Making the Move ... with Kids by Jessie Weaver
When I published the article "Baby Movers" by Joy Fisher this past May, I had no idea how soon I would need the ideas within its text!
Our situation was a little different, because we moved from a rental house to an apartment; therefore, there were no showings or closings, thankfully. But I did have a whole mess of stuff to pack up, clean up, and clean out before we moved. We downsized from a four-bedroom house with a yard to a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment. Many, many items were trashed, given away, hauled away by a thrift store, and sold.
My baby, at 9 months, hasn't been at all disturbed by the move. He doesn't really care where he is as long as we keep feeding him! But my daughter, at almost 3, has all but gone bananas since we moved. It didn't help that the three weeks before moving, the kids and I went to North Carolina, their dad and I left them with grandparents and went to Boston, we went to Ohio, and THEN we went to Pennsylvania!
We found out we were moving on-campus at the school where my husband teaches while we were in North Carolina - about a week and a half before the move. So there was very little time to prepare my toddler for moving. In fact, we flew home from Pennsylvania and unceremoniously got back to the new apartment at 1 a.m. "Here's your room!" we said cheerfully. That, apparently, is NOT the way to introduce a toddler to her new space.
I could write a whole other post about the acting out, terrorizing, and not sleeping she's done since then, but I'm sure you can imagine it if you've ever had a two-year-old. We've seen some improvement ... but not a lot.
So I'm here asking for your advice: what should I be doing when almost everything in her life has changes in the past two months? Any suggestions?
When Jessie Weaver is not busy being the resident ParentLife Blogger, she writes at Vanderbilt Wife and also for magazines like HomeLife and ParentLife. She lives in Chattanooga with her husband, where they run after two little ones: Libbie (2) and David (9 months).
Comments (1)
I have a 7 year old and a 4 year old. We have had many changes in our lives the last few years as well. It has taken a lot of encouragement and positive attitude on my part. They feed off of their parents and those around them. It takes time for them just as it does for us. They like comfort. I know prayer with them always brings comfort and to encourage them you're where God wants you. Let the child create something or pick out something that is special for them. Framing drawings that they have done... make their home their own. But it does take time... they're trying to figure it all out:)
Posted on October 10, 2011 1:47 PM