1. When your husband says, "Don't worry. It'll only take two days to pack up the house," don't believe him. Instead start boxing things up immediately, if not sooner. Your marriage will thank you.

3. Children, however, are not.
4. Agree on the definitions of certain words with your spouse. For instance, the word unpack should mean all items in said box are removed. It does not mean boxes are placed in available closet space for later discovery. Surprise...you have another unpacked box!!
5. MapQuest, GPS, Google Maps. Whatever you use...don't leave home without it.
6. Time your move so it closely coincides with the start date of school. A week, for example, of hearing about how your children have no friends and the new school is going to be horrible, is WAY too much time.
7. When necessary keep bribes close at hand. Cookies, screen time, back to school shopping. These are your new best friends.
8. Instead of spending tens of minutes each morning staring helplessly at the complicated new coffee maker...locate the nearest Starbucks and commit the route to memory.
9. Channel someone on Prozac or Xanax or any of those happy-making, calm drugs. "I know we've been sitting in traffic for 45 minutes sweetie, but try not to bounce your basketball off of your sister's head again."
10. And the number one rule for moving cross-country, insisted upon by school teachers and frazzled mothers everywhere....Have fun!
Even if you have to pretend! Because pretend fun is better than no fun at all.