Today is my first day off in 29 days, isn’t that crazy! All of the projects that I tackled over the month of April have really caught up with me and I today I am going to turn off my phone and chill out at home. I have a few projects that I have been wanting to work on around my house so the only reason I’ll leave the house is to go to the hardware store and maybe Starbucks, can’t live without it!
Last week was moving day for my client Nancy and I wanted to share a quick recap of the project. I actually moved the same client 2 years ago (click here for that post). To prepare for her move 2 years ago we worked for 3 months to declutter, sort, and pack so she would only be taking what she needed. She moved from a 2,400 square foot home into a 1,300 square foot apartment. We knew the move would be transitional as she really wanted to buy a condo but we didn’t know when she would find the right one.
Last month she contacted me to let me know she found the perfect condo and would be moving at the end of April and she wanted my help managing the move. Because we spent so much time preparing for her last move I knew she would be in pretty good shape organizationally. I stopped by for a consultation and brought my assistant Matt along because I wanted him to be the project manager for all of the prep leading up to the moving day. I thought it would be a good fit considering Matt is Nancy’s son, ha! I met Matt 2 years ago when I helped her move the first time!
After the consultation we came up with a game plan, shopping list, and a schedule for tasks to be completed. The big tasks on the list were to line all of the shelves in the bathrooms and kitchen and to build shelving in the garage. Matt also needed to shop for moving supplies and start the packing process.
The day before the move I came to help pack up the kitchen, the home office, and the master bedroom. The three of us packed and sorted and moved all of the artwork over to her new condo so it wouldn’t have to be wrapped by the moving company.
On moving day Matt and I arrived at 7:30 to finish any last-minute packing and meet the movers from All Reason’s Moving and Storage. The wardrobe boxes were the first thing off the moving truck so Matt and I could start to pack all of the hanging clothes. Whoever invented these boxes is a genius! I always fill the bottom with shoes or extra linens to maximize the boxes. These boxes usually come off the moving truck on the other end of the move so they can be unpacked while the movers are bringing in the furniture.
After we packed up all of the hanging clothes and last-minute details I sent Matt to the new condo to unload a few boxes that we packed in his van and Nancy stayed back with the movers. While he did that I pick up breakfast for Matt, Nancy and myself at Starbucks.
The first room I ALWAYS unpack for a client is the kitchen. I think it is such a great service! We unpack all of the items and then come up with a storage plan that makes sense with the kitchen layout, use of items, and user preferences. Here is a look at the pantry that we set up. I chose to put it in an upper cabinet at eye level because Nancy tends to use items that she can see.
Matt’s Aunt stopped by to help us unpack and also get a feel for how my business works. Between the three of us we unpacked the master closet, the kids bathroom, hall closet, part of the home office, the linen closet, and the dining room hutches.
After all of our hard work I was ready to take a little break. We grabbed a quick-lunch and then had dessert at Sprinkles. I love this place and I knew that I needed to get some sugar into us to keep us moving!
I had a gluten-free red velvet cupcake and it was delicious. I couldn’t tell it wasn’t the original recipe and would definitely order it again!
Group shot of us! I met Matt when I helped him pack up his childhood room two years ago. We were all much more relaxed with this move than last time!
After our little break Nancy set up her Comcast while Matt and I organized the garage. He purchased Whalen shelving at Costco and built it once his mom closed on the condo. I bought bins last time I moved her to pack up the kids memorabilia, photos, holiday decor, books, and games. By the end of the day all of the boxes had a home on the shelves, there was a section for holiday, a section for the kids, a section for photos, and a section for paperwork. With time she can swap the boxes out for bins but for now the garage looks great!
I was happy to leave Nancy with a fairly organized and unpacked home. She definitely has work to do still, more unpacking and settling but it will be much more manageable for her now that we have the key areas organized.
On the ride home I had to snap this picture. I was stuck at a traffic light on Foothill Expressway when this huge Peloton of bikers turned to head up into the Mountains. Gotta love California!
I’ll leave you with my favorite picture from our weekend estate sale at The Villages in San Jose. It was a fun experience and I met some great people. The Villages is a 55+ gated community on the east end of San Jose. Most of the residents have golf carts and I loved seeing them pull up to shop, so cool!
Have a great week!
Well I hope you have a
1,682 Responses
Your blog makes it sounds much easier than it was. I know everyone worked really hard. I bet Nancy thought the end result was worth it though.
Oh what I would give to have you around when we do our military moves every four years! I love being able to get ideas and tips from you on the blog. We have two more years in CA before we move again, but my brain is constantly in move-mode and “What do we need to get rid of??” LOL Thanks for sharing your day with us.
I know what you mean! We move a lot too and I feel like it takes me forever to buy anything because I just think that I don’t want to have to pack it, ha!
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