PCS and Stress: A Personal Journey
It’s that wonderful time of year where we are told to move at the U.S. Army’s behest to a new area. As exciting as it is to move to a new area, it can also be overwhelming and scary. In my opinion, the most overwhelming part about PCSing is the packing!
Trying to stay organized during this time is stressful, especially when a toddler and pregnancy are added into the mix. The good news is that my family and I have a little more time to PCS than last time. The bad news is that we must do a DITY move.
To be honest, I’m a bit more comfortable doing the DITY move so I can guarantee none of my chairs are broken and trash isn’t packed (like last time… gross). Thankfully, my in-laws volunteered to help us pack and load up the truck but I am still a bit worried about doing a DITY move across the country.
Another stressful part of this upcoming PCS for me is moving while pregnant. This made cleaning and organizing a bit more difficult because I had to do part of it while my husband was away. It is a bit challenging to try and pack as I go but also maintain an organized and clean house. I thought I was getting overly frazzled because I am ready to start the early stages of nesting, but I realized that I needed a better way to tackle these small challenges. I decided that it was time for me to look into some helpful tips and tricks to make this move a bit easier.
I began my search by looking at a few Pinterest posts. Most of the articles talked about the list and label methods. To be honest, making a list (ex: take, don’t take, etc.) helps me stay organized on a daily basis but other tips have come in handy with this upcoming move.
The most helpful article is called Moving Tips and Tricks: Our Six-Week Timeline. This article focused on the timeline the author created to help make the move easier for her and her family. The main points were:
- Set weekly goals
- Set aside items you would like to get rid of
- Set time aside for deep cleaning
- Set daily goals for packing essential and non-essential items
I will say I do love her method. It has been extremely helpful since I have random bouts of pregnancy brain. I did, however, make an exceptionally large “to-do” list that I hung in my living room that is color coded (by room):
- Red: living room
- Orange: kitchen/dining room
- Yellow: bathroom
- Green: our sons’ room
- Blue: laundry room
- Purple: master bedroom
I will be trying to set daily and weekly goals along with the color coding, so I can pack and clean more efficiently without feeling overwhelmed or getting frustrated. My personal list mainly focuses on packing the rooms one by one until its time to do some deep cleaning.
The extra reading and researching how to handle another cross-country move (this time without the help of military movers) has really put my mind at ease. At first, I was feeling very rushed and overwhelmed but making lists and discovering helpful packing tips has made packing easier for me. I’ve learned it is best and easier for me to keep making lists and setting small goals to help make this move go as smoothly as possible for my family without too many surprises.
What are your best DITY tips? Share them in the comments below!
