As moving day comes closer and closer, it's quite common to have your levels of stress and anxiety build up. There's so much to do, only so much time, and only so many people to do it. The real secret to a successful move is planning. If you take the time to draw up a good, comprehensive moving checklist, you'll always know where you're at in the process and what steps you need to make next.

Moving kits are a great way to ensure you have everything you need all in one convenient kit. To find the right ones, you simply have to know how many rooms you have in your home and what style of home you have (apartment, house). These kits have different types and sizes of boxes, markers, tape, and protective wrap such as bubble wrap for the delicate items you don't want broken or scratched. From there, you can always order a few extra boxes and other supplies to ensure you have enough.

If you'd much rather not have a kit, take an estimate of what size and how many boxes you'll need for each space by taking a look at what's in it. Small moving boxes are essential for glass items that get very heavy, while large moving boxes are great for items such as pillows, lamp shades, cereal, or plastic containers that weigh very little. Packing tape is essential and you may also want to consider a handle with a cutting edge to make it quick and easy to use.

For packing material, you should purchase bubble wrap for all of your highly breakable items. You can also use towels and bunched up newspaper for the rest of the items as well. Cutlery and other items may also require special care because of their sharp edges. Your goal is to ensure that the knives are protected from each other and from damaging anything else in the box.

Be sure to pick up clear, sealable plastic bags such as Ziplock or Glad. You can place items such as shampoo, moisturizers, cooking oils, and anything else that might leak into them. If they do leak during the move, it will leak into the sealed bag rather than soaking the boxes and making a large mess.

One word of advice when it comes to moving boxes: Be sure they are sturdy enough to stand up to the weight. Otherwise, the bottom can fall out of them. Secondly, be certain not to pack the boxes too full that they are too heavy to carry. You and your movers will be very happy that you did!

Hiring moving services is next up on your moving checklist. Be cautious not to judge them on price alone, however. Instead, ask people you know and trust for recommendations and be certain to ask for references from those you decide to contact. Set up an appointment for an estimate and be sure the mover does a thorough inspection including your furniture -- which will make up a large portion of the estimate.

Before you sign the papers and decide for certain which mover you will use, find out if they take responsibility for anything lost or damaged during the move. Your house insurance may cover some or all of this as well, so be sure to contact your insurance agent to double check. Finally, you should make a list of the value of these items including the priceless ones you may have around your home. These steps may seem like more of a pain than they're worth, but it will save you a lot of headaches and money should something happen later on.

Approximately one month before your moving day, you need to make arrangements to have services and utilities at your old residence cancelled and everything at the new one turned on. This is extremely important to ensure you aren't stuck at the new house for a week without the important ones like water, heat, and phone! Go through your monthly bills and make a list of all the utilities you have. These could include:

• Water
• Electricity
• Gas
• Heating oil, etc.
• Garbage and recycling contracts
• Television (cable, satellite, etc.)
• Telephone and cellular service
  
• Internet
  

You will also need to add any additional contracts and agreements you might have such as newspapers, dog walkers, lawn maintenance personnel, insurance companies, and anyone else who comes to your home on a regular basis. It sounds funny, but it wouldn't be good if, for example, the boy you hired continues to cut the grass for a month not realizing you no longer live there! Others will need to be informed of your address change as well.

Your local post office is a great place to get help changing your address. They can often provide you with a pre-printed list and postcard type forms that you can fill out to send to everyone. However, don't rely on this alone. In many cases, you can change everything in person so it's actually fast and easier to reserve these cards for friends, relatives, institutions, and organizations that are a greater distance away.

A few people and institutions that should be on your 'change-of-address' list include:

• Doctors
• Government and voter registration
• Hospital
• Post office
• Bank
• Lawyer if you have one for any reason
• Financial institutions you get your credit cards from as well as any 401Ks and investments
• Employers
• Any book/movie/other clubs you belong to
• Anyone who sends you correspondence in general

Once you have this list, it can be very difficult to keep track of who knows and who doesn't. It can also be a very daunting list. If you can, split the list up with your significant other or a good friend and have them help make phone calls (if it is your significant other) and write out the change of address cards. As the various people and organizations on your list receive notification, be sure to mark them off. Odd are you will have one or two who are difficult to get a hold of or require a type of form you don't have -- and this will make sure you know who they are.

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they move is leaving all of the packing until the last day or two before moving day. While this does work, it adds extra stress and work into the final moments of the move. This leaves you open to mistakes and forgetfulness as well as being just plain tired and cranky. Be sure to schedule time weeks in advance specifically for packing. If you do a little bit each day, the move will happen much more gradually and be far less stress for everyone involved.

Two or even three weeks in advance, you can start to pack items such as clothing and items that are out of season and others you don't normally use. As you get closer to moving day, you can start to pack things that you use more frequently, but don't need to use right away. These items include clothing, containers, books, movies, etc. When you are done, the last things you should have to pack up on moving day should just be the bare essentials such as hair brushes, pillows, etc. In many instances, these can be gathered in a matter of moments and kept in a couple of overnight bags.

Know ahead of time how you will pack up each room. For instance, will you start in the closet? What will you put clothes into? Do you need garment bags or boxes? What about glasses and cups? Do you need something special for them such as bubble wrap, divided boxes, etc?

Once you have everything packed, how will you identify the boxes? Some people choose to write the name of the room on each box with a quick list of what's in it. You can also color code the boxes and give a list of the colors/locations to the movers. Finally, decide what you will do with the boxes as you pack them up so that they are out of the way, but still easy to access later.

As you pack and go through the various spaces, you will inevitably come upon items that you no longer need. After all, the fewer items you move, the less expensive it will be and the faster things will go. Besides, who wants to pay moving expenses for the things they no longer want or need?

In many instances, you'll find it easiest to make three separate piles with your unwanted items. One pile can be specifically for garbage. This, you can either haul out to the curb on garbage day, or contact places such as 1800-Got-Junk to remove large items. The second pile should for items to give away. These can go to Goodwill, homeless shelters, or charities that need and want items you no longer do. Finally, have a sale pile for items you can sell on Craig's List or Ebay to try to get some of your money back.