T-Minus 44 days (more or less)
Resumes Sent: 3
Pounds lost: 0
House Cleaned: Ish.
So, still waiting on orders. HotLT has completed his checklist to have them cut, so hopefully it won't be long. His first stop after orders are in hand is to go to Transportation to arrange for our move. I don't know if all posts are this way, but Fort Bliss is rather notorious for a Transportation backlog.
I mentioned earlier that this will be my first PCS as a military spouse. However, because I work with so many Army civilians (and three of my best friends are Army wives with at least 15+ years and countless moves each), I've received a lot of advice about preparing for a military move.
Here it is:
1) Document all of your belongings. Make a list of all of your valuables, including serial numbers. Supplement this with photographs (showing the serial numbers where available), demonstrating that the items are in your home and that they are undamaged (if items are damaged, you need to document that too). Keep the list in a safe place and make sure that it is travelling with you.
2) Be prepared to live without your stuff! Make a separate stash of items that you are going to bring with you. Realize that it may take quite a while for the moving company to deliver your belongings (good friends of ours were in Charlottesville for 45 days with three toddlers and no belongings). Think about the absolute essentials that you need to get through your daily routine. Remember to pack clothes for various types of weather, a pot, a fry pan, a spatula, a serving spoon, a bowl, and plates and utensils for all members of your family. Pack blankets, pillows and sheets for everyone in your family. Of course, don't forget your clothes/personal hygiene items, pet supplies and towels! Some people bring mattresses with them, but we are going to buy an air mattress when we arrive in Kentucky. Yes, I realize that we could stay in Post Lodging until our stuff shows up, but I have heard horror stories about that too. I would prefer to "camp out" in my new home.
3) Bring "priceless" items with you. Sending your jewelry, paintings, baby pictures and/or grama's antique vase with movers is asking for trouble. For example, HotLT and I have a collection of authentic WWII recruiting posters that it would break our hearts to lose. They are riding with us in the Jeep.
4) Use up as much of your food supply and cleaning items as possible. Fresh and liquid items cannot be transported. There will be another blog entry on this later, but let it suffice to say that HotLT and I have been suffering through some truly heinous meals in my attempt to use up a forgotten stash of fish sauce, dried pasta, bizarre soups and an ill-advised "bulk buy" of pork chops that have been mummifying in our freezer. Amusingly, a fair share of the gross stuff was given to us by PCSing friends.
5) Re-evaluate your needs. Everyone frets about coming in under weight. I have never known anyone to go over, but the psychological pressure of knowing you might have to ax something at the last minute is a good reason to start shedding excess items now. A lot of military families simply pass their extra stuff along to friends. Keep in mind, however, that there may be some good options for donating your items on post. Bliss has an Enlisted Soldier Center that will pass along used furniture to young families who are just starting out, and the USO can take used games and movies. Extra clothes can go to Goodwill (or the consignment shop on post. One of my friends left a lot of clothes there with instructions for any money received to go to Operation Purple).
6) Ready your pets for the move. My dog's next set of shots won't be due until we get to our next post (the vet recommended that I wait, since he may need a license/tag in his new town), but I had a check-up and obtained a prescription for anxiety medicine (Mackie hates car rides). We checked to make sure that he still fits comfortably in his kennel cab and has a few favorite toys and a used towel (he loves our used towels) to ride along. If you are travelling overseas (or to Hawaii), you may need to see the vet early in order to avoid the need to quarantine your pet when you arrive.
7) Think about what to do with your plants. HotLT and I have a huge container garden in our back yard and some coffee plants that we keep indoors. Transportation will not move plants and we don't have a lot of room in the Jeep and my car that will be leftover after the necessities from item two and Mackie. We had to pick our favorites. We also had to take into account the different climate in Kentucky. We have a gorgeous desert pink fairy duster that I love, but I realize that it won't survive out our new home, so I am leaving it with my paralegal. We are also leaving the roses, since those are easy to obtain almost anywhere. Ditto the gardenia, but we are taking our Lemon tree and plumerias with us (to live indoors).
To prepare the plants for a move, we are taking them out of the containers and thoroughly moistening the soil. We will wrap paper towels around the root ball and then wrap the whole thing tightly in plastic wrap. The leaves of the plants should be gently pushed toward the plant (up or down, depending on how they are naturally growing) and secured with twine or more plastic wrap. Finally, our more delicate plants are going into cardboard lamp boxes to minimize the amount of jostling that they receive during the trip.
8) Plan your route. Since the drive across Texas is SOUL CRUSHING (those of you who have made the journey know that I am not employing all-caps lightly there) our first impulse was to go for the shortest distance and try to push through the whole way from El Paso to Texarkana in one, horrific day. However, we reconsidered. The military standard (used to compute your per diem and your soldier's travel days) is 400 miles per day. What is the disincentive for taking your time and seeing a little bit of the country along the way? We have wanted to see the Big Texan Steak Ranch ever since its appearance on Man v. Food - and this is probably going to be the only chance we have to "pass through" Amarillo. I've never been to Oklahoma. I don't have anything I'm desperate to see there, but it scratches another state off the list (and probably beats spending two and a half days still trying to make it to the other side of Texas). There are websites and apps that can help point out interesting things to see along your route. Best Road Trip Planner is one. Road Trip America is another.
9) Double check everything! Expect Murphy's law to be in full effect. The movers will be late. They will break things. It will take longer than you expected for your household goods to arrive. Plan for contingencies and wiggle-room.
10) Take a deep breath and realize that it will all be over soon. You may get lost. It will take a long time for your stuff to arrive. Things will get broken, but after a few months, things will settle down and your new digs will feel like home. On the outside chance that doesn't happen, just think: in two-to-three years, you will do it all again!
Finally, here is a great FREE GUIDE with tips, forms and additional information about entitlements, policies and other things you need to know!
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