Relocating can be a MOVING experience

After college, its almost inevitable to move into a different home, city, or even state. And in my opinion, its a good first step into a new stage in life. So you've graduated and now what, you basically have three options when it comes to a place to live. 1) move back in with mom and dad 2) keep living in your college apartment with the party roommates 3) find a new place to start life. I chose the third options, and it was a good one. I moved 5 hours away from home, for my job, and it was a process. Fortunately, the week before I moved, my sister moved about 12 hours away so I got to use her as a guinea pig trial run for moving techniques. With this first move, we only took a small car and a small SUV, so organization was key. Everything you own must fit like a puzzle piece to get it all packed. Unloading everything reminded me of the parable in the Bible about the five loaves and two fish because that stuff just kept multiplying. I never believed that those cars could hold enough stuff to fill her entire apartment, but to my surprise, it turned out perfect. My move was a different story because all my stuff definitely would not fit in a small car. My dad and I unloaded all my furniture, drug it up three flights of stairs, and moved it several times to get it just how I wanted it. Then we went to the store where I bought my mattress from because I somehow forgot to mention that I would want to get it delivered so we had to pick it up and then move it in ourselves. Let me tell you, watching me and my dad juggle a giant queen size mattress and box springs up three flights of stairs, around tight corners AND in the rain was quite a sight. But from all the moving events, I learned a few things that I thought could be helpful to future movers.

1) Don't buy all new things because then it won't feel like your home.
2) Be creative with decorating, (ie: I made a headboard out of my old vinyl records).

3) Work out a lot before moving to gain strength to lift lots of heavy things.
4) Reusable grocery bags are easier to move than boxes.

5) Anything larger than a couch should be delivered. If you're moving higher than the second floor, anything larger that you personally should be delivered.
6) Movers are handy and do a fantastic job, but it saves a lot of money doing it yourself. Plus it's a good experience and memory.
7) Put paper/styrofoam plates between all your dishes as extra cushions so nothing gets broken.
8) Label EVERYTHING! even if it says miscellaneous, at least you know where to put it.
9) Be sure to bring a case of water or stop at the store before you start unloading.
10) Take everyone that helped you out to dinner as a thank you.