We now have Orders! Nothing has changed, we are still headed to Dayton Ohio, which is good. All this means is we can now get started on our move.
Our next step is to contact the moving office on
base where they will set up an appointment for a relocation
briefing. But more importantly, this is when our exact moving date is set. This is so important to get nailed down.
You can't really plan anything else until you have a moving date.
My husband has this meeting next week. So with our move date nearly set, we are about three months out from our move. It is now time for me to print off my to-do list and start checking things off. Mine is a comprehensive list I came across during our second move seven years ago. It is ten pages long and it has been a life saver at each move!
The first thing on my list? Make an appointment with our relocation office. Check!
Second. The service member needs an appointment with an office called Outbound Assignments and the Finance Office. Check, check!
Third. Find my old ledger pad in order to keep track of moving expenses, and start a relocation folder for all the paperwork. Check and check!
The fourth item on my list is a little tricky. It says to inventory all of our possessions. If it sounds daunting, that's because it is. Luckily I did this on our first move, so all I have to do is update it. I pull up my excel spreadsheet where it is located and go from room to room adding items that I don't see on the list. For example, since our last move we have bought a new TV and new beds for our kids.
I don't bother writing every single minute thing down. If the kids loose a toy in the move and I don't have it on the inventory list, no one is going to die over it. I focus on making sure higher priced items are on the list along with their serial numbers and a picture. That last part is important. You want a picture of all of your high priced items. Take a picture of all sides including a picture of the item working, if possible. I know all of this sounds tedious and unnecessary. But I have heard enough horror stories about things lost or broken and the rigmarole of putting in a claim, that I heed the warning and do the extra work.
If you are planning on doing your own household inventory you can check out the various software products currently on the market. I have heard the are helpful. I personally use an excel spread sheet and find it works just fine. I use a different worksheet for every room in my home and list each item in no particular order down the sheet, with serial numbers or further descriptions on the next column.
So that is what I am off to do next. I am excited to get this move started and dreading it all at the same time. Here I go!
