner with other neighbors interested in selling some of their “stuff”, in this way, you will offer a lot more, attract more customers, and you can all share costs.

4. Put up colorful signs with arrows to guide people to your house, but make sure you check the local regulations in this regard.

5. Establish a selling schedule so that people know when to come, but always expect a few early birds.

6. Never do a garage sale during a holiday weekend; no one will be around!

7. Set good prices and expect a lot of bargaining.

8. You can mark your items in two ways:

- Put price tags on individual items

- Group items by price

- To make it easier, color-code your tags by price.

9. Take your time and clean your items before the big day; they will attract more eyes.

10. If you are selling clothes, organize them on racks, separate female and male clothing, and check all the pockets to make sure you are not giving away a $100 bill for 5 bucks.

11. Set the tables and place similar items together. Someone interested in a CD may also remember he needs a CD case if they are next to each other.

12. Plan to have a lot of change at hand for that day.

13. Be careful with your money; use a lockbox to hide it or wear a fanny pack. If several neighbors are joining in, decide beforehand who is going to take care of the money, and establish that only that person can touch it.

14. Get plastic bags (recycle the ones you have at home) for your customers and paper (old newspapers) to wrap items that can get broken.

15. When the fun is over, remove the signs you posted around the neighborhood.

16. If this is something you would like to repeat, save what was left for the next sale, but if you really need to get rid of everything, pack what’s left up and take it to a local charity.

It is not only you who is moving this year.  Thousands or even millions of people who change homes or offices every year join you, and thus, it is only logical to try to reduce waste as much as possible when moving.

It has been determined that each person produces around 1580 pounds of waste per year, most of it, some 602 pounds, are in the form of paper and paperboard, 149 pounds are plastic, 58 pounds are textiles, and 82 pounds are wood.

Even though it is believed that America is recycling almost 30% of the waste produced, the amount of waste generated is increasing every single year, and, although recycling has grown in general, there is a marked growth of the recycling of certain materials like paper, plastic soft drink bottles, aluminum cans, steel packaging and major appliances.

In order to help the growing and crucial recycling efforts, here are several ideas to help you reduce waste when moving to a new home or office:

1.    Avoid buying new boxes, and instead, save old ones.  Find leftover boxes from local shops or neighbors.

2.    If you can’t find old boxes, use corrugated ones made out of recycled materials.

3.    Recycle every box after you have used it.

4.    Use your luggage and handbags to pack your clothes, linens, and bathroom items.

5.    Ask the movers in Seattle about renting reusable storage crates.  These last many years and are recyclable.

6.    Wrap up fragile things in old newspapers.

7.    Select eco-friendly packing materials like cushioning peanuts made of biodegradable cornstarch and bubble wrap containing recycled plastic.  Always recycle these materials after utilizing them.

8.    Make sure you dispose appropriately of non-recyclable materials like cleaners, paints, and car supplies before you move.  Find the correct way to get rid of them.

9.    When possible, use recycled paint for house projects.

10.    Make a garage sale before you move to get rid of things you don’t need or want but are in good condition.

11.    Donate whatever you think can be used and appreciated by others.

After you move, find out about recycling programs in the community and join it.  Also, start buying only recyclable products and items that can be repaired and used for a long time.

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.psmoving.com as the original source.

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While you are checking lists and packing to move to your dream home, you must remember to pay special attention to your desktop computer, and ensure the movers in Seattle do too.  If you fail to pack it appropriately, your computer may suffer mechanical failure or be damaged due to physical hits during transportation.  That’s something you don’t want to see happen if you depend on it for work or home organization activities.

In order to ensure your computer is moved safely, follow these tips:

-    Transfer copies of all of your files into an external hard drive.  Pack the hard drive safely into a computer case or other place where it will not be stepped on or hit.

-    Park the hard disk.  You must make sure nothing is working before you move the computer to avoid the possibility of shock.  The parking procedure works differently according to the type of computer, so make sure you find out how it is done for yours.  The hard disk will go back to work once you turn on the computer again.  Next, turn off the system and remove the cables from the back.  Write down which cable goes where.

-    If possible, pack the computer in the original package.  It is specially designed to hold it safely, but if you do not have it anymore, find a strong box that can fit it and get good packing materials.

-    Look after the printer.  Use the original box to pack it, if possible.  If it happens to be a laser printer, remove the ink cartridge to avoid spilling and contamination. If it is a pin printer, put a piece of paper in the platen to secure the head.

-    Cover the monitor very well with bubble wrap, cushions or cloth.  Since it is made out of glass, it can easily be scratched or broken.

-    Place the CPU standing up or on its side, with the motherboard flat on the bottom, otherwise, the interior cards will go loose and you will require technical assistance to make it work again.

-    If you have any doubts or questions about the best way to move your computer, contact the technical manufacturer’s department, browse the Internet to find the exact specifications to transport it, or simply consult your Seattle moving company.

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.psmoving.com as the original source.

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It’s difficult enough to have to pack all your life to move into a new home, but when you have to do that and still, do it fast, you better have an easy and practical method to support you, otherwise the memories you will hold for years to come will be bitter and frustrating, turning what should have been a joyous occasion into a living nightmare!

Luckily, that easy and practical method is reachable; there are many ways to make any fast move go smoothly and enjoyably, and it has all to do with organization.  Follow these tips and find the bright side of moving.

1.    Prepare a list.  Write down everything, no matter how insignificant it seems.  Create a simple record keeping system to pack boxes, be it numbers, colors, or anything else.  Get a notebook and write down in detail everything that goes in each labeled box, when it is ready, put it down on your designated “To Go Central”, meaning, everything that is there is ready to go.  You should also have a packing area, where you have everything from scissors to labels, tape and markers.

2.    Have enough supplies. Get enough boxes, better safe than sorry.  Save around ten boxes for last minute packing, things like bedding, clothing, and cleaning supplies.  Use strong tape and unprinted newspaper or bubble wrap to protect your belongings.  You will need more than you think of everything, so get a lot of supplies and return what’s left at the end.

3.    Use wardrobe boxes. They are great for things like pillows, comforters, blankets, and clothes.  Calculate how many boxes you will need and ask the Seattle moving company to bring enough so that you don’t have to over stuff each.

4.    Use wardrobe boxes strategically. The movers can move some of your things ahead of time, thus, pack a little ahead of time and as early as possible.  Also, take advantage of the size of the boxes and fill them in a way that is easy to unpack and to keep everything organized inside: shopping bags filled with several closet items at the bottom, then hanging clothes, and finally some purses or sweaters.

5.    Coordinate colors. Choose a color for each room in your new home, put a color sticker on each box, near the number, and put a matching sticker on the door of every room.  In this way, the movers will know where everything goes.

6.    Keep together things that belong together. Tape small parts to the items these belong to, or put them inside an envelope.  Picture hooks with pictures and shelf brackets with bookcases.  Designate a “parts box” and put any cables, pieces, parts or nails that appear here and there inside, so that you can easily find everything on moving day.

7.    Pack ahead. Anything you can pack ahead of time will free you to take care of important stuff on moving day.  Leave only the indispensable and pack everything else.

8.    Organize cleaning supplies. Clean you old place ahead of time, but have a cleaning kit ready for action on moving day.

9.    Use luggage to pack. Fill them with clothes, sheets, towels and papers.

10.    Keep an eye on valuables. As much as possible, everything valuable must remain with you.  Review the movers’ insurance to see how you are covered in case you lose something.

11.    Guard important papers. This means birth certificates, school records, mover estimates, job contracts, utility company numbers, bank records, bills, phone lists, closing papers, realtor information, maps and installation manuals.  Always keep them with you.

12.    Get a box for each person. Each family member should get a special box.  It should contain items that will be needed immediately after the move.

If you enjoyed this article, please feel free to post it to your site or blog and forward this link to your friends. Have a great day!

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If moving is a stressful activity for you, you must know that it can be the same or even worse for your cat.

Cats are extremely suspicious creatures when it comes to change within their space.  Even small changes within a room can make them nervous; thus, imagine what a complete change of house can do to them.

Luckily, there are some tips you can follow to ease your friend’s reaction to a major house move and make it less stressful for you too, if putting him in a good pet nursery for a few days is not an option.

1.    About a month before you move, leave the carrier in which you will be transporting your friend close to his surroundings, so that the cat gets used to its sight and smell.

2.    On moving day, put the cat in a completely closed room to keep him away from the hectic activity and to be able to find him easily when you’re ready to leave.  Do not forget to provide a litter tray, water and food for him, and to put a note on the door reminding everyone that the door must remain shut at all times.

3.    When you are ready to go, put the cat inside the carrier with a familiar blanket and secure him in the car with a seat belt.

4.    If the trip is long, offer him water and a litter box.  If you stop at some point, leave a window open and park the car in the shade, as high temperatures inside the car may be fatal.

5.    Once you arrive to your new home, leave the cat inside the carrier until a room is ready to accommodate him along with his tray, water and food.  Do not leave any doors or windows open, and make his environment feel as safe as possible.

6.    As soon as the Seattle movers are done and all exterior doors are closed, let the cat out of the room and allow him to explore the new environment; you can start with two rooms to take it slow.

7.    Cats rub their heads and bodies on furniture, walls, doors, and everything else to leave their scent on them, as it gives them a sense of security.  So, to help them settle in, grab a soft cloth and rub it gently around their face to pick up their scent, then, pass the cloth around the places the cats will be exploring, this will make them feel confident in their new space.  Do this daily for about a week.

8.    Feed the cat with small frequent meals at first to have more contact with him and to reassure him that everything is fine.

9.    Do not let the cat out of the house during the first two or three weeks to give him time to learn his new space and get used to the smells.  When you finally let him out, make sure he is hungry so that he doesn’t go too far.  Ensure also that it is a quiet time and go with him.  Let him go a little further every day, but never alone, and always wearing a clear ID.

With some patience and perseverance, you and your cat will soon feel right at home in your new place, ready to enjoy it fully and happily.

If you enjoyed this article, please feel free to post it to your site or blog and forward this link to your friends. Have a great day!

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Very few people in this world enjoy the process of moving. There’s all the sorting, packing, carrying, organizing, and re-organizing that usually comes with it. Seattle movers put together a checklist meant to make it easy and flawless. A lot of pain can be avoided by following these steps:

Step 1 – Set a moving date.

Step 2 – Set two days prior to your moving date as the deadline to have all issues pertaining to your move resolved.

Step 3 – Get rid of all old clothes and other items you know you will not want to keep. One nice way to do this is by giving to charity.

Step 4 – Create an inventory list that includes everything you did not throw out or donate. Start by listing large items, such as furniture. Include a description and also any serial numbers or other pertinent information that can identify each item. Estimate a value in cash for each item. Once you’re done with furniture and other large items, work down to the tiniest – such as jewelry. There will be things you won’t care to list in detail – this of course can be done and you can just include them in one large, generic category.

Step 5 – If you have not already done so, contact a moving company and send your inventory in order to get an estimate from at least three sources.

Step 6 – Call all utilities companies and let them know of your move-out date. Call utilities companies at your destination and set up installation dates.

Step 7 – If you don’t mind using old boxes, you can find them for free at supermarkets. They usually can be had for nothing from the employees who work at the receiving docks in the back part of the store building. Otherwise, buy enough boxes for your items and assemble them. Make the boxes safer by reinforcing the edges and corners with duct tape.

Step 8 – Pack

Step 9 – Make sure you mark every box according to the room the items came from. Give each box a number and use it on your inventory list to reference what box each item went to.

Step 10 – Pack sensitive documents and valuables in small boxes you can take with you on the moving trip.

On moving day, you will be very thankful you followed steps 1 through 10. You will be able to sit back and let the moving company do their job while you relax.

Moving? Nervous? Well, don’t be. Moving can be stressful, but don’t forget change is generally good. So a positive change can only bring new air to your life. It is comprehensible, however, that you might find yourself a bit lost amongst all the decisions you need to make. But don’t worry: the biggest one has already been made, hasn’t it? After all, you are moving, indeed!

To achieve a tidy, organizad, and successful move, all you need is a good action plan. But this is easier said than done, you might argue. Well, not really. Successful moving relies on one crutial thing: packing. As basic as that may sound, most people don’t take the necessary time to pack up their stuff tidily and carefully, resulting in a really messy move. If everything is stuffed into boxes with no tags, no marks, or no organization at all, rest assured you’ll have a hard time when you get to unpack after the move is completed. So, first step: pack wisely.

Of course, if you hire a seattle moving service, the packing and unpacking will be handled by professionals. Some people, however, like to take care of that part themselves. This is ideal, actually: your personal belongings are of great importance to you, and no one but you will take better care of them. So if you’ll be packing yourself, make sure that all the fragile and breakable objects are wrapped in paper or bubble wrap, and that the bottom and top of each box is protected with plenty of cushioning.

The technique to packing is to first get rid of what you won’t need. Usually we keep objects in our houses that we won’t ever use again, and moving is a great opportunity to either throw them away or give them to charity. After you’ve done that, you can start packing: first the large and heavy items, and then the smaller ones, making sure you stuff paper in the empty spaces, so that objects are not loose inside the boxes. Each box should be closed after it is filled (but don’t overstuff them!) and sealed with tape for more protection. Of course, never forget to label each box appropriately. There’s no way to remember where you put what, especially when you’re moving lots of objects. The best way to label is to include name, contents, and what room each box is assigned to. That way, if you hire movers, they’ll know exactly where to leave them.

Unpacking is easier, but it may present its own complications. If the packing was done correctly, then it shouldn’t raise any problems. The boxes need to go to the room assigned, of course, and they have to be placed so that it’s easy to read the labels and unpack them. So, rather than piling them up, they should be put down one next to the other. Big objects will be unpacked first, and then the small ones; stuff all the paper that you used for protection into one or two spare boxes, so that it doesn’t lay around untidily.

Some people would never move because they are terrified of the whole process of moving. Maybe they do have the opportunity to live somewhere more comfortable, but don’t even think about it for this reason. Moving is tedious and stressful, granted, but if done appropriately, there is no reason why everything shouldn’t go smoothly and tidily. So go on, pack and get moving!