4 Things I Did to Prepare For PCSing and 4 Things I Wish I’d Done

It’s been entirely too long since I’ve written here. I forgot how much work goes into moving house. This time was a bit different from our first PCS which was from Hawaii to Delaware because we’ve acquired so much in the 4.5 years we lived in Delaware. I learned a lot from our first move and a lot from this move.  When we left Hawaii we  we’d only been married for 2 years and we had the basics. Fast forward to PCS 2017 with a house full of furniture. This was essentially new to me because when we moved back in 2012 I was on break from school, had 1 kid (1 on the way) and we had ALOT less stuff. So here goes.

Things I Did:

1. Take inventory. I walked around my house and listed everything of high value (both monetary and sentimental) and decided whether or not it was something I wanted to let the movers or myself transport. The important (high value) items we decided to transport ourselves were my textbooks, jewelry, the special toys Bunny and Awesome A picked out, the family Bible and Jacob’s memory box.
2. Got copies of medical records. I got copies of everyone’s medical records including the dog’s. I know everything is a keystroke and the world wide web away, but my records were lost between Hawaii and Delaware and I learned my lesson of not to rely on technology. Make sure you put in a request for records early because it takes about a week to get them.
3. Get school records. Awesome A’s Kindergarten teacher is amazing and made sure that I had everything I needed to transfer Aaron into a new school. (I wish she could have fit in that manilla envelope). Having copies of everything made the transition easier.
4. Organize. I reorganized the living spaces and the garage about a month before we got official orders and I threw away/ gave away things and cleaned. This made it easier when it came to packing and cleaning for our final out.

Things I Wish I’d Done:

1. Get rid of more STUFF. We sold and gave away some things, but I’m not sure why I still held on to my pre Awesome A pregnancy clothes that I probably wouldn’t wear even if I returned to a size 6. Our new household rule is that if it hasn’t been used in the last 6 months or year it’s most likely a non essential and we need to get rid of it.
2. Clear out a room for things that you want to take with you. The movers packed a few things we told them not to and in hindsight it was because we pointed to piles and stacks in the corner and told a Mover A “don’t pack that” and then Mover B came along and packed it. Next time I’m clearing out a room just for the things we want to take with us. I’m going to close the door and put up a “Do Not Pack” sign.
3. Secure housing before the move. I did a great deal of research when we found out that we’d probably be going to North Carolina, but we did not make moves to start actual house hunting until the orders were official. So we spent the first week in NC in a hotel and house hunted. Next time we PCS I plan to find housing early on before we move. That way I know how much we really need to downsize. We are currently in a 1300 sqft apartment and the home we  were in was a little over 2100 sqft and we no longer have a garage or extra storage space. Finding an apartment was stressful because the hubster and I both started our jobs and had a hard time finding time to do walk throughs. And that leads into my shoulda #4
4. Don’t start working as soon as you move.  The day after our move to NC I started my new job. I should have given myself more time to get adjusted before I started working. I was so adamant about working asap because I’m still in school and I wanted to make sure that I would be able to accumulate practicum hours. I was so focus on my career goal that I didn’t consider the other components of the move that needed to get done and I ended up creating a stressful situation for myself that could have been avoided. Next time we move I’m going to give myself at least a week to get settled before I start working.

As always life is a journey and no one has the perfect road map. We all learn from our own experiences and the experiences of others. This PCS was definitely eye opening for me.