Moving Hack: the moving book knows everything

HedgeMage — November 7, 2009 - 8:19pm

Well, it looks like moving is in my family's future again. As a former military spouse, I have some experience at this. Moving can be a pain. Moving with children can make one feel like one part Sherpa, one part zoo-keeper, and two parts air traffic controller. There are a few things I could not survive any move without: a Sanford King Size permanent marker, plenty of packing tape in a good, handled dispenser, and most importantly, my moving book. The moving book keeps all of our move details in one place, and keeps me from missing any important details while I keep everything, well, moving. I use a 5.5"x8" notebook of at least 80 pages. I usually write in pencil, as moving details can change, and scratch-outs just make reading harder. A notebook with a folder pocket or zipper pouch built in is best, as it gives you a place to put a mover's contract, truck rental agreement, receipts, photos, etc.

The front page contains the old address, the new address, and phone numbers for both (if known). I change my mobile number at least a few weeks before the move and note that, too, so that I have something i can give out now to important people like my son's future school, my parents, friends, etc. well before the move so I will not end up losing touch. If you can't do this, try a service like Google Voice or Phone.com to give you a number to keep, in any area code, that you can forward to wherever you'd like or just use for voice mail. Whichever way you arrange it, list this number to keep on the front page of the moving book.
Page 2 is my moving schedule. I try hard to keep this down to a page. Too much detail isn't very useful in the early planning stages anyway.
Page 3 is where I track moving expenses. It's a pretty simple format -- one wide column for the line item name (things like "Rental Truck", "Gas", "Boxes", "Tolls", "New School Fees", "Lunch on the road" and so on), followed by two narrow columns for estimated spending (your budget) and actual spending. I mark off tax-deductible items with asterisks, that way all my work is already done when tax time rolls around.
The next few pages catalog high-value or unusual items by category. Under headings like "Furniture", "Jewelry", "Electronics", "Housewares", "Personal Items" and "Miscellaneous", I list anything expensive that is coming with us, or anything unusual (such as my fountain pen and ink collection) that I will need to check first for damage, or that I may have to justify the replacement cost of to my insurance company if our household goods are stolen or destroyed en route. I catalog the item along with brand, model, and serial number (if applicable), and take photos to show their condition.
Next comes a list of anyone/thing that needs updated contact/locale information for the move. This includes friends and family who need my new address and phone number, credit cards and other accounts that should be updated, a list of computer systems that should be changed to the new time zone, and so on.
After that, I start pages for each service I need to find in the new city. For example, a page for a new school, a page for a new karate program, and so on. Thanks to the internet, it is easy to research the options well before the move, keep notes, and then show up at the new place with your selection narrowed down to a short list of two or three for each service.
Almost done, now, I promise. The next page or two contains the LIFO (Last In, First Out) list. This is a packing list of things that will get wrapped up at the last moment for transport, and come out before anything else is unloaded. Candidates for the LIFO list include cleaning supplies, hygiene kits and a set of clothes for everyone, one or two most-loved items for each child, a camera (to document the condition of the home before you start moving in), disposable plates, napkins, and cutlery (trust me, after unloading all that stuff, you won't want to unpack and wash dishes before eating), important documents that must be accounted for (vital records, insurance policies, bank records, etc.), and something to play music on (for me at least, that makes the packing go faster).
Last but not least comes the action log -- a chronological, dated list of everything done regarding the move. Reserve the moving truck? Log it. Leave a voice mail at the new school about getting supply lists? Log it. Hear from the new landlord that your pet does not require a pet deposit? Log it. Don't forget to stick all supporting documents (receipts, photos, contracts, etc.) in your moving book's zipper pouch or folder pocket.

If you don't already use a day planner of some sort, you may want to keep to-do lists in the back of your moving book so no needed tasks fall through the cracks.

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Moving Hack: the moving book knows everything

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