Moving homes can be quite a project - especially with a baby in tow. Jersey City mom Alyssa Birkhofer details her recent move in town and how she kept it easy for her little one.
As if moving wasn’t stressful enough, let’s add in the baby factor! My family just moved within Jersey City last week and boy was it crazy. There are still boxes to be broken down, suitcases to unpack, dishes to unwrap, but we did it.
For all his life (the whole 14 months of it), Cameron had only known one place to call home. Moving him to a new environment stressed me out. He doesn’t always sleep so great in hotels or at grandma’s house, so I knew there’d be an adjustment period. To successfully get him acclimated – and sleeping well so we could unpack all night – I made sure the following:
- His room set up was similar to the old place – including the same furniture, pictures on walls, sound machine, and similar layout.
- I added in some new toys – or toys we hadn’t yet dug into from his birthday in June. Nothing makes a kid happier to be in a room where there are new toys all for him or her!
- We got in early – an overlap with our two leases was critical. It gave us time to have some things in there and set up so the baby wasn’t coming home to a total scene that day after daycare.
- I didn’t forget his bathroom – Cameron gets nervous about new tub situations. I made sure that although it’s still a new bathroom, his tub, bath toys, towel, water pourer were all there to make him comfortable. Don’t get me wrong, he was nervous at first but it only took him a minute to realize everything was fine.
While keeping things “normal” definitely helps, a new place is also a great time to refresh. Have fun decorating and adding in some new pieces for your baby. You should feel just as happy and comfortable as you’d like your little one to. Welcome home!