How-to: moving and renovating with children.
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
Changes in life can be a good thing, but it can be hard to see the positive aspects at first. When you bring children into the mix, situations such as moving and renovating a home can turn their lives upside-down. While it may feel challenging at first, there are ways to make the transition living in your new home go smoother.
Moving
Moving with children can be a difficult task. Depending on their age, they may have grown attached to the home you’ve been in and aren’t looking forward to leaving. There are many tips to help them adjust and see the positive side of moving.
Put yourself in their shoes
Adjust your point-of-view to how your child may be feeling. This can be hard for them for a variety of reasons, including they feel as though they’ll lose their friends, they’re leaving the only place they’ve ever known as home, or maybe they don’t enjoy change.
Seeing where they are coming from in regard to their emotions over the move is essential so that you can have a conversation about it.
Have a conversation
Processing a move for a child at any age can be difficult. Talking to your children about it in the months beforehand will give them time to understand what moving means. Not many individuals care for last-minute changes, so preparing your children will help the entire family in the long-run.
Your children may not fully understand the idea of moving homes, but it’s essential to prepare them, nonetheless. A few topics to touch on when talking with your children are:
- Everything will stay the same; a new house doesn’t mean a new routine.
- All of your belongings will be coming with you, especially their favorite toy, blanket, or furniture.
- Let them know what to expect of the process without too much detail that they could become overwhelmed.
- Give your child choices, so they feel involved in the process and don’t feel helpless. Do they want to carry a toy or item, do they want to pick out an outfit for moving day, do they want to help pack the car? This can help reduce their nerves and even make the process fun for them.
Routine is key
If you have a daily routine for you and your family, it’s essential to stick to it throughout the moving process. This next step can be scary for children because its unknown to them, so keeping something they do know will help them feel at ease.
Make sure to establish your routine in your new home as fast as possible. While the walls surrounding them may be different, it will feel as though their life is the same, making the transition go more smoothly.
Renovating
A big decision to make when buying a new home is when to renovate. This can become particularly tricky when you have children involved. There are a few decisions you have to make in regard to renovating that will make your new space the perfect home easy for you and your family.
Live in or move out
There can be benefits to both living through a renovation or moving out during the process. It’s important to assess what will work best for you and your family. If you’re looking to gut and renovate your entire home, it may be better for you and your family to move out until the job is complete.
Situations like that can put a lot of stress on you as a parent and your children.
Before packing up to stay in a hotel or Airbnb, assess your finances and project plans. There is always room for the timeline of a project to extend due to unforeseen circumstances, and you don’t want to drain your bank accounts to live elsewhere.
For big-ticket item rooms such as the kitchen, use cost guide tools such as this one here to plan out your budget for the project. This will help you determine the potential cost and if it makes sense to live in or move out during your renovation.
One room at a time
Should you decide to live in your home during your renovations, be sure to take one room at a time. That way, your home can still be functional for your family, and you will even have designated places to relax.
Develop a plan and renovate for what will work best with your lifestyle. If you need a new kitchen, an excellent time to remodel that room is in the summer, so you have options to grill while you’re unable to cook indoors. If you plan to host events for holidays, renovating your living room and entertaining space may not be the best idea. Knowing your timeline and family needs will help you decide what room to remodel and when.
Take extra safety measures before and after renovating to help make a safer environment. Wall off the part of the house you’re working on so that there’s distance between work and your family. This provides an added sense of protection from harmful materials and tools.
No matter what you decide, moving and renovating with children can be difficult. But, by following these simple tips, you and your family can adjust quickly and enjoy your new living space together.