How Moving with Two Toddlers Taught Me to Pack Smarter

I never thought moving house could be both the most chaotic and most rewarding experience of my life - until I did it with a four-year-old clinging to my leg and a two-year-old determined to "help" by pulling everything back out of the boxes I had just packed.

My husband and I had been talking about upsizing for months. Our little flat was bursting at the seams; toys everywhere, a cot wedged into the corner of our bedroom, and a growing pile of stuff we had no room for. When we finally found our dream home across town, the excitement quickly gave way to the reality of actually moving all of our belongings with two tiny humans in tow.

The first thing I did right was ordering good quality removal boxes. I had previously made the mistake of using old supermarket boxes for a uni move years ago, and half of them collapsed mid-carry. This time, I ordered a proper set of sturdy double-walled cardboard boxes in a range of sizes. What a difference it made. The boxes stacked beautifully, nothing got crushed, and I could actually label them properly without worrying they would fall apart.

We packed in stages over two weekends, working around nap times and bedtimes. I made a game of it for my eldest - she had her own small box to fill with her toys, decorated with stickers. It kept her occupied and gave her a sense of ownership over the process, which meant fewer meltdowns when her favourite stuffed elephant disappeared into a box.

The removal boxes were lifesavers in more ways than one. I used them to section off a "children's zone" in each room - a dedicated box of snacks, nappies, wipes, and entertainment that stayed accessible throughout the whole move. It sounds simple, but having that one box per kid that never got taped shut meant I was never rummaging through mountains of boxes when someone needed a snack emergency.

On moving day itself, despite all the chaos, things went remarkably smoothly. The boxes held up beautifully through the van journey, nothing shifted or broke, and by evening we had managed to get both kids' rooms set up first so they had familiar surroundings to sleep in.

If you are thinking about moving with young children, my biggest piece of advice is this: invest in proper removal boxes and pack little by little. It transforms the whole experience from overwhelm to manageable. You will thank yourself on the day.

— Nat 31, Mum to Chloe and Amy