Cross Country Move with Two Kids

Fly.Ship the cars.Latest motto: anything to avoid stress.
By the way congratulations-I love Seattle, Washington!

Congrats on the new job and opportunity. My cousins live in Seattle and surroundings, and wouldn't consider leaving - it's a fabulous area.

Your kids are so little, I can't imagine that they would benefit from the joys of a cross-country trip. So I'd go for convenience, and fly! The moving company can ship the cars. You just have to deal with the fact that the cars will leave before you and arrive after you do.

Is his new employer not covering any of these costs? Many people negotiate a moving deal as part of their "signing bonus". So DO check on what they will help with.

Depending on how long you plan to rent, you can consider a furnished place for a few months. If you plan to rent long-term, that obviously won't apply. But for a short-term rental, at least you wouldn't have to move twice, you know?

Pods can be okay but you have to do all the packing yourself unless you hire someone separately to do that. They have to be really balanced, though - a friend did it and referred to it as a life-size Tetris game. She's good at it but she had a bunch of friends there to help and it was still a major project. I think she was pod-less at her new location for 3 weeks.

Look into insurance on your possessions - usually moving companies won't insure what they don't pack themselves (glassware, dishes, mirrors, decor items, TVs and so on). So the cost of professional packers can outweigh the cost of replacing damaged goods. You can't put a price on your sanity too, so you may regret trying to save a few bucks and do it all yourself - with 2 little ones!

I've seen moving boxes on a site called Freecycle that I used to get rid of things I couldn't sell on Craigslist. You can't join until you give something away, but then you can post requests/needs as well as see what's being given away in your area. It's best if you join one for a populated area even if it's not the closest one to your home. It's a great way to downsize before you pack up things you really won't need or which are cheaper to buy at the new location.

Plan well with movers to load last what you will need first. One example is a refrigerator - get it off the truck first and plug it in, so it can start getting cold and you can load in some groceries while the movers do the rest of the stuff. Any good mover will give you good tips if you haven't done this in a while - it's totally different with kids and all their paraphernalia!

Good luck!

Hi L.! First..congrats on the new job! Exciting times! Our family has moved 12 times in 26 years..I'm a mom of two boys..now grown. Some moves cross-country..some overseas. I have been where you are! LOL..first..BREATH. And make lists!
We always flew... company would move cars on a truck. Find out what support the company may be providing you. Flying in my opinion is easier..faster to get there. But you may enjoy the road trip? With winter weather, flying may be best. Everyone is different. With our moves we had movers assigned because of contracts with the companies hubby worked for. Happy to help you in anyway I can. I'm also well connected on this end in the business community (realtors, insurance, services of all kinds)...so if you need recommendations for anything, happy to help. If you'd like to reach out directly, my email is ____@____.com What part of Seattle will you be moving to?

Hi L.,

What an adventure. I've never attempted an advanced maneuver like that one but when my grandma, who lived in San Diego passed away part of settling the estate was clearing out the house. I live in MI, as do my folks, and my brother is in Cleveland. We all flew out for the funeral, went through the house and marked the items we wanted. Hired a person to conduct the estate sale and once that was completed, the movers put everything, along with several other households, in a huge truck and delivered them to all three households, one after the other. I can't recall the moving co but I do recall them doing an excellent job.

two cars, two kids.....I'm thinking you hire some really great movers, don't skimp on the moving insurance, and each of you take turns driving with each boy. if you can, take a little extra time. I know the boys are too young to really remember it as a vacation but that way you can tag team it and have some fun in the process. it's not the best time of year for a road trip like that but you can still eek some fun out of it. :-) S.

If it were me, I would fly. While the "adventure" of it might be great with the kids when they're 5 or 6, I'm afraid it would be a bit of a nightmare right now. I'd pack enough to get you through and ship everything else. I'm usually one to take on a challenge but considering the weather in February and your kids ages, I'd take the easy route. Enjoy your new home!!

Thinking on this I know I'd be driving and having a blast with my family as we traveled across America. BUT February is winter and in winter there are going to be natural road blocks. So either I'd put off my part of the move until warmer weather or we'd consider doing other things like flying but I don't like flying.

If I was going to be in the car for a minimum of 3-4 days with little ones I'd know that isn't doable. Not at this age. You HAVE to stop every couple of hours and feed them, change them, entertain them, let them get out and run amok, then they have to sleep in a bed. They will be super sore from sitting in a car seat all day. They're pretty restrained in their seats and they can't stretch and move like you can.

IF you decide you want to drive please don't discount those stops. They are vital. Don't be surprised if they fight like crazy when that second morning comes and they see they have to get back in their car seats. It's painful to sit all day in the exact same position with very very little real padding.

I'd probably take a train. I truly think that you have that as an option. Amtrak has a station in Raleigh You'd get on the train there then go up to Washington DC, wait and then another train to Chicago then another one from Chicago to Seattle Washington. Worth every penny I think. You'll need a sleeper arranged so you can all lay out flat in the evenings. Then have seats the next day too. Take water and snacks with you to stay hydrated.

It won't be cheap but consider the cost of the flights, the hotels until your things get there, and all that traveling across the country entails.

In a train you are able to stand, walk, go eat at a table with your whole family, sleep, sit and read to the kids, watch a movie on a computer or DVD player, and more. All while paying someone else to do the driving and moving you even while you are sleeping.

Move your whole house or sell your vehicles and buy new in Washington. Put them in the moving contract and let the movers deal with it.

Congrats on the move. Purge everything you are not using and get new on the other end. This way you won't have to do it when you find a place. Children's things should not be the many at this age range. Anything heavy in weight will cost more in shipping costs.

What is the company offering to do with the move? Do they have a list of people to help in the Seattle area you can contact? If so contact them for places to live. What kind of budget do you have? Traveling with kids this time of year can be tricky due to the weather. If you fly you will have to rent a car until yours arrive.

My moves were military related and they have contracts with moves who came in and packed you up and shipped your items to your next location. Our vehicle was shipped by them and was brought to us by a team of people who picked up cars from port. We drove across country with kids. My first time I drove 3 months pregnant with my second and it took us five days as I drove during the day and slept in motel at night with a two and a half year old. Hubby had left for the assignment and I was there to finalize the move and clean house.

Your move will be an adventure. The area is beautiful and the climate is temperate. I hope to visit the area in the future to see a friend who lives there.

the other S.

I can't really answer you're question specifically, but I want to say, welcome to Seattle! I live in Bellevue, which is a suburb of Seattle, and I hope you like it here. I was born here and grew up here and really enjoy it.

If you have questions about the area, please ask and I will try my best to answer. I'm not sure how much help I can be about school and where to rent, but I can try (I can tell you where NOT to live). My parents can help too, they've bee here since 1969.

Again, welcome!

We always had corporate help and didn't have to do much of anything, so I can't help you with logistics. I hope I never have to do it the hard way, LOL!

However, I do want to say congrats on the new job and your excitement about the adventure of it all! It's great for kids to see that in a parent! It makes everything so much easier!

How exciting for you both! I hope everything goes smoothly with your move, & your husband enjoys his new job.

My sister has 2 little ones, now 4 & 1 1/2. They haven't experienced a move, but my BIL family is in Lebanon (the country), so they have experienced quite a bit of flying. When it comes to travel, her suggestion is to prepare ahead of time, & take the shortest, most direct route of travel. That means making sure her girls have eaten, & had their nap, or making plans that napping will take place once arriving. Timing is everything! Flying is not as big of an issue as you might think - again making sure that the little ones are taken care of as much as possible, & bringing what's needed in the carry-on to tend to various needs.

Another poster below mentioned taking a train - I would personally advise against this (sorry!) due to the ages of the children. If you travel by car, you can schedule the stops as needed to keep your kids as comfortable as possible, & maybe even make a vacation out of it. On a plane, the actual travel won't be more than a few hours. But on a train - expect a few days... on a train... with no ability to leave until you get to your destination - very boring for little ones, much less adults.

Another option you might be able to work out - enlist the help of family &/or friends to get you all to the PNW. Maybe grandparents can travel with the kids on a plane, while you & your husband drive the vehicles. Or, a friend who would like to take a vacation in Seattle can drive one while your hubby drives the other (friend can fly home after their trip), while you fly with the kids & meet them.

Regarding the moving of your items - if you are not getting a moving allowance from the company, an economical option is to rent a U-Haul or Ryder truck (since you are purging a lot of your possessions, the larger trucks should be able to meet your needs), & renting a tow-dolly with it to haul the car behind. Friends of ours who moved from Milwaukee to Phoenix did this - hauled one vehicle with truck driven by hubby, while wife & kids followed in the other car. If you ended up needing 2 trucks, you can tow both cars, & then work out flying the kids (see above paragraphs).

Sorry, I know it's a lot of information, & you still need to make the ultimate decision. But I hope it helps the process!! T. :)

so much depends on cost. if you're footing the bill you'll certainly want to drive, which would be awesome under some circumstances. not so much with U-hauls and small children.
but you do what you have to do, and while it will probably be trying, it will also be fun in some ways (at least for everyone but the baby.)
in a perfect world you'd have movers pack and ship for you (pods are excellent) and you'd fly and have the cars sent to you.
so i'd start with that and whittle away at this plan down to what you can actually afford.
the more you can other people do it for you, the better.
khairete
S.

It really depends on who is paying and how much you can spend. Moving cars is very expensive. If you can ship one that would be great but if not, now is the time to find out who your supportive friends and family are..see if you can enlist some grandparents to help you drive so that you can drive both cars. Give yourselves lots of time to do the drive - between weather and babies, you want to do it in about twice the normal time. Good luck!