Welcome to {Monday Mom Musings} link-up! I’m so excited you came to join the fun. Moms supporting moms is what Monday Mom Musings is all about. 
Helping a baby to adjust to a new home after a move is essential to keeping the family life peaceful and calm. As you’re unpacking boxes and determining how to order your closet, the last thing you want to deal with is an unhappy baby who’s only content being held in your arms. Of course, all mamas love snuggling a sweet silky haired baby, but hauling furniture and boxes from room to room is a whole lot easier when baby’s well-adjusted and happy in his new quarters.
This weekend my family moved into a new apartment with our one year-old daughter. She’s an incredible traveller & super flexible when it comes to moving about, but there are a few tricks I’ve got up my sleeve to make the process tear-free from both her side and mine.
1. Arrange Baby’s Room First
Even before you move into your new home, it’s important to have baby’s room set up and arranged . If you can, bring decorations from baby’s old room to hang on the walls, use the same window treatments, and be sure to have the crib made up should baby require a catnap. Baby will find his or her new surroundings much more welcoming if his room looks similar to a familiar environment and if his favorite toys are there waiting for playtime.
2. Move in the Morning
Moving in the morning means your little Miss or Mister has the entire day to adapt to his or her new environment. Haul your belonging to the new digs whenever your schedule permits, but once you determine which day to officially christen the new home, be sure to head over right after breakfast and give your little ones a mini tour of the new house. Seeing the sights and orienting themselves for the first time will be more comforting alongside mommy and daddy. If your child is a napper, be sure to settle him down for a nap during the day, so he’ll have a “test-drive” of what sleeping in his new room is like. This makes bedtime adjustment a lot simpler.
3. Allow Baby to Explore
You’ve set up his room, given him the grand tour, so now it’s time for you to unpack and for baby to explore the house. Try to make safe spaces throughout the house where baby can wander around near where you’re working, acquainting himself to new sights and sounds, colors, and textures. Remember, the more he knows the house, the more comforted he’ll feel, and hopefully the better he’ll adjust both throughout the day and at bedtime.
4. Hire an In-House Babysitter
Invite a friend or family member over to play with baby as your set up house. Not only will that free you up to put all your mental energy into the task at hand, but you’ll relax knowing that baby is in good hands. Having an extra person around the house also means that you can send someone out with baby to pick up lunch while you’re busy heaving boxes and dusting cupboards. A breath of fresh air and a walk around the neighborhood will be good for baby too.
Since we’re only wrapping up on day two of our new place, I’m sure there are many more helpful tricks we’ll be learning throughout the week. If you’ve got experience on how to help baby adjust to a new home, please do share with us!
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Love her hat! We’ll be moving with 2 young children soon so I appreciate this post!
Thanks for hosting this link-up every week, it’s really helped me “learn the ropes” as a new blogger 😉
~Elisabeth@The Beekeeper’s Granddaughter
I’m glad you’ve enjoyed {MMM}, Elisabeth. I’m not sure what I could really be teaching you, as I’m no super-blogger myself, but I appreciate it! If you need any guidance, feel free to ask and I’ll do my best to point you in the right direction.
Glad the move is going smoothly!
Thanks, Leslie. Glad you stopped by to link up with me again today. It’s great to have your familiar face!
Good luck on settling in to your new place! Moving is hard work, and I’m sure it would be even tougher with a one year old in tow. Great tips on how to make it a little easier.
Thanks, Erika. We’re enjoying the house so far. Of course, there are a few little idiosyncrasies, like the scratching mouse that seems to have crawled into the wall when the electrical outlets were switched up, but we’re loving it!
Congratulations on the new house!!
Thanks, Roshni. We’d been living with friends for months waiting to find just the right place of our own. This little house is a great deal and in the perfect location for us to be able to walk to work & the grocery.
Jelli, we moved right after my son turned 1 and it was no picnic, I know! I am going to be keeping you in my prayers this week, though it sounds like you’ve got a great game plan. And that you are still blogging and hosting this link-up for all of us?? You are a rockstar!
Thanks, Meredith! So far so good, but we’ve still got a long way to go. Boxes are taking over the living room. Have a great week.
You have many great ideas about helping kids with a move, but you failed to mention one. I am positive that the hat helped tremendously with the move (cutest thing ever, did you make it??). Thanks for the hop. I really enjoy your blog.
Rachel
TaoOfPoop.blogspot.com
I’m in love with the hat too. Actually, my mom picked it up at a craft show. I’ve looked at the business card of the woman who crocheted it, but she doesn’t have a shop website. Don’t know what I’m gonna do when Summer Elizabeth outgrows it. Thankfully, even here in Costa Rica it gets breezy & chilly sometimes (like this morning) so I have a great reason to pop it on her cute little head.
Congrats on your new place! Moving is hard work normally, but even more challenging with a baby. You have some good tips here! We’ve moved house + countries since having our son and it can be a stressful experience.
We’ve moved internationally with our baby too! She’s lived in 7 houses since she was born. Whoa! Thanks for stopping by today, Luana.
Moving with the baby was definitely hard. It was a cross country move to boot. We did set up his room first though so that he could get adjusted, but he still was very sensitive to the rest of the house being in disarray. It’s definitely important to try and stick to their routine and our schedule though I think. Thanks for these awesome tips.
Yep, it’s a challenge to move with a baby, and each one reacts differently. Since we always move into tiny places the house never stays in disarray for more than a day or so (serious minimalists here) but I can definitely see how that could make the baby less comfortable in the beginning. Hope you enjoy your new home, Yvonne! Thank you so much for stopping by this week.