Helping Your Big Kids Move
Helping Your Big Kids Move
The transition isn’t a small one; it takes a lot of management and attention to ensure that you both have an enjoyable and supportive time.
Written by Liz Bayardelle, PhD | See Comments | Updated 09/28/2021
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Helping Your Big Kids Move
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The time has come for your biggest kids to leave the nest. It can feel a little bit overwhelming for both you and them. It’s fantastic that they are out in the world experiencing everything that life has to offer—meeting new people, enjoying new experiences and if they are off to college - learning new things too.
The transition isn’t a small one either; it takes a lot of management and attention to ensure that you both have an enjoyable and supportive time. However, this is more about them than it is about you!
Talk it Over
Talk about the move, and talk about simple things like organising time, cooking certain meals, and even talk about what day a week you will keep in touch.
The more you talk about it, the more it will feel like something natural to you both when the time comes. While they are still a child to you, they will be treated as an adult to most other establishments - you can arm them with plenty of vocal support and information ahead of the move.
Another big thing is in advance of them leaving using some of the tips in this post: Teaching Your Children The Value Of The Simple Things In Life.
Select the Stuff
Not everything they own will go with them. If they are moving into college dorms, they won’t be taking things like their bed or shelves - but they will be taking everything else. One of the best ways to remove some of the moving pressure is to have two men and a truck tackle all heavy lifting.
Leaving you to have a lovely casual drive in the car - without being overwhelmed by boxes of stuff.
Help your child sort through what they want to take and what they will leave.
Secret Care Box
While your child is busy sorting through the books they want to take; you can be busy creating a separate and secret box. In the box, add things that are perfect in case of an emergency.
Sachets of hot chocolate for a pick-me-up after a long day, some space cash, extra fluffy socks, and some food delivery take-out vouchers can make a huge difference.
It’s also not a bad idea to pack some new clean sheets and other things to help save cash.
Homesickness can and does happen - especially when they haven’t been away from home for this amount of time or this far away before.
If you have some recipes that you often cook, and you know they love, write them all down and add them into a small recipe book. That way, if they ever miss your cooking, they can try it for themselves.
Support
Your child is about to become the star of their very own show, all of the decisions that they make now; you are most likely going to be told about - rather than involved in. While it’s fantastic to see them thrive, you’re still the support network they need.
Helping them feel confident and happy in their decision can be as simple as letting them know that you will always be there no matter what time it is and what is going on.
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About the Author
Liz Bayardelle, PhD
Founder | Contributor
Liz (or Dr. Mommy, as her toddler started calling her after learning what a PhD was) is the happily sleep-deprived mom of a toddler (and professional raccoon noise impersonator), a sparkle-clad kidnado, a teenage stepdaughter, 200 cumulative pounds of dog, and herd of dustbunnies (if daily vacuuming doesn't occur). During nights and naptimes, she uses her PhD in business psychology as an author, speaker, and consultant. She also serves as an executive and principal for three companies, two of which she co-founded with her very patient (and equally exhausted) husband.