If you’re moving into a new home, here are tips for creating a mental health space in any new home.

Bring in Natural Light

Natural light wards off seasonal depression and improves sleep. Some homes, particularly those facing south, tend to have more natural light. However, you can make the most of the natural light by ditching drapes and heavy curtains. Another idea is to position a mirror so that the sunlight bounces off it, brightening the room’s four walls.

Create a Spa-Like Bath

A soak in a hot tub can relieve stress and anxiety and improve your mood. If your new home has a soaking tub or freestanding tub, you’re ahead of the game. Either way, making a few changes in your bathroom can enhance the benefits of a hot bath.

One small change is installing a dimmer switch on your overhead light fixture, turning off the lights, and arranging candles around the tub. Perhaps buy a bath caddy to keep fancy soaps and your favorite beverage handy while you soak. Invest in matching plush towels, decorate the room in neutral tones, and install speakers to listen to soothing music.

Hide all the toiletries away that aren’t pleasing to the eye and install open shelves with artwork and decorative treasures.

Make Space for Hobbies

Research shows that people who spend time on hobbies are less likely to suffer from depression or stress. Creating a private place in your new home to pursue your hobbies can be helpful. Depending upon the pursuit, this might be a basement, a part of a garage, or a room. If you can’t spare a whole room, put a divider in a room to create your space.

Wherever your hobby space is, set up the necessary materials neatly to begin work on your hobby immediately without needing to search. Be sure the lighting is conducive to your needs.

Design a Dedicated Meditation Space

Those who have or hope to have a mindfulness practice will find a dedicated meditation space helpful. While having a whole room is ideal, you can create a meditation space in a corner, closet, or garden. The idea is to pick out and prioritize an area where you can focus.

Comfort is one key to a meditation space. Load the area with meditation cushions, floor pillows, rugs, and throws. Sound baths and other relaxing sounds are helpful. Candles or Himalayan salt lamps can help set the mood.

Another key to a meditation space is simplicity. Avoid cluttering the space with objects; they can lead to a cluttered mind.

Finally, bring in nature. Natural light is essential. Plants, stones, or greenery in your meditation space can also help achieve balance.

 Moving Bliss

Make your relocation stress-free and straightforward. Contact us today for a free quote. 

The post Creating Mental Health Spaces in Your New Home appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

While parents clearly understand the reasons behind a move, the “why” behind picking up and moving often doesn’t make as much sense. So it’s easy to see why relocating can leave kids feeling uneasy, worried, or uncertain.

When moving with children, these tips can help ease the transition and help them feel at home in their new house.

Communicate Often

In the weeks leading up to moving day, keep the lines of communication open. Though it may be difficult — especially if kids are delighted where they are — talking about the many reasons behind a move is vital.

Keep the conversations age-appropriate, and try to anticipate questions that may arise. That way, you’ll have a good answer ready.

Practice Positivity

When helping children adjust to a move, you may want to take a Pollyanna approach. But instead, focusing on the positive aspects of the move can help ease kids’ fears of the unknown.

For instance, if they’re worried about moving schools, share all the great programs available at their new school, like sports teams, clubs, or even a cool playground.

This doesn’t mean discounting your child’s worries about the move. On the contrary, acknowledging their fears — but then bringing the focus back to all the good things about the move — can help them adjust more quickly to the change.

Give Kids Agency

Allowing children to take some ownership in the moving process may increase their excitement. For instance, older children can have some control over how their new room will look. Perhaps they can pick out a paint color for the walls or help decide where their furniture will go.

Even younger children can help pack. Consider using special moving boxes just for their room. Let them cover them with stickers or fun colors. Then, turn the move into an adventure.

Show them lots of pictures of the new house, including their room. Then, make a game out of deciding where their favorite toys will go in their new space.

Books About Moving

Books about moving can help ease the process for kids, from toddlers to tweens. But, of course, choosing age-appropriate books is critical.

For toddlers through elementary school, consider:

• We’re Moving; best for ages 1 to 6, this book tells the story of a girl who is sad about moving away from her best friend.
• The Berenstain Bears Moving Day uses supportive, kind language to show the bear family’s big move.
• Hey, New Kid is an excellent book for elementary school kids about making new friends in a new school.

For older children, consider:

• The Kid in the Red Jacket is about a 5th grader who experiences friend problems after moving.
• Ghosts is a graphic novel for tweens about facing fears and family drama.
• New Kid in School is about a girl who worries about making friends after her family moves.

Moving can be disruptive, no matter how old you are. However, these tips can help kids adjust to a move and settle into their new environment.

Let Us Help

We can help ease the challenge of your relocation. First, contact us for a free quote. Then, let us do the packing and moving so you can concentrate on your family.

The post Helping Kids Settle in and Feel at Home in a New House appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

While these aren’t the only two ways to develop an office layout when relocating your business, they’re certainly the most well-known. So, what is the most productive design? And how can companies take advantage of it?

Step One: The Frame

Most people focus on elements like furniture, plants, and partitions when choosing an office layout. While these pieces are essential, they can be shifted and rearranged easily. So, what you should pay attention to first is the frame of your office, which includes the wall color, lighting, and flooring. Let’s break down each component:

• Wall Color – Color theory is an essential part of interior design, as different hues can convey unique moods and emotions. You can change the entire flow of an office just by painting the walls. Also, as we’ll see with each piece, what works well for some people might not be ideal for others. So, it’s best to get input from everyone to be safe.
• Lighting – Harsh fluorescent lights are out, and soft, natural lighting is in. If possible, it’s good to allow sunlight to illuminate the office. Not only is natural light better for the eyes, but you can save on electricity costs.
• Flooring – Your office floors matter for a couple of reasons. First, they can either create or absorb noise. Consider the difference between concrete and carpeted floors. Second, you have to consider cleaning and maintenance. While carpet can be more appealing, it’s harder to keep clean.

Step Two: Movement

People aren’t meant to be stuck at a desk all day. Part of the reason cubicles have fallen out of style is that they feel too constrained. Instead, modern offices can benefit from allowing workers to move from one place to another. This way, if someone hits a productivity wall, they can walk around, stretch, and re-center themselves.

Step Three: Distractions

Some people work best in complete silence, while others prefer collaboration. Overall, the noisier the office, the less productive. One advantage of cubicles is that they can absorb sound and make it harder for noise to bleed through. Again, the type of frame you use matters, but it’s good to have designated “quiet” areas for those who thrive in silence.

Step Four: Accessories

Finally, once you have a layout, you need to populate it with decorations and accessories. One of the best add-ons is a plant since nature can help relieve stress. Best of all, plants can help clean the air inside, making the office feel less stuffy and constrictive. Again, try to get input from everyone to know how many accessories to get and where to place them. For example, if someone doesn’t like plants, it’s best not to put them next to one.

Get Moving Help

Rearranging your office can be challenging, and you risk losing productivity during the moving process. Contact us today to find out more about our services.

The post Which Office Layout Improves Productivity the Most? appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

1. Choose the Right Moving Company

The right moving company can make all the difference in your upcoming relocation. Choosing a moving company based solely on price may be tempting, but the lowest-cost moving companies may not hire quality employees or work with the best equipment. This can lead to accidents and potential damage to your items.

When choosing a moving company, do your homework to ensure that the company you select is the best one for you.

• Vet at least three moving companies.
• Compare prices, but be wary of the most expensive and least expensive companies.
• Check references (at least three) before signing on the dotted line to hire the moving company of your choice.

2. Get Started Early

Moving is a lot of work that takes many hours of preparation. Therefore, the less time you give yourself to move, the more complex the relocation.

Get started with your relocation as soon as you’ve decided to move. Even if you’re not ready to start packing your items up into boxes yet, there are still many things you can do to make moving easier. Eliminating clutter, collecting boxes and other moving supplies, making home repairs (for selling your house), and researching the area where you’d like to move are all things you can do ahead of time.

If possible, make a list of items that can be done ahead of time and create a timeline for accomplishing those tasks. Then, consult with your timeline regularly to ensure that you’re getting the work done according to schedule.

3. Eliminate What You Don’t Need

It’s essential to downsize at least a little before relocating. First, downsizing makes relocating easier because it reduces the number of items you have to move. That means less packing and less physical effort. Downsizing early on frees up time for you to do other things later. Finally, downsizing saves money. The less stuff you have to move, the less money you’ll spend getting it wherever you’re going.

4. Take an Organized Approach

Make a binder of important papers that you’ll need during your relocation. If you’re buying a new house, this may include financial documentation for your mortgage lender. If you’re starting a new job, this may consist of the paperwork your new employer will need on the day you begin work (like your driver’s license, passport, etc.). Keeping all of these items in a centralized location can prevent you from losing them during the move. Write a big reminder on your binder: “DO NOT PACK!” Then keep this binder with you in your vehicle when you travel to your new home.

5. Get Help When It’s Needed

Don’t try to shoulder the entire burden of moving on your own. Instead, get help from friends, loved ones – and a reputable moving company. The more support you get, the easier your relocation will be. To get started with your upcoming relocation, contact us today.

The post 5 Tips to Make Moving Easy appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

Since most people don’t exclusively dine at home, finding good options in your new city is a great idea. You just need an efficient way to do it.

Follow these tips to find cuisine options in the area quickly.

1. Check Out the Apps

The most low-friction way to find new restaurants is to use apps that focus on them specifically. Apps like Yelp are popular, easy to use, and full of options in almost any area. Try out the most popular dining apps to see which one you like best.

It’s a good idea to read reviews, especially the most recent ones. If you find a lot of complaints, you may want to consider another option. Just keep in mind that people are more likely to complain than they are to praise. So restaurants with only a handful of ratings might still be good.

2. Ask on Social Media

If you like to spend time on sites like Facebook or Nextdoor, you may consider joining local groups. These groups offer a lot of local knowledge and recommendations.

Join one or two social media groups and ask for recommendations close to a specific neighborhood. You might get several. Then you can browse the companies’ social media pages and menus to see if they look interesting.

3. Read Local Newspaper Reviews

Although critiquing restaurants isn’t as exclusive as it used to be, you’ll still find sections dedicated to dining in the local newspaper. This allows you to check out new restaurants or get in-depth information about the owner’s background.

Browse the stories whenever you like, but don’t hesitate to dig through the archives. You might find years of reviews that give you ideas for places you can try now.

4. Ask Your Neighbors

You might already want to get to know your neighbors, so asking about restaurants is a perfect opportunity. Talking about favorite restaurants is a great icebreaker. Some people don’t know how to introduce themselves, but they’d be happy to share their favorite spot for pizza delivery.

Since your neighbors know the area better than you do, it’s wise to ask them about the best ways to get there. You’ll gain insight into routes that help you avoid rush-hour traffic or a long wait for a parking space.

5. Take a Walk

If you know where there are a lot of restaurants in the area, you can always take a walk or a drive. Walks are great because you can let your nose guide you to the place that smells the best.

Checking out restaurants in-person also gives you an idea of the menu, venue’s size, and the number of customers. The place with a line out the door every time you walk by? That’s a good one to consider.

Locate Your Moving Help

Finding great places to eat is a wonderful part of moving to a new home. If you’re looking for professional moving services, reach out to us for a quote.

The post 5 Ways to Get to Know Dining Options in Your New Home appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

1. Explore the Area

Take some time to walk around your area, noting the natural beauty. Drive around and notice the location of amenities, such as gyms, restaurants, grocery stores, and nightlife. Gain a sense of how the street grid works.

2. Find a Special Place to Love

Realize that you may grieve the city, especially at first. However, one way to adjust is to find a special place that you adore. Perhaps you choose a café, a park, or a lunch spot. Either way, you choose a site that makes you feel comfortable and can help you build new routines.

3. Find An Urban Oasis

Many suburban locations have a gathering spot where entertainment, shopping, and dining are located. These suburban centers can generate energy similar to the city and maybe a place to turn when you crave that energy.

4. Get to Know Your Neighbors With a Backyard Party

Getting to know people is often more difficult in the suburbs than in the city because you drive more often than you walk and your houses are farther apart. Yet suburban communities are also very connected, so getting to know your neighbors is essential. One way to meet your neighbors, and celebrate the joys of suburban living, is to invite them to a housewarming party in your backyard.

5. Attend Local Events and Clubs

Another way to get to know your neighbors is to attend local events, such as festivals or block parties. In addition, many communities offer organizations such as walking clubs, garden clubs, and book clubs that can provide opportunities to explore interests and meet people.

6. Reorient Around Your Home

If you’ve lived in a small apartment or home in the city, the odds are that you wished for home spaces or decorative items that you couldn’t have. Now is the opportunity to have a large sofa, an expansive closet, a home office, or the perfect chandelier. So relish this moment and spend time decorating your home to create the ideal living space.

You’ll likely spend more time in your home in the suburbs than you did in the smaller place in the city. You’ll typically entertain in your suburban home, too; in the city, many of your friends may never have seen your home because it was too small for a gathering. In the suburbs, hosting clubs and throwing parties at home are typical.

7. Discover New Date Night Spots

You don’t have to give up culture and nightlife because you’ve moved to the suburbs. Nor do you have to drive back into the city for all your entertainment. Most suburban communities have theaters, restaurants, and nightclubs. The difference is that you will likely need to drive to them instead of walking or taking public transportation. The key is to find date-night spots you both enjoy in your new community.

Remember, you can always return to the city for a visit, should you feel the need to be reacquainted with a favorite spot.

 Moving Help

Are you making moving plans? We can help get you to your new home efficiently and hassle-free. Contact us for a free quote. 

The post 7 Tips to Adjust to Life in the Suburbs After a Move appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

That’s why taking time to stop, step back, and relax is vital. Of course, when you’re in the middle of a move, you probably don’t feel like you have a lot of time— but that’s when you might just need a break the most. 

Here are five effective, quick ways to reduce stress while moving. 

1. Deep Breathing

Taking slow, deep, and long breaths helps relieve stress. It’s a technique you can do anywhere— even in the middle of packing and lifting. 

Deep breathing can even reduce your heart rate and lower blood pressure. Simply inhale slowly for five seconds, hold your breath for three seconds, then exhale for five seconds. You may also try breathing through just one nostril at a time.

2. Practice Mindfulness

While you may associate mindfulness with meditation, you can practice it anytime. That’s why it’s such a great way to relieve stress during a move. 

As Harvard Medical School notes, mindfulness helps you approach stressful situations — even moving — with an open, accepting attitude. This, in turn, helps reduce stress. Over time, practicing mindfulness can even alleviate anxiety and depression. 

Mindfulness apps make it easy. Download an app such as Headspace, Calm, Mindfulness Daily, Simple Habit, 3-MInute Mindfulness, or similar onto your smartphone and follow the instructions. 

3. Have a Sweet Treat

A sweet snack can do wonders to lift your spirits. But not just any snack will do; in fact, too much sugar can backfire, causing you to “crash” later. 

Instead, nibble on a few squares (or about 1.4 ounces) of dark chocolate. This delicious substance has been found to lower cortisol levels — otherwise known as the stress hormone — and may even help stabilize your metabolism. 

4. Visit Your Happy Place

If you can, slip away from the chaos for a bit, find a quiet space, and have a seat. Now close your eyes and imagine you’re in your favorite place in the whole world. 

This might be a sunny beach or a shady mountaintop. Perhaps you’re in your childhood home or the downtown of a city you love to visit. Close your eyes and picture it in detail no matter where you wish you were. 

Breath deeply and slowly as you imagine the sounds, smells, and tastes from your special place. After five to 10 minutes of visualization, your stress level will ebb. 

5. Sticky Stuff

According to the University of Colorado Boulder, chewing on a stick of gum can lower your stress levels. So grab a stick of gum and pop it in your mouth for at least a few minutes. The act of chewing reduces cortisol levels, which can help reduce anxiety and stress. 

Another sticky substance, honey, has a similar stress-reducing effect. Anti-inflammatory compounds in honey fight symptoms of depression and anxiety, too. Just a spoonful may help you feel better. 

While it’s true that moving is stressful, these steps can help you reduce your anxiety level. In addition, just stopping for a minute to take a deep breath can go a long way toward improving your mood and your move. 

Let’s Us Help

From packing to heavy lifting, all aspects of household moving can be a chore. Contact us for a free quote. Let us help lighten your stress and moving load.

The post Take a Break: Moving Stress Relief appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

1. Bill of Lading

A bill of lading is a contract between the moving company and the customer. Essentially, it establishes the terms and conditions of the move and serves as a customer receipt for goods and a contract for transportation. Customers signing this document acknowledge they permit their belongings to be loaded on the truck and released to the carrier. Before signing this document, read it carefully and understand all the terms. Movers are happy to answer any questions.

2. Full-Service Packing and Unpacking

Moving companies typically offer various services aside from transporting customer possessions. One popular service is full-service packing and unpacking. The movers pack all the household goods, prepare them for transport, and then unpack them upon arrival at the new home. You should always ask what an individual company’s full-service packing and unpacking covers, but generally, the cost of this service is inclusive of cartons, packing/unpacking labor, and removal of debris.

3. Binding/Non-Binding Estimate

When a moving company and a customer agree, they sign a contract. As a part of the negotiations, an estimate is drawn up—there are two primary types of estimates.

• Binding Estimate: This document is drawn up in advance of the move, itemizes the total cost of the relocation, and guarantees the final quote they offer. No matter how long the job takes the movers to complete, they are obligated to charge the quoted flat rate. *Requires an onsite estimate.
• Non-Binding Estimate: This document is a mover’s estimated cost based on the estimated weight of the items to be moved and any additional services contracted. It is not a final price and will be adjusted based on the actual weight and other circumstances on moving day.

Additionally, some movers may charge “hourly rates,” which means the customer is charged by the hour, per man, per truck, but most movers are likely to go with binding or non-binding estimates.

4.  Non-Allowable Items

Professional moving companies are dedicated to ensuring a smooth relocation experience and have an important checklist of items they will not move. In addition, there are government regulations on relocating hazardous materials, so movers can’t transport dangerous and flammable items because they are safety risks. These items include explosives and toxic substances.

The homeowner should transport personal and sentimental items themselves since the movers might not want the responsibility.

Moving Made Easy

These are just four critical moving terms to know, but there are numerous other important terms as well. Check with your professional movers for a glossary of moving terms.

Contact us today if you have any questions or want to obtain a free quote.

The post 4 Important Moving Terms You Should Know and What They Mean appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

According to the EPA, the U.S. generated 33.2 million tons of corrugated cardboard. Ninety-five percent is recycled, which is excellent, but it still consumes a lot of energy. When it comes to producing packaging, less is more in this case. Reusing cardboard boxes is not only good for the environment, but it also saves you some money.

See if your moving company will take them off your hands. Another option is to check with people in your community who might look for moving boxes for an upcoming move. These are great ways to ensure that your gently used boxes get another life.

In addition, here are four nontraditional ways you can repurpose cardboard moving boxes.

1. Repurpose Boxes in the Garden

Cardboard can be beneficial to your garden. Instead of buying plastic barriers to block weeds or using chemicals to maintain the garden, simply remove any tape and labels and line the garden bed with leftover moving boxes. They will help squash the unwanted weeds and, as the cardboard breaks down naturally, it blends nicely with fresh dirt. While you’re at it, cut up other leftover boxes and use them as kneeling pads for the garden instead of spending money on plastic ones that last about as long anyway.

2. Compost Extra Cardboard

Once all packaging remnants from your moving boxes have been removed, put moving cartons into a compost container with any other food scraps, grass clippings, and materials you use. All you need to do is tear it into smaller pieces or cut the boxes into strips and add them into the compost. Over time, you’ll see healthy soil created, which you can use down the road.

3. Reuse for Home Organization

Most moving boxes are pretty hardy and maintain their strength after you’ve used them for relocation. Instead of breaking them up for recycling day, repurpose boxes and use them for everyday storage. Boxes of sizes that are already useful (small and medium) cover them with material (or even heavy-duty wrapping paper) and wrap the exteriors of the boxes. You can store toys, magazines, art supplies, video games, or whatever else you have that could benefit from a bit of organization.

To repurpose larger boxes that are too big to reuse as is, cut them into smaller pieces, shape them into the sizes you need, secure them with duct tape, and then get them to create to make practical storage. Make boxes for pens, hair accessories, kitchen utensils, wrapping paper rolls, CDs, DVDs, and just about anything else you can think of.

4. Make Toys for the Kids

If you’ve got kids, you probably have already learned that many of them often would rather play with the boxes instead of what’s inside. So rather than hand them a box, help them be creative. Get out markers, stickers, duct tape, and anything else that would make a great invention. Think of the possibilities – forts, castles, pirate ships, racecars, dollhouses, robots, or help them create whatever they dream of.

Other ways you can repurpose moving boxes include art supplies, gift packaging, or simply use them for storage in the attic or basement for seasonal items. You can also give them away to others planning an upcoming move.

Getting a Move On

Looking for moving services or know someone planning a move? Contact us today for a free quote.

The post Practical and Creative Ways to Recycle Moving Boxes appeared first on Sinclair Moving.

It’s the drawer filled with miscellaneous, somewhat useful, sometimes mysterious stuff, and almost every American has at least one. Some surveys show that over 80 percent of Americans have at least one catch-all junk drawer in the house. So before you move is the best time to tackle these haphazard storage spots —especially If you have more than a few of these drawers in your home. Here are a few tips to help you in the process.

1. Take everything out of the drawer for easy examination

Simply pulling everything out of your junk drawer gives you a better understanding of just what you have hidden out in this mingled storage spot. Pull out the drawer and set it on a table or surface where you will have ample room to work. Be sure to pull out everything, right down to the smallest items in the collection. 

2. Purge what you don’t need or want 

Go through the drawer’s contents with a discerning eye. If you are like most people, you will have a lot of items that can simply be thrown away or that you don’t necessarily want to keep. A few examples of things you could probably eliminate include: 

• Condiment packets 
• Old business cards 
• Expired coupons 
• Old rubber bands 
• Twist ties 
• Tattered recipe cards 
• Old fasteners 

If you have problems letting things go, one helpful thing to remember is not to overthink things. The more you think about an item, the more potential you will find a reason to keep it. 

3. Sort and group all of the items 

With everything out of the collection that doesn’t serve a useful purpose or look like something you want to keep, you can start sorting the items in the collection. While every junk drawer can be unique because people are unique in what they find valuable and worth stashing in a convenient spot, everyone has a junk drawer that you can sort. Do what you can to bunch all items together in a pile according to their use or category. For instance, you may have a collection of: 

• Tools 
• Office supplies 
• Paper items 
• Utensils 
• Small food items 
• Household hardware 

4. Relocate what goes somewhere else in the house 

Ideally, once you have completed going through your junk drawer, you won’t have anything left to go into a box that will eventually go into a new junk drawer at the new house. The bulk of what ends up in this space you can relocate to a proper place. Here are a few examples: 

• Pens, pencils, and other writing instruments can go in the office supplies 
• Screwdrivers, drill bits, and other small tools can go in the toolbox 
• Notepads and recipes can go in the recipe box 

The goal is to find everything in the drawer a more logical place to reside, and in most cases, you can easily do just that. 

Looking for Assistance with Your Residential Move?

No matter how many junk drawers you may have in your home, knowing you have help for the big transition can make things so much easier. If you are ready to find out more about getting help from professional movers, reach out to us today to get started. 

The post Weeding Out Your Junk Drawers Before a Move appeared first on Sinclair Moving.