Designate one drawer of a dresser for sheets and towels so that you won't have to rummage through boxes for these essentials the first night in your new home.

After you've thoroughly cleaned and dried the inside of your refrigerator, put a handful of fresh coffee, baking soda or charcoal in a sock or nylon stocking and place it inside to keep the interior smelling fresh.

Pack your current phone book to take with you. You may need to make calls to residents or businesses back in your former town hometown.

Pack heavy items in small boxes, light items in larger boxes.

Before the foreman leaves for your destination residence, give him a phone number where you can be reached. It is also a good idea to provide with an alternative contact in case you can't be reached.

Place pictures in boxes between sheets and blankets to give them added protection.

Plates and record albums should be packed on end vertically, rather than placed flat and stacked.

Toilet paper, telephone, toothpaste and brushes, snacks, coffee and coffee pot, soap, flashlight, screwdriver, pliers, can opener, paper plates, cups and utensils, a couple of pans, and paper towels are some of the essentials you may need upon arrival at your new home. Pack a box with these types of items and ask your van foreman to load it on the van last so that it will be unloaded at your home first. Before packing medicine and toiletry items, make sure that their caps and lids have been tightly secured.

Remove all bulbs before packing your lamps.

At destination, you might consider having the TV and VCR hooked up first to occupy the kids while the rest of the van is being unloaded.

Keep your pet calm and away from all activity on moving day by arranging for a friend to watch your pet at their house.

Upon arrival at your new home, let your PC "acclimate" itself to room temperature before plugging it in.

Reserve cargo elevators in advance when applicable.

Leave the rest to the professionals, sit back and relax, and look forward to the new opportunities, new friends, new experiences, etc., that are part of any move.