10 Things to Do Before You Move Out of State

08 July 2019

Relocating to a new state can be a lot of things—crazy, exciting, and stressful, to name a few. The good news is that with a little intentionality, you can mold your move into a positive, enjoyable life transition. Here are ten tips to consider before you pack your bags.

Contents

1 1. Make a bucket list:
2 2. Plan to say goodbye:
3 3. Make a list of wrap-up logistics:
4 4. Make moving arrangements:
5 5. Clutter clear:
6 6. Plan to make some changes:
7 7. Learn about your soon-to-be new home:
8 8. Make a new bucket list:
9 9. Experience the honeymoon:
10 10. Remember to enjoy the ride:

1. Make a bucket list:

Life is busy. Chances are, there are places to see, food to eat, and things to do in your current state that you never got around to seeing, eating, or doing. Make a bucket list of a few of the things you think you’d regret if you moved away without experiencing. And then, make plans to make it happen.

2. Plan to say goodbye:

Moving is stressful, and it can be easy to get up in the frenzy of your to-do list. But, to have a healthy sense of closure and positive feelings when you look back on a period in your life, it’s essential to make an effort to wrap things up well. And, relationships are the most crucial piece of the wrap-up puzzle. In addition to great friends, you’ve developed relationships with all kinds of others—e.g., your neighbors, your children’s teachers, and your yoga instructor. Make a list of these folks, and plan to say goodbye. A handwritten note might suit your style, or perhaps you’d prefer to throw a colossal bbq and invite everyone. Whatever feels right to you is the best way to say goodbye and honor the people who have played a part in your experience.

3. Make a list of wrap-up logistics:

The best way to get your head around a million moving logistics is to make a good old-fashioned list. There are a million moving checklists online to get you started. Then, you can open a notebook or your laptop and make your custom list. We recommend a master task list with deadlines to keep you on track toward your big move.

4. Make moving arrangements:

When are you leaving? Where are you going? How will you get your stuff there? These seem like obvious questions, but we recommend sitting down and thinking through every detail. Once you have your plan on paper (or screen), the actual moving will feel much less daunting.

5. Clutter clear:

Moving states is not just a geographical location change; it’s a significant life transition. And, an excellent opportunity to assess the stuff you have and decide what you want to keep and what to leave behind. A good question to ask yourself when you look at an item in your house is, “Do I want to carry this into the future? Or, do I want to leave it in the past.” If your answer is yes to the former, pack it up. If it’s yes to the latter, donate it before you go.

6. Plan to make some changes:

In addition to this time being an excellent opportunity to clutter clear your physical space, it’s also a time to make any necessary changes to your lifestyle. Think about any bad habits you want to “leave behind” and new ones that you want to have with you when you arrive at your new home. Relocating to a new state is a rare fresh start. It can give you an opportunity to reinvent yourself, and if you want to make the change even more seriously, you could even change your name. If you’re relocating to California, there are services that allow you to legally change your name with no problems. However, you should do research on the laws of your state before undergoing this kind of process.

7. Learn about your soon-to-be new home:

It can be fun to start learning about your new city early, so you can hit the ground running when you arrive. Think about what’s most important to your lifestyle and virtually explore the offerings near your new home. Whether you’re typing the words “Brisbane best butcher” or “hot yoga in Denver” into the search bar, you’ll be on your way to finding cool new spots to frequent in your new digs.

8. Make a new bucket list:

Earlier, we mentioned that many of us get busy and forget to partake in all the unique experiences offered by a particular city or state. Avoid that by starting your bucket list early! Every time you get a restaurant suggestion or learn about a historical landmark that’s a must-visit, write it down! Then, you can refer back and never feel short of cool things to do.

9. Experience the honeymoon:

Much like with new relationships, many of us experience a “honeymoon” period when we move to a new place. The possibilities are endless, and the future is bright. New experiences are making new chemicals flow, and you feel good. Plan to take advantage of this good energy and explore your surroundings. You’ll be setting a beautiful foundation for your time in your new city.

10. Remember to enjoy the ride:

Above all, enjoy! Moving out of state marks an exciting time in your life—take full advantage of it.

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Ariana Smith

I enjoy writing and I write quality guest posts on topics of my interest and passion. I have been doing this since my college days. My special interests are in health, fitness, food and following the latest trends in these areas. I am an editor at Content Rally.

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Care Free Fun: 5 Fun and Family-Friendly Activities for Children With Special Needs

54 million people have special needs in the United States.The same source says that around 2.8 million of those are children between the age of 5 and 15.That’s a lot of unique young people looking to have fun in their spare time! Kids have masses of energy to burn at the best of times. However, the specific additional requirements of children with special needs can vary widely, and affect the activities they enjoy accordingly.It’s always helpful to have some fun ideas up your sleeve that'll ensure everyone’s entertained!Keep reading to discover 5 awesome activities for children with special needs. 5 Awesome Activities for Children with Special Needs: Check out these ideas for some extra special entertainment. For some extra help, here’s a great special needs planner! 1. Get Out Into Nature:The outdoors is often ideally suited for kids with special needs.Sensory experience is sometimes vital stimulation. The wind, smells, sounds and sights of nature are all valuable distractions for high-energy children!Likewise, many organizations have set up nature experiences for kids with special needs. There are accessible walkways, activities, and playgrounds, filled with other kids and families having fun. 2. Go to a Story Time Workshop:Most children love story time.However, sitting quietly in one place can sometimes be difficult, especially where special needs come into play.Storytime workshops (often found in libraries) offer a great alternative. A combination of stories, singing, and other sensory activities are sure to keep your kids happy and engaged.Likewise, you could do the same at home. Sing and dance your way around a story! 3. Get Creative: Some of the most artistic people in the world have special needs.Celebrate that by getting creative with your kids. Get out the paper, pens, and paints. Try finger painting, body painting and other methods that involve sensory experiences.You can also find special coloring pencils and crayons. These are designed to help a child with certain special needs to hold them. 4. Get Immersed in the Senses: We’ve already noted the importance of sensory experience to some special needs children.Immersion rooms are specifically designed to cater for this enjoyment. Every sense is covered. Special lighting, sounds, tactile experiences, and so on, are all in one room. 5. Go to a Special Film Showing: Children often love watching films.However, special needs children might struggle to sit down for long periods, or dislike the loud noises, and low lighting. Special needs film showings address these factors.Kids can walk, talk and play, all while a film runs in the background. Time to Wrap Up: There you have it: 5 top activities for children with special needs.Millions of people in the US walk through life with special needs. A significant number of them are children. Every child has the right to a fun-filled childhood, regardless of the personal challenges they may face.Thankfully, these days there’s no limit to the number of opportunities available to make that happen. Hopefully, the ideas above have provided inspiration for your next day out with your own children!Did you like this piece? Click here to read how to support family and friends with special needs.Read Also:Best Locations For Children’s Birthday Parties Tips For Throwing A Family Reunion People Will Remember For Years Style Your Child: How To Find Comfy And Cute Clothing For Kids Should You Send Your Child With Autism To A Regular Summer Camp? 8 Family Friendly Careers That Offer Great Pay And Work-Life Balance

Things every Employee ought to know about Medical and Family Leaves

Family and medical leaves are necessarily crucial for every employee who works in an organization. Different countries have different laws that let a worker permit adequate leaves whenever required.An organization has a provision for leaves, and one has the right to apply for the leaves whenever necessary. But the undeniable truth is; some company’s don’t offer paid leaves to their employees while some of them are not eligible for unpaid leaves!One can consider taking legal action against the firm if they are not provided with the benefits of medical and family leaves. Here we’ll be discussing the aspects related to family and medical leaves and the associated laws.One can consider a Medical Leave whenever they wish to: The law provides an employee the legal right to apply for medical leaves whenever they are feeling sick, or require treatment for a disease. Sometimes, depending on the type of the disease, one can apply for adequate leaves until the illness is completely cured.However, one needs to fulfill certain criteria to be eligible for the medical leaves. A proper medical certificate from the hospital must be presented to the company to avoid unnecessary deductions from the salary. In some rare cases, you have to manage with unpaid leaves due to different policies of the organization.Women usually face issues with the employer when they require maternity leaves during their pregnancy. Some organizations have strict policies that offer limited leaves and that too under certain circumstances. One can challenge these policies in the court to get the maximum benefit of maternity leaves. You May Not Be Entitled to Family Leaves without a Medical Proof: Before you just apply for the sick leaves or family leaves, you must always keep in mind that your organization may demand medical proof from a reputed doctor. Sometimes you may require to leave to attend your family member who is suffering from a serious illness.This is a condition, which may not entitle you to a paid medical leave, but you can still expect casual leaves from your organization. It is advised that one should give advanced notice if they require more than two leaves for the treatment of a critical disease. Moreover, a valid health certificate is required for the same.You Need to Serve the Company for at least 12 Weeks for Entitling for Leaves: Another crucial aspect related to the family and medical leaves is the overall period that you have served the company. One can expect leaves from the company when they have at least worked for 12 weeks.Apart from this, in most of the cases, these leaves are unpaid leaves. You can take leaves of a maximum of 12 weeks without getting paid. You may get another Job Profile depending on the Availability of a Vacancy: Once you are ready to join the organization after a long time, your company has the right to appoint you to a different position depending on the availability of a post.The organization can’t deny appointing you again, but the job profile may vary. Be sure you discuss these things with your employer in advance.These are perhaps the aspects related to the medical and family leaves that every employer should know.Read More : 1. The Disturbing Trend Of Multiple Chronic Medical Conditions 2. Ten Interview Tips That Might Surprise You: The Medical Edition

10 Helpful Kid Closet Organization Hacks

Every parent knows how hard it is to keep their kid's room clean. In a matter of minutes, a perfectly clean space and be destroyed by little hands.This applies to closets as well. But the good news is there are things you can do to keep your child's closet more organized.We've gathered the top 10 helpful kid closet organization hacks you can try out at home.Check them out below! 1. Start with the Essentials : When doing any sort of home or DIY project, you have to make sure you have all the supplies you need. This totally applies when it comes to kid closet organization.The good news is that you don't have to spend a lot of time creating or assembling things. Most of these items are available at local stores and are simple to implement.Here's a basic list of things you may need:Kid-sized hangers (Adult ones are too big and will lead to disorganization) A hamper Storage baskets Drawer inserts Hooks for the wall Shelf dividersHead to your local home decor store and you will be on your way to complete closet organization. 2. Utilize Storage Bins : Another kid closet organization hack is to add extra storage. As you've dealt with your child's closet, you probably have noticed that there's not enough storage space.This is a common problem. But there are many solutions!The biggest thing is choosing what kind of storage solution that you need. Do you have young children who can't reach their hangers? Or do your kids have a lot of toys and nowhere to keep them? Perhaps you have two kids sharing one closet.No matter what, adding storage is your solution. Here are some potential options:Bins Baskets Extra wire shelves Rubbermaid containers3. Have a Designated Place for Shoes : Have you ever walked into your kid's room and found pair after pair of little shoes lying around on the floor? This is a common frustration for many parents.One way to solve this problem is to have a designated place for shoes in your little one's closet.You could have a specific basket on the floor of their closet that your kids can easily access.Another way to organize their shoes is to have a specific shelf that they can reach that is for shoes only. 4. Develop a Hanging System : It can be hard for kids to pick out clothes when there is no organization system in place. One way to fix this problem is to come up with a hanging system.One idea is to hang them by category. You can split things up according to these styles:Short sleeve shirts Long sleeve shirts Tank tops Dress shirts Dresses Shorts Pants Pajamas And any other categories they haveYou could also coordinate them by color if this system is too complicated. Either way, this is a great kid closet organization hack. Your kids will know exactly where to put their clothes, whether they're Nicki's Gucci for kids or their pajamas. 5. Another Kid Closet Organization Hack: Go Vertical : Some closets are so small or are so packed already that there's no room for extra shelves or bins. In this case, consider going vertical with your storage.One great way to do this is to utilize the door. Pick up an inexpensive shoe organizer that hangs on the back of the door. This can be used to store a variety of things, including shoes, clothes, and toys.If you have a baby, you could keep diapers, wipes, or onesies in a shoe organizer as well. And the best part is that you're not taking up any shelf space with it! 6. Label it All : With so many bins and baskets, it can be hard to keep things straight. That's why labeling is a great idea.If you have a label maker, this is super easy. Just create different ones for toys, shirts, pants, etc.If you don't have a label maker, that's totally fine as well! You can create them just using paper.Then just glue or pin the labels to each storage container.This will make your life much simpler! 7. Double Your Hanging Space : Many apartments and homes only have one closet rod and, usually, it's up high. For little ones, these are often impossible to reach.That's where closet doubler rods come in handy. You can install them below the normal rod and they're not that hard to do.Having this means your kids can reach their clothes easier but it also doubles their amount of hanging space. 8. Color Coordinate Bins : If your kids can't read yet, labels will do very little to help them organize. Instead, consider color-coordinating their storage bins.For example, red could be for books, blue could be for toys, and yellow could be for shoes.Whatever you decide to do as far as colors, help your child understand the difference between the various containers. 9. Keep Two Extra Containers in Their Closet : If you're like most parents, you have a lot of clothes for your child. Some they have outgrown and others they haven't grown into yet.These can cause a lot of clutter in your kid's closet if you're not careful. That's why it's a great idea to always keep 2 large containers, one for each category.That way it's all organized. This is especially great if you have more than one child. This makes organizing hand me downs much easier. 10. Stop Sibling Fights : Did you know that the average pair of siblings fight or argue 3.5 times every single hour?As a parent, you want to do everything you can to stop this from happening! One great way is through keeping their closet organized.If you have kids that share a closet, divide the space. Make a clear division between their clothes to avoid unnecessary contention. Final Thoughts : Now that you've read through these closet organization hacks, it's time to implement them!Choose your favorites and try them out.Have questions? Feel free to contact us.Want to discover more parenting hacks? Check out our blog!Read Also :10 Effective Homework Tips For Your Kids Things Every Employee Ought To Know About Medical And Family Leaves