To start packing 13 days before move?

[ItsBuisnessTime]

We're (myself, DH, 3 DC's - 4, 3 and 1) moving in 13 days from a 2 bed flat, to a 3 bed house.

I want to start packing now, as so far, literally nothing has been done. I've started some minimal deep cleaning as life with three small children in a small environment equals chocolate finger prints everywhere and the occasional wall drawing, so I've been doing some touch up painting and skirting board/door cleaning etc to get the ball rolling.

However, in my mind, 13 days is quite a race to get our entire lives packed up and spotlessly clean our current flat, on top of looking after our three small children!

DH thinks we have all the time in the world, and I needn't start packing anything yet!

AIBU to just start? I planned to do the kitchen and the bathroom today - putting away things like the slow cooker, soup maker, a few utensils, stacks of plates and the majority of cutlery, pots and pans that never really get used etc. In the bathroom - just leaving out the essentials... you get my drift!

I ideally want most rooms packed up within the next few days so that I can properly clean everywhere, as going backwards and forwards between the kids demands and needs means I feel as though we don't actually have a great deal of time!

Sorry for the long post! Any veteran movers with an insight to when I should reasonably start packing and deep cleaning - please give tips!

I packed the majority of the house in about 5 days, which was when our boxes were delivered. Some of those days I was working but children were of an age that didn’t need supervising. It was hideous.

I thought we didn’t have that much stuff but it took forever. Even more annoying was DH. When I asked him 3 days before the move when HE was going to start packing he said “hhhmmm...”

Two weeks before moving sounds like loads of time!

Different circumstances, but DD and me packed and moved in 24 hours.

It was crazy, and we didn't know which way was up, but we did it.

Definately make a start. There are going to be things you are not going to miss for 2 weeks and doing it a bit at time means you can do it in an organised fashion.

Doing it in a panic the night before will end up with you not being able to find anything for 2 weeks after you have moved in.

Luckily we don't need to get a professional clean done, it isn't in our contract and our landlady doesn't expect us to hire anyone from outside to clean the property, so it's probably just me putting extra pressure on my myself to ensure the place is as clean as can be!

We don't have masses of furniture, so whatever gets packed up will be able to stay tucked away in corners here and there - I'd rather manoeuvre my way around boxes for a week or so, than pack last minute I think!

Regarding the DC's touching the boxes - we have a baby gate for our lounge, and they spend 90% of their time locked in there! They use the bathroom obviously, but most times they're supervised as they're all boys so often like to tinkle on the floor! When we do let them out of the lounge to run around the rest of the flat, again, they're supervised as we don't have a gate across our kitchen! They're pretty good at listening when I tell them not to do something, so I don't think them tearing through packed boxes will be a major issue really!

I'm not sure why DH is so reluctant to start packing, tbh I think he just can't be arsed with the work! He's a serial procrastinator and very much has the general attitude of 'it'll all work out' - I'm a worrier and an over planner though!

I recommend 'magic sponges' for sticky fingerprints on walls etc.

We've always had professional movers, and a team of 4 can pack a 4bed house in several hours. But they aren't sorting or cleaning. And presumably, you will be looking after children why doing it. So yes, start now.

Yeah the kids are definitely eating up a lot of my time! The bathroom should've taken me no more than an hour today - but it's now approaching three and a half as I had to keep stopping and starting due to my 1 year constantly screaming!

Deep breaths. I'll get there!

We moved three times over 18 months. The first was out of our large converted barn which was our family home for 25 years. Big rooms and lots of storage meant we had hoarded sooo much stuff. It took DH and I a full month to get packed. Everything was going into store, except clothes, a small amount of kitchen stuff, and electronics.
DH made daily trips to the tip. Sometimes more than one trip a day. Often to more than one tip. We visited charity shops with donations almost daily, in fact we donated to the Cancer Research shop so often that they knew our postcode. We tried to clean and do the odd spot of painting as we went along bit despite the month of work I was still running out of the door with mop and bucket as the new owners drove up 😥

Omg I'd have started a month ago (sorry not helpful)

Do you work? Surely 13 days actually equals this weekend and next? Barely any time at all especially with 3 kids!

@Auntycorruption I don't work, no, I stay at home with the children, which I think is also what's making me want to pack up everything now because as much as I love my DC's, they do literally take up all of my time, sunrise to sunset! So squeezing in all the packing and cleaning around them is going to be difficult!

[quote ItsBuisnessTime]@Auntycorruption I don't work, no, I stay at home with the children, which I think is also what's making me want to pack up everything now because as much as I love my DC's, they do literally take up all of my time, sunrise to sunset! So squeezing in all the packing and cleaning around them is going to be difficult! [/quote]
You're absolutely right.

That makes me wonder if DH is expecting this all to get magically sorted by the same" fairy" that looks after kids & house all the time. Is him saying he doesn't see the need to start actually because he doesn't want to do it himself and thinks you can just fit it in while he's at work? If so he is a twat, obviously

Start. Start now.

You will be bloody amazed how look it takes to pack a place up!! Even a one bedroom flat!

Agree that the full packing service from the removal company is surprisingly reasonable. For me, it was worth every penny.

I started a month before. It's felt calm and stress-free so far

I had 3 DC and 2 under 2 so I booked movers that packed. They turned up the day before the move and packed up my whole 4 bedroom house in less than 3 hours. One of the men that did it was in the local paper as being a record breaking packer!

And hire an end of tenancy clean. The cleaning is the real ballache of the process.

@therearenogoodusernamesleft

And hire an end of tenancy clean. The cleaning is the real ballache of the process.

I second this. It made my last move so much less hassle. Money well spent.

But start packing now. It takes more time than you think.

Regarding the professional clean - I am hoping to avoid coughing up the money for that, as the move itself is costing us around 3k, so if I clean the place myself, I'd rather do that!

I've finished packing away the bathroom! Only bare essentials left in there now and I keep the bathroom as clean as possible due to weekly thorough cleans in there, so all I really need to do is wipe down the inside of the built in cupboard, and maybe pour some drain unblocker down the bath and sink!

It's a small win, but I already feel a little more relaxed knowing at least 1 room out 5 is done!

Thank you to everyone who's told me to just get on with it!

DH is still very much of the belief that I'm starting too early, but unfortunately I can't just bring myself to get on his 'chilled' wavelength 🤷🏻‍♂️😂

another one who assumed that you are panicking about not having enough time. It always takes longer than you think to pack.

I'd give him one thing to pack like a small bookcase or kitchencupboard, time how long and then multiple by cupboards etc to show him how long it will take

Definitely start now, we had loads of help and packed what we thought was most of the house but my goodness it was hard work not helped by no moving company being able to fit us in!

I'd have started weeks ago!

The least stressful move I had was one where I had three weeks in which to do it. I gutted the flat of anything I couldn't be arsed to wrap and pack as I went along, doing the less urgent stuff in the first week, the main stuff in the second and by the end of the third, all I had left to do was get the appliances/big furniture out and clean up where they had been.

13 days? I started packing three months before I moved.

Your dh is is cloud cuckoo land and sound like he is expecting you to pack and clean the bulk whilst looking after 3 children?

I would write a list of everything that needs doing. Then you and dh allocate doing stuff every evening for the next 13 days.
If all children in bed by 8pm, together you can probably get a lot more done in 90mins than you can all day with small children.

Are you packing everything or do you need to sort and bin/ charity stuff you don’t want to take with you?

13 days to go and nothing packed. I would be having panic attacks and nightmares. That isn’t an exaggeration. It would trigger my anxiety in a huge way.

DH and I would be spending the entire weekend packing and if he gave me any pushback on that it would probably end up being the biggest row of our marriage.