Getting Organized Before the Move

With each move comes the need for purging the extras that we no longer need and organizing the items that we do need. Since we have orders overseas, I’ve decided not to wait until the last minute to start the process. Plus, this move requires a more brutal purging process for our household items which means taking a closer look at what we really need. We don’t want to pay to store items we don’t need. We also don’t want to waste our precious overseas weight allowance on “stuff” we don’t really need.

Our IKEA Trofast system is one of my favorite storage systems. I like these systems so much that we have two different kinds in our home – horizontal and vertical. In this particular unit, we store Munchkin’s Schleich animals and other animals. We also use this for Lego storage. Before a move, I try to sort through toys to donate things that Munchkin no longer needs. I also like to sort and bag Legos as the loose Legos tend to get lost during a move. The animals have already been sorted and organized, but I still have more sorting/bagging to do with the Legos. It’s a bit time consuming but worth it in the long run.

The horizontal units provide craft supply storage as well as school supply storage. When needed, we also house some of Munchkin’s toys in a bin or two. Slowly but surely, I’m making my way through all of our craft supplies as well as school supplies. Since we’re homeschoolers, we have a lot of school supplies, and it’s not always easy to determine what we’ll need (for the next 3 years) and what we can donate. As I reorganize, I’m labeling the bins as it will be easier to locate everything and put things away. Munchkin is already liking the labels on the bins.

As I’m doing all of this, I’m going around the house and gathering up our supplies and putting them all in one place. Over time, supplies have gotten placed here and there in the different rooms of the house. (We tend to school in different areas of the house during different seasons of our lives.) It’s helping me take inventory of what we really have and what we may need to get. Yes, some things will need to be purchased before we move. While this seems counter-intuitive, there are things that I’m not sure we’ll be able to get overseas which I need to keep in mind.

Our IKEA units will be making the trip overseas with us as they provide so much storage and organization for us. I can’t imagine trying to get everything organized without them. Thankfully, they don’t weigh too much.

We have a long road of purging and organizing ahead. The last thing on my list will be books. As a homeschooler, these books are my precious friends, so it will take time to tackle them…