This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of 1 Natural Way, a TRICARE breast pump provider. All opinions are entirely my own.

This military life is an extreme ride, isn’t it? So many benefits and so many hassles. Due to my husbands’ residency programs and our kid’s health concerns, we PCS’d four times in four years! Two of those moves happened while I was pregnant. With that said, we’ve learned a thing or two about making military moves. Here are my best tips on how to PCS like a boss!

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Before the move:

• As soon as you get your RIP (relief in place), do everything you can do to get your orders. Keep checking. We have had orders not get put in because someone was relieved from duty and no one picked up her workload (aka our orders). The sooner you can get your orders, the smoother the PCS process will go.
• When orders drop: Contact TMO to set up movers. Tell them you need a household goods move and a partial DITY. A partial DITY means you will get paid for the goods you move yourself. You weigh your car before you put the goods in and then after. The military will pay you per pound you move on your own.
• This is also when you set up TLF (temporary living facility). If you need TLF during the front or back end of your move, contact them when you get your orders. You can use 10 days of TLF that the military will pay for and you can use it on the front or back end of a combination of the two. During our last move, we needed a place to sleep one night because our stuff was on the truck, but we had to do a final walk-through of our house the next day. TLF was booked, but if this happens, the military will pay for a comparable hotel. We’ve also stayed in TLF while house-hunting at one of our base locations. If you are staying in TLF for a while, you may want to consider packing crock pot with spices inside.
• House Hunt. This isn’t an option for everyone, but if you can, house hunt before the movers ever get to your house. Yes, you may burn some leave doing it, but we’ve done it both ways, and this is way less stressful. Not only does it cut down on some stress, but it also gives you a better chance of your stuff getting delivered in one piece. The only move where we had multiple damaged items was when our goods had to go into storage. If you give the movers a permanent address to move your goods, you have a much better chance of your items being in good shape. 
• Try to set up Medical Care for you and your family beforehand. If you are moving within the same TriCare region, this is typically easier. If you are moving to a different TriCare region, you may have to wait to book appointments. Bottom line-call TriCare and check! If you are Prime and get your care on base, we have had luck setting up things like prenatal appointments. Speaking of- if you are pregnant during a PCS (I feel you!) the more you can do for your care on the front end of the move- the better! That means things like registering for baby items. But, don’t register for things you can get for free! 1 Natural Way is a TriCare breast pump provider. They offer the popular Medela, Spectra and Kiinde breast pump brands at no out of pocket expense to you. They also offer breast pump accessories, compression socks, and other postpartum care supplies—so don’t pay for what you don’t have to! Bonus— this process will only take you about 5 minutes! Read my all of my survival tips for new military moms.
• Clear plastic bags are your friend! Use gallon sized (or double gallon) bags to pack utensils and kitchen gadgets. This cuts down on the many dishwasher runs you will need to start rolling when you first get into your new house. Plastic bags are also great for junk drawer items, small cords, and small (non-liquid) bathroom items. Do this before the movers get there, so all they have to do is put the plastic bags in boxes instead of individually wrapping small items. It’s easier for them on the front end, easier for you on the back end.
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• Use extra-large plastic bags to pack folded clothes. I cannot recommend this enough! The Packers leave hanging items on hangers, but all folded clothes will end up in a dump pile on your floor or bed. We forgot to do this during our last move and we will not forget again! Game. Changer.

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• Take pictures of high-value items.
• The day before the movers come, separate everything you are taking with you on your partial DITY. You will need suitcases for everyone in your family, plus sheets and towels for your whole crew. Trust me on this! The worst thing when you are moving is wanting to crawl into bed and having no sheets or towels in your new house. Also, make sure to add some high weight items in order to make your DITY worth it. Put everything you want with you in your car. If it’s not in your car- the movers will move it. Our commander had movers move things blocked off with caution tape and a sign that said, “do not move”. If you want it with you, put it in your car!During Move-out:

• Be EXTRA nice to your movers. These people have a lot of work to do and are caring for your things. We typically have a half a dozen donuts and juice available for the morning. We rarely have movers eat in the morning, but it sets the tone that we are going to take care of them. Have cold waters and Gatorade in a cooler and show them where it is, so they know they can get a drink whenever they want. Order them a nice lunch! These guys get pizza A LOT. We typically give them several options of places to choose from and then take custom orders. This may be over the top, but our stuff is always taken care of since we started this.
• Have plans for small children. Arrange childcare or assign one spouse to entertain them for the day. You don’t want them underfoot during the move. If they will be napping at the house, let the movers know first thing so they can plan accordingly.
• Color-code. When your stuff gets moved into your new house, you will have several movers ask you all morning—“Where does this go?” Eliminate that back-end stress by color-coding boxes with colored masking tape. So, master bedroom gets a strip of red colored tape, kid 1’s boxes get a strip of blue tape, etc. When you get to your new house, have a color-coded chart in a central location so the movers know what goes where.
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 During Move-in:

• Check in with your unit the day you arrive and go to finance. Your BAH is different at every location, so it’s crucial to get this worked out as soon as you get there.
• If you are doing a full unpack, you need to let the movers know as soon as they arrive or beforehand. They will not be happy about this and will try to talk you out of it. They don’t get paid extra for doing the full unpack. We’ve done it both ways and we prefer to do at least a partial unpack- especially kitchen items! For us, we hate opening boxes for days on end and dealing with ALL THE PAPER. When you do a full unpack, your items will have to stay on elevated flat surfaces, but we find this to be way less stressful than opening boxes and we feel it helps us to set up the house much faster. If you are doing a full unpack, make sure you are EXTRA nice to your movers. Let them know before you start unpacking that you are going to make this worth their time via tip.
• Greet movers with small breakfast, drinks etc.
• Special Order lunches, if you can.
• Designate one person to sit in the garage or by the truck and check off boxes. This can really get chaotic, so it’s best the person is sitting outside.
• When the movers leave, put your clean sheets on your bed and clean towels in the bathrooms first. That way when you are ready to crash, you can!
  
  Other tips from military spouse friends:

• Put valuable items in a Gorilla box
• Wrap mattresses in plastic or a mattress sleeve
• Don’t let packers take items to a location because they ran out of boxes. Make them get more and bring the boxes to your house. That’s it those are all of my PCS tips—now you can PCS like a boss!
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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of 1 Natural Way, a TRICARE breast pump provider. All opinions are entirely my own.