Gather All Your Records: We don't often think about how many records and documents we have until we are moving and have to get them all together in one place. School and work records, medical and dental records, vet records for your pets, and personal papers such as insurance policies, wedding and birth certificates and adoption paperwork all need to be organized and kept in a safe and easily accessible location while you move.
Know Your New Address: You may be surprised, but forgetting your new address or accidentally packing away the paperwork that has your new address on it is pretty common. Be sure to make a note of your new address in a few different places just in case something is misplaced.
Cancel Clubs, Lessons and Membership Cards: Don't forget to cancel health club memberships, library cards and return movie rentals. Be sure to ask if your memberships may be transferable to a location near your new home.
Return and Collect Borrowed Items: Items that have been borrowed from friends and neighbors are easy to forget about when packing up your home. Before you begin packing, go through your home and put anything you've borrowed in a designated area so that you will remember to return them to their owners. Also ask your friends and neighbors to return items they have borrowed from you so that they can be packed with the rest of your belongings.
Designate a Contact Person: Now that most people have cell phones, this can be overlooked sometimes, but it is still a good idea, especially if you are moving a long distance away. Your contact person will be the phone number that someone can call if they need to get in touch with you, but your cell phone isn't working. Be sure to give your removalist company this phone number, as well as your friends and family. Then call your contact person on a regular basis to make sure any messages are collected.
Leave Your Garage Door Opener and Spare Keys: Many times people move all the way to their new home before they realize that they still have their old garage door opener and the spare keys for their old home. Having to send these items back to the new owners of your old house can be a little embarrassing for you, and can be inconvenient for the new owners. Also be sure to collect any spare keys you've given to neighbors or friends.
Don't Forget Your Pets: Usually this complication isn't that you've forgotten your pets, but that when you're ready to load the last kid into the car and drive away, your pet has suddenly disappeared. Cats, of course, are notorious for disappearing at the worst moments. If your pet has run off and you just can't wait any longer, ask your neighbors to keep an eye out for him and make sure he's taken care of when he shows up again.
Even when the perfect dream vacation is planned, booked, and ready to be embarked upon, there is one final obstacle: packing the bags! All of us have had bad experiences with this, and they usually involve things we forgot to pack. Oh, sure, the "important" stuff always seems to get remembered - clothes, belts, toothbrushes, and toiletries. But nothing makes seemingly unimportant items seem important like forgetting to pack them. So in this article, we'll run down four things people forget to pack that come back to haunt them!
1) Cell phone chargers
This is one of the easiest things to forget, and also one of the worst. Nothing spoils a vacation like having your cell phone die after 2 days because you left the charger in the electical outlet at home. This is even worse when you are vacationing in rural or undeveloped areas, as your chances of finding a store that sells your type of charger are very low. Your choices then become simply letting the phone die, trying to preserve the battery by turning it off for hours at a time, or just opting to not use it at all. No one wants to make that choice (especially if your phone is also your camera), so remember to pack that charger!
2) Electrical adapters when traveling overseas
Another all-too-common and very frustrating thing is to travel overseas with your laptop, only to realize that you cannot plug your three-prong cord into the electical outlet. Most overseas hotels and houses offer two-prong adapters, but not three-prong adapters. You are then forced to either scour the local marketplace for a three-prong adapter, snap the third prong off of your cord (not advised), or simply don't use your laptop. Often this last option is unacceptable, so make sure you pack a three-prong adapter before you leave if you are going overseas and need to use an appliance!
3) Reading material carried with you, not stowed in carry-on
You never know when a huge line or wait will form. It could be while you're waiting to board the plane, while you're waiting to exit the plane, or while you mysteriously get stuck on the plane during one of those infamous unexplained delays. Any number of another annoying and boring delays could crop up before you get to your destination or as you are leaving it. And in these situations, having something to read can make all the difference. Problem is, most people stash their reading material in their stow-away luggage that goes in the belly of the plane. Wont do you much good there!
4) Extra pair of contact lenses or glasses
Nothing is worse for someone who wears contacts or glasses than to have either malfunction during a trip. It is literally impossible to enjoy yourself if your contact lens tears or your glasses break. You will not be able to see any of the great sights you came for, or even concentrate on anything other than how you hate not being able to see anything. Sadly, few glasses or contact lens wearers think ahead and pack spares. They should. You will breath the world's biggest sigh of relief if you need them and actually have them available to use.
Both N. Jones & Wade Knoxville are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
N. Jones has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home Management, Home Management. Moving may seem like an easy job, but for those who have actually tried it quickly becomes clear, it is not. After a broken vase and a few scratched walls before you start to think it may have been better to hire a professional. For an experienced. N. Jones's top article generates over 2900 views. to your Favourites.
Wade Knoxville has sinced written about articles on various topics from Guns, Pets and Fitness. Wade Knoxville. Wade Knoxville's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.