Packing Up The House

(Post instalment backdated to 30th June 2022)

And so it begins!

Over the weekend just gone, we started to pack up the house. The beginning of the end of our 10-year journey in this home. We have a skip with us for the next month where we’ll get rid of everything, and I have started to sell things, scrap things, and pack things.

I briefed myself that the house would no longer feel like our home when it comes to the actual selling point, but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. I thought I would feel it when we were on the verge of moving out, but I didn’t anticipate that once we started packing up, that feeling would hit me like a ton of bricks.

Boxes, Boxes, Boxes

One other thing I definitely did not anticipate is how long we would be living from boxes. We are disrupted now a month before moving, and with the quotes from contractors and other various things we’re trying to sort out that can’t happen until the previous thing has happened (furniture etc. can’t be put up until floors are down, floors can’t go down until wardrobes are built, wardrobes can’t go in until mid-August) we will be in disruption of some sort until, I’m guessing quite likely the Autumn.

There are currently boxes everywhere, and at the moment this is only a small section of the house. I know there is more to come and I am really trying my best to brace myself for it, but I really REALLY hate living out of boxes and feeling unsettled. If you know me, you’ll recall how difficult I found it last year when we renovated our current kitchen. I really need stability and a sense of home, so when that goes awry, I become unsettled. I’m finding it a little difficult, and we’re literally only just at the beginning. This is definitely one of those times where you have to keep the end goal in sight.

You Need to be Ruthless

Packing up my house so far has been quite emotional but I have learned that you really do have to be ruthless. Apparently, we are both massive hoarders and the amount of junk we’ve cleared out the house already is quite astounding. It’s a really good job we started the process way ahead of time, as I’m guessing as we inch closer and closer to the moving date, time is going to run away with us.

We started with the smaller rooms – the bedroom, the kitchen, but we haven’t even made a start on the shed yet; we basically needed the skip for that alone. It’s bad really, because we actually hired a skip at the beginning of the 2020 first lockdown, and figured we would use all the free time we had every weekend to clean the shed out. So how it’s gotten to a point where it’s been filled again, I don’t know! But there we are.

At the time of writing this, we are exactly T minus 4 weeks until move day!!! Can you believe that?! 4 weeks?! Where the hell has that time gone? We knew having a holiday that crossed over two weeks in June would fast forward us but we didn’t anticipate this much!

Anyway, it actually feels like this is happening now, and I’m starting to feel a litttttttle nervous. It’s the start of the end, and I’m not sure I’m ready!

I’m off to go and pack some more, see you next time!

PREVIOUS INSTALMENTS IN THE SERIES:

• We’re Moving House!
• The Decision to Move House
• When People Come to View Your Home
• How to Choose an Estate Agent
• When It’s Not Meant to Be…
• The Turmoil of Taylor Wimpey Part 1
• The Turmoil of Taylor Wimpey Part 2
• Our Lucky Break?
• We Found a House!
• What Does it Take to Get an Update?!
• THE Meeting
• Back in the Running
• Survey Time
• “You’re Not Going to Make The Exchange Date”
• The World of Survey Queries
• Moving House: Delays and Apathy
• Exchange: Could it be Happening?
• We’ve Exchanged!!!!!!!
• All Systems Go