Leaving the home you grew up in is an emotional experience. Even if it isn't the house you grew up in, leaving it can feel like you’re leaving something more significant than four walls and a roof. To make the transition easier, here are some tips you apply to make the departure a happier one.
1. Take a Goodbye Tour
This is particularly helpful for young children. Stroll through the inside and outside of your home. Let the kids point out their favourite thing about each location and share memories of things that happened there. Remember to bring a camera with you (or video camera) to take pictures or record the event. Then, move the tour to the neighbourhood to capture all your favourite local spots.
2. Create a Goodbye Book
After the tour, print out the pictures and create a scrapbook with the kids. Let them help you with the captions and date them. Identify every photograph, especially those important to your children. Once you move into your new house, look for some similarities you can point out to the children to help them feel more at home in their new place.
3. Host a Farewell Party
Many people host a house-warming party when they move into a new home, so why not have a farewell party for the home too? After so many enjoyable years in your home, it deserves a farewell celebration, which will also help put a more positive spin on leaving. Invite your closest friends and neighbours to help you say goodbye.
You could make this a simple dinner party or a huge outdoor bbq. Order some pizza and drinks; feed those who helped you move furniture; and just have a good time with those you may not see again for a while.
4. Leave Your Mark
You can leave a little bit of your family behind in the form of handprints left in cement or initials carved in a tree. Unless the new owners make big changes, those things will remain there for years to come. Knowing they'll still be there helps you feel like you’ve left a mark on the place you used to call home. Then, if you visit years later, you can look at your mark and reflect on the good times.
5. Take a Memento with You
You and your children might appreciate having something from the house when you leave — even more so if it was a home that you built. This could be anything from a scrap of wallpaper, house key, or even a flower or plant from the yard that reminds you of where you lived. Over time, you and your children will come to appreciate and love your new home, but these few scraps from the past will always hold happy memories.
If you are looking to move locally, interstate, or internationally, get in touch with the team at Chess Moving on 13 14 69, or read more about moving stress-free.