Settling into a New Home
December 14, 2017This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of CORT for PayPerPost. All opinions are 100% mine.
Moving into a new home can be a stressful experience any time of the year, but moving during the holiday season can be downright overwhelming. Coordinating a move, while still taking care of holiday-related shopping, cooking & decorating, is a lot to tackle in one month! Fortunately, there are some smart ways to make the transition easier and get everyone settled into the new home more quickly. I recently read a fabulous article, No Place Like (a New) Home for the Holidays, on the CORT blog – be sure to check it out for even more tips on having a smooth move.
Acknowledge the change! There’s no doubt about it – moving can increase anxiety levels. It can even cause feelings of loss or grief over no longer living in the last neighborhood – that’s totally normal. However, it’s important to accept the realities of your situation. Accept the fact that it will be a busy time. Accept the fact that you may not know many people in your new neighborhood. By acknowledging these feelings (rather than pushing them away), you will more quickly come to terms with the reality of the situation. Take some time every morning with your cup of coffee (and maybe even a gratitude journal) to process your feelings and work on accepting them.
Set up primary living areas first! Once you move, looking at a stack of boxes 5 feet tall can be overwhelming. What do I unpack first? Where is my toothbrush? One smart tip for moving is to label boxes by the room, in which the contents belong. For example, place all your pots & pans in a box labeled “kitchen”. Place all your clothing in a box labeled “bedroom”. Then when it’s time to unpack, choose the primary living areas first! So that means the living room and bedroom should be set up before less important rooms (the home office, for example) are set up.
Build new traditions! The fastest way to make your new neighborhood feel like home is to build new traditions in your new area. Maybe find a local coffee shop that serves delicious java and get into the habit of picking up a latte from them every weekday. Maybe there’s a scenic dog park five blocks away and you can take Fido with you for a brisk jog after work. Find cool spots in your new neighborhood and establish rituals. It will quickly help you feel more comfortable in your new area.
Discuss feelings with family members! If you’re moving with family members, be sure to sit down and have a conversation with them about the move. Kids may react in different ways from adults. Even different adults may respond differently to a move. Find ways to comfort each other. For example, maybe you can encourage the kids to help unpack & decorate their rooms. It’s also a good idea to bring them to the local playground and encourage them to make new friends.
Decorate the space! To make a house feel like home, decorations are necessary. Unpack the boxes, decorate the rooms and add special touches. I always love a good DIY project! If you’re moving during the holiday season, try making homemade ornaments with the kids. We made these cinnamon stick ornaments a few years ago. Simply use hot glue to attach several cinnamon sticks together, add a bit of garland for visual interest, and attach a string for hanging.
Make new friends! Making new friends goes a long way to feeling settled into your new neighborhood. Host small parties at your new place. Even if it’s just with a few neighbors, socializing will help establish relationships in your new area. Look for block parties or local community events. Find out if the kids’ school is hosting any upcoming events for parents. Even houses of worship often have events to meet others and get to know the community more.
With the right attitude and mindset, moving does not have to be stressful. Be sure to visit the CORT blog today and read No Place Like (a New) Home for the Holidays for more advice on having a smooth moving experience. And when it comes to furnishing your new space, find out how CORT Furniture Rental can easily make your house a home. Check out their convenient, affordable furniture rental options today.
Have you ever moved during the holidays? What is your best moving tip? How do you settle into a new neighborhood?
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Moving can be stressful any time of the year, but especially during the holidays. These tips are awesome and the sooner you get the house feeling like home, the better.
I love this story and I love hearing about all the ways to settle in. It is always such a stress and you make it sound like fun. thank you
Oh how I hate moving. You make some good suggestions. I have never moved during the holidays, the holidays have always been enough to keep me busy.
The holidays are always a crazy time of year.
These are some good tips. It can always be difficult to move. We’re a military family, so we do it often!
It can be stressful when moving into a new home. We try to make it an adventure like camping out. Especially when all the furniture hasn’t arrived or we can’t find everything.
Don’t plan to move anytime soon, but thanks for the helpful tips. Hope all your endeavors to get settle in, be smooth ones. Happy holidays
Thanks! Happy Holidays! 🙂
I remember when I first moved into my current apartment and it took a while to settle into my new home, these are some great tips.
I’ve never moved during the holidays. Oh, that just sounds stressful. It’s a must to get settled in to your new surroundings as soon as you can to keep that stress to a minimum.
We have never moved before the holidays but we have right after. It was crazy!
These suggestions are on point as they help minimize all the headaches when you move. I like to label things and that helps too.
These are great tips for settling into a new home. Especially the one about setting up primary living areas first.
I have never moved during the holidays and never would personally. These are great ways to settle into a new home though.
I can’t imagine the stress of moving during the holidays. I should try CORT and see if I can rent some dining room furniture!
Moving is so stressful. These are great tips for making it a better transition. I haven’t moved in a while but we have accumulated a lot of stuff, so I can only imagine how chaotic it would be.
Last year was our first Christmas in this home and it was a little different but now we are used to it. Although we moved few months before the Holiday, it was still stressful.
Oh, I remember this time of our life. Exciting and exhausting!
Last year we moved right before the Holidays. We closed on our house on the 12th and it needed a little love before we could move in (ie: Lots of paint, carpeting, appliances, etc). We spent the 1st night there the Sunday before Christmas. That next night we put up a tree and some ornaments, and tried to make it as normal as possible for the kids.
Decorating is the best way to make a new home feel like home. I also really like the tip about making new traditions.