Moving My In-Laws--HELP!

[Liz D.]

I once heard a great suggestion.  When you pack a box, date it, then put it away.  If you come across that box later and the date is over a year, just throw the box out without looking in it.  You obviously really don't need what is in there if you haven't look at it in a year.  It sure helps prevent the hoarding!!!

Liz D.

[meow]

Hey, they DO have a caffeine patch, called Energy Spot. I ordered 12 for 9.99, shipping included, 2-3 day delivery!

I won't get them til Monday or Tuesday, but we'll still be moving stuff next week. I'll report back on how they work.

[Joe S.]

We were informed today that we will have to help our daughter move the end of August first of September. No idea where. She is hopeful she will have an apartment by then.

[irish]

Liz, For those of us who are older and have lost parents, etc., the boxes of stuff we save are usually things that we save for our older kids. I know that I had 3 of everything for several years. If my toaster died I just went to the basement and got another one out of a box.

It was good for saving money, but it was an emotional drain trying to move stuff around and sort it out. Sent things with the kids when they left for school.

Joe, see, it isn't ever over. The last son and his wife that we moved this spring was really hard on us but we wouldn't have not done it. We had to help paint and clean up the inside of the house they bought as they had just had a new baby. Life is always busy. Hope you can rest up and feel half way decent for the big occasion. Irish

[meow]

Well, 2 days of moving Ethan Allen furniture across the street, packing up essential bath and kitchen stuff, and closets full of clothes, a washer and dryer, trading out the refrigerators---and I live to tell the tale.  Saturday was pretty grueling, but they slept in the new place Saturday night, and we began again Sunday morning.
We were all dragging Sunday, but the worst of the heavy lifting was over. Praise to the caffeine gods!

The men did the furniture and appliances, the nieces carried armsful of clothing, we had a pallet and dolly for boxes, even a wagon. I would have loved a Home Depot shopping cart for all the pantry cans.

Still not finished by a long shot. Dishes need to go to the china cabinet, all the pictures need to be transfered,  The 100 Rugbeaters (sounds like a Merchant Ivory film) need to relocate, and a dozen cabinets full of yard sale and future landfill need to be cleaned out. Patio furniture, the grills (yes, plural), and then there's ... the attic.

But they have the necessities and most of the niceties, and we have til summer to get the rest done.

I followed all of your good advice, and feel great today.

[Joe S.]

When the kids moved into their current (first) house. We would take weekends of and drive the 230 miles to do work on the house. I had a friend in the area that was a contractor help. We ran phone, data and power on the main floor. We also remodeled the basement to put in a spare bed room and family room with wet bar. We dug out the foundation, put in drain tile and three new entry decks and new walks. It took us about three months to do everything. They will be lucky to get what they paid for out. They are talking about renting when they move to the cities. I think they will have one or two big U-Hauls to move. His folks are in better shape than Jan and I are and he may ask his brothers for help. They are planning on renting I do not think that is a good option but it is their decision.

[warmwaters]

Lot of financial types are advising renting for now to see what happens with the real estate market. If the kids  are sure they are going to stay where they are moving to and can get a great deal, that's one thing, but they could end up buying a place, have to move again, and that house has now lost value.

[irish]

It is really hard these days on the young couples. The rent is so darn high and the apartments, which are mainly condos or condo like, don't offer anything much as there is usually no yard or even a garage. Our boys all know how to fix cars and do the heavy duty repairs. There is no way a person can do this and save money unless you find a good friend with a heated pole shed and a cherry picker.

Also, like was said, renting or buy??? What is safe these days. Our youngest son and wife just bought a house and it needs work, so any money they spend they may not get back. How in the heck do you make a rational decision in irrational times??

Joe, you sound like our family. My hubby and I have gutted and redone, rewired, replumbed, re--everything out house. Then hubby moved on to help our oldest son raise up his house and put a new energy saving basement under it. Lots of other stuff.Hubby put jacks under our pole shed 4x4's and lifted it up and then proceeded to cut off the 4x4's in order to lower the building. I took pictures cause all the neighbor kids came on their motorcycles to watch. I would bet you are born and raised in the country. The other thing is that people of our generation have had to make do----so we just learned how to make do.

I thought I would die working that hard and then getting up and going to work, but you know, I wish I was healthy and could do it again. irish

[gurs]

I just moved a few months ago while in a bad flare (what's new-ha ha) and the stress is just the worst, also the physical toll. With the arthritis in my spine, I couldnt walk for a month after..nightmare. After most of the move, I stayed in bed for a month to de-stress and my back improved. People just dont get it how the stress is a major factor
in autoimmune activity...I now am having to help my mom move soon, which is causing me to stress as well.....need a break.

Just take alot of mental breaks..shut the bedroom door for a few hours-peace and quiet, then start up again when your able. Make sure you try and eat and drink alot
of water.

Feel your pain!!!

Gursie

[Joe S.]

Meow, How is your move going? Have you got your folks moved? Are you moving into their house? Are you too tired to respond?

Irish, When I first got fibro, I was still trying to purchase, and remodel, rental property. I sold it all and lost the last duplex over my health issues. We raided my wife's pension to purchase this house. The value has remained close to what we paid for it. The county believes it is worth twice what we paid for it. Our insurance (replacement) is for three times what we paid for the house.

Eventually real estate will turn around (after 2013). We have the third wave of foreclosures this Christmas. The banks do not have enough people to process the paper work that they have created so it may take a couple of years to get through it.

It will take a few more years for people to have enough faith to start new businesses again. The bulk of jobs are from small businesses not big corporations. Our economy will recover and the value of property will increase again because land is limited. I miss the section of the news paper that posted rental rates in various areas of the cities. They also used to post home sales figures in the area.

I still wish I/we could be a vital part of the recovery of our economy for our childrens sake.

[meow]

Joe, I'm doing pretty well. No extra aches or fatigue, other than what you would normally expect from carrying stuff around all for 2 days.

Renting is so insecure. My son and his ex fiancee rented a house, paid every month, kept the receipts, and one evening here comes the sheriff with an eviction notice. Why? My son shows him the receipts for all that rent, and it turnes out the owner didn't make the house payment. So they had 30 days to move--not enough time to find a decent place, much less gather a deposit together. They called the owner repeatedly, trying to get their deposit back, but owner wouldn't return  the calls.

So they moved to an apartment, and left the furnitutre that wouldn't fit/didn't want, tossed out the trash and the food in the fridge, but didn't clean up the way you normally would. THAT got the owner to call, finally, and he wanted to charge them for leaving the stuff there. My son told him, "You hire someone to haul that away, show me a receipt that shows it cost more than the $800 deposit I gave you, and we'll talk."

[irish]

All of you dealing with moving inlaws and outlaws are dealing with a stress that is not understood until a person has done it themselves. For a healthy person it can be devastating not to mention what all the stress does to a person with a chronic disease.

THEN, kick in the economy that has snuck into this discussion and we all know why we are all having flares. It doesn't have to be our personal problems that drag us down as anything that happens to our family/kids/folks, etc impacts on our health big time. irish

[meow]

Well, the move is now at about 80% at this point. I spent 3-4 hours a day over spring break hanging pictures and moving various boxes, then unpacking them. My in-laws have been fabulous. And as soon as my MIL wants to call it a day, I do one more thing, and then we have lunch. She's 80, and I will not be more tired than an 80-year-old.
So far, so good. We are leaving the Xmas and Halloween decorations in the old attic, and will bring them over at the respective holidays, so we don't have to crawl around in the attics more than once.

Next we'll be painting/removing the maple panelling in the old den (Brady Bunch!), and removing the flowered wallpaper in the kitchen, and painting all the brown wood doors before we move in. That will make it tolerable. Then we have to get our current house ready to sell---a week of work, I'd say.
Then the real work begins, renovating that huge house from the 60s.

[Carolina]

It is too hard to read about moving.

My heart goes out to you,meow.

I moved three times in 6 months, with knee surgery and an 1800 mile drive with two cats thrown in for good measure.

sounds  like you have it all under control.

Keep us posted.

Hugs

Elaine

[Joe S.]

My youngest is planning a 230+ mile move. They are planning on selling their (3/2) house  in Moorhead and moving to the Twin Cities Metroplex so she can get her Ph. D. I know that we will have to help with the move and be ready to baby sit and run errands. I hope that they move close enough to make that easy. I am not going to hold my breath.