How To: Settle Kids in a New Home

Moving into a new home can be stressful, and the change can be especially hard on kids. Lauren McCann, manager of Child Life at Le Bonheur, offers some tips for parents who want to help ease the transition for their kids. She recently moved into a new home with her 2-year-old daughter, Maddie. As a child life specialist, Lauren knows the importance of creating a normal, comfortable environment for children. Read her advice below.

Create Ownership
Once we signed the papers, the house officially became known as "Maddie's House." This helped her have ownership and get excited. We didn't move in right away, so we periodically took her to the house while we were working on it, so she could get used to it. Before we moved in, she was able to recognize the house as we pulled in to the driveway and would be excited to say we were at "Maddie's House."

Maintain Routine
We also made sure that on the first night of sleeping in the new house, her room was completely ready. We also made sure that her routine of watching cartoons on the couch as she had breakfast was in place. We wanted her to go to sleep in a familiar environment and wake up to a familiar routine.

Involve Child in Decorating, Unpacking
We also did the fun things of letting her pick out a paint color for her room - or at least letting her think she was picking out her paint color. I mean really, at 2 years old, there is no telling what she would have picked on her own! I wisely guided her in picking the color I wanted.

Go With the Flow
Overall, we went with the flow of things. Luckily she is young and pretty "go with the flow," so we never really had any issues. I think the best advice is to do the best you can in preparing, but also keep your calm. The more the parents are anxious, the more the kids will feed off of that anxiety.