Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Sending Ourselves Packing

Our packing is underway!  It didn't take long to realize that there's a pretty substantial list of must-haves to carry from room to room to 'support' your packing project.  Here are the things we've found useful to include in our kit:
  • boxes (we ordered ours online from movingboxes.ca - they were great to deal with - review to come)
  • packing paper / unprinted newsprint
  • bubble wrap
  • packing tape and a tape-gun
  • paper for labelling your boxes (we're just using printer paper - leaving us with less of it to pack in another box) - more on this soon
  • a couple of Sharpies
  • Ziplocs in a few sizes - for corralling furniture / picture / mirror hardware
  • masking tape - for taping Ziplocs of furniture hardware right onto the furniture.  We've also been attaching paper labels to each piece of furniture with their 'new house room' locations.
  • duct tape - for anything...but you already knew that ;)
  • bubble wrap - for breakables
  • shrink wrap - for keeping drawers closed / wrapping the couch / protecting furniture tops and legs
  • hammer - for removing nails after taking down pictures etc.
  • a multi-screwdriver - for removing screws after taking down mirrors etc. (we're using the Retract-a-Bit - Adam has the original black and yellow model - I have the pink one and I'm in tool-love!)
  • scissors
  • a portable vacuum to clean as you go - so much easier!
  • elastic bands - for corralling lamp cords etc.
  • garbage bags - for being ruthless and tossing stuff we don't want to pack / we haven't used in years /  we can donate or upcycle
  • upbeat music - we created a 'Packing Playlist' with about 12 hours worth of our shuffled favourites
  • beer...mmm
  • a camera (for 'before' photos as well as 'during the chaos' photos - and to remind us of how the room / closet / drawer is set up for when we unpack in the new house) - and for being able to capture our puppy doing ridiculous things while trying to help pack
  • patience
  • a Tetris mind
We'll be back soon to share more tidbits on our packing 'process' - some tricks and shortcuts we've come up with that have made this pack-up smoother than the last 5 or 6 (we've each moved a number of times - during university and together, etc.)   

From 'inside the boxes', here is some packing humour to close off for tonight (we couldn't decide on just one to use):




(cartoons all from here)

Bookshelf update coming tomorrow - I've deviated from the shelf a little, so have more to update than planned ;)


Tuesday, August 30, 2011

P52

I'm just over four months early, but be it resolved that I will commit to P52 in 2012.  Join me, won't you?


What is P52?  Well it's a less ambitious version of P365.  It's one photo a week for a year - less cumbersome and dutiful than P365.  It lets you off the hook a little bit.  No desperate photos of your microwave clock on your way up to bed so you have 'something to show' for Wednesday. 

I'll be back at New Year's with the official launch.  Something like '52 Tuesdays'?  I have some time to think about it ;)

Back again tomorrow with that bookshelf update and list of packing essentials I promised.

There is no snooze button on a dog who wants breakfast.  Goodnight everyone!

(graphic from here)

Monday, August 29, 2011

It's Been a While

So I took an unintended blogging vacation.  Being new to this blogging thing, I never realized how much time it takes to commit to it and do it well.  The Young House Loves of the world make it look so easy!

As this blog is my witness, I now intend to dedicate a specific block of time each day to blogging.  If it gets booked in, I know it will get done.

The lame reason for the unintended vacation? In the last month, we've bought a house and sold ours...and we move in 31 days!  So while this blog may become temporarily more focused on moving-related posts, as always, Juno will be involved.  See?  Here she is helping us pack - or making sure we don't forget to pack her!


I'll be back again tomorrow with a bookshelf update and our list of packing essentials - for any fellow crash movers out there!    

"Where we love is home - home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts." - Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.