The Truth About My Moving Style

We’re the type of people who have helped a lot of other families move in the past, so we know what we like and don’t like about moving days. As a result, I make sure everything is packed well in advance so our friends who are oh so kind to help us just have to load boxes and furniture onto a moving truck. Isn’t that enough work?

Because of this, I’ve been packing like crazy for the past month. I knew it was time for our baby clothes and gear to go, so I passed it along to young families. I gave away the clothing that didn’t fit just right. We ate through most of our stockpiled food in our pantry – it was like cooking for the Food Network show “Chopped” every night. I cancelled all of our utilities and dutifully submitted changes of our address.

As it came time to close up our apartment, we had a lot of cleaning to do.

Now. As the creator of Accidentally Green, I bet you’re ready to read some fabulously cheap, easy and green method for cleaning when you’re moving out, right?

I’m sorry, but I need to share my honest experience today. We used store-bought cleaning products filled with chemicals.

Really.

And I hated it.

Yet I was so exhausted with the month of preparing to move that I just couldn’t deal with a green clean. My vinegar and baking soda were packed away in the pantry box, anyway, and my box of cleaners hadn’t made it on the moving truck yet.

So, we donned our rubber gloves and scrubbed the heck out of our bathrooms and kitchen. They are glistening clean now, so our landlord should be quite pleased. The apartment smells sickeningly of toxins mingled with “spring morning” or some other chemically-derived artificial scent. My nose hurt and my eyes burned, thanks to the harsh cleaning odors.

But everything is finished. We’re moved out and are moving on to better things and places. So exciting! Yet I had to come clean today – I didn’t want to deceive you that I’m living a green life in every single situation. (For the record, we also used paper plates, cups and plastic silverware on the last two days. Just keeping it real.)

Since I’m in the throes of moving, I’ll discuss green moving tips on Wednesday, and a “What to do if your roommate’s not green” living guide on Friday.

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