When army families move, they often have to leave behind dear memories of beloved homes. Army kids don’t get the benefit of a measuring wall in the garage or buried treasure in the backyard. Even so, there are plenty of temporary ways to make a kid’s room feel like home. Best of all, these ideas can be installed and then removed to bring alone to the next house. There’s no need for kids to feel afloat just because they are moving to a new city.
Consistent room decor and family rituals can help ease the transition for military kids. Here are some ideas for temporary home-making ideas for a child’s room.
Temporary Wallpaper and Command Hooks for Artwork
For a super quick hit of personalization, look for temporary wallpaper that suits your child’s personality. Many companies make instant wallpaper that’s easy to install, even right on top of existing wallpaper. Choose from a bold striped pattern for tweens or superhero-inspired wallpaper for little ones. This is a simple way to help kids put their own stamp on their temporary dwelling. From choosing the colors to helping put up the wallpaper, this is a great way to involve children in creating a homey feeling in their new room.
Another great way to personalize a child’s room temporarily is to use command hooks. These use powerful sticky pads to adhere a plastic hook directly to the wall. The best part is that they are completely removable and don’t leave a trace of gunk behind. This means that you can easily make your rental bedroom feel like home in no time at all. You don’t even have to worry about leaving nail holes behind when you move. Kids can display their most recent works of art on the wall, or they can display the cover of a magazine or a favorite poster. Take them down when it’s time to move, and put them back up in their new bedroom to provide continuity.
Measuring Tape Painted White
You may have seen this idea on a Pinterest board. It’s a great way to provide the growing-up measuring stick experience to army kids who move around frequently. For instance, let’s imagine a family that is moving from Connecticut to military housing in Los Angeles. Rather than try to remember to take photos of the measuring wall, try using a long measuring tape. How does it work?
Pull out the measuring tape completely and lock it. Spray paint it completely white on both sides. Once it’s dry, you can use this measuring tape as a pocket-sized measuring stick to track your children’s growth over the years. It’s easy to take this with you from one city to the next, and it doesn’t take up any more room than your smartphone. You can easily track the heights of multiple children and it’s easy to store and pull out on demand. Choose a different color for each child and measure them on special occasions. Now, at a glance, your child can see how much they’ve grown and which cities they’ve lived in. Once the kids are all grown up, you can tuck away the measuring tape into a memory box or create a nice display.
Flat-Pack Furniture
Flat-pack furniture gets a bad rap. People say that it’s flimsy, mass produced, and unstylish. But it all depends on your goals! A veterans association in Los Angeles might recommend flat-pack furniture to army families because it’s easy to break down and store. It doesn’t take up a lot of room in its flat form, so it’s easy to ship it to your destination for a low cost. Alternately, it’s easy to put into storage for future use. Plus, flat-pack furniture can actually be easier to fix if parts are readily available.
Another benefit of flat pack furniture is that it’s personalizable. Invite kids to decorate their furniture in a style that’s all their own. Buy a cheap bed frame and encourage little ones to participate in painting it. Break it down and travel with it and they will be delighted to see their familiar bed. With flat-pack furniture, you can worry less about protecting the quality of the furniture. Instead, you can focus on helping kids feel comfortable by personalizing their furniture. If they get tired of one color as they grow older, encourage them to re-paint it or add stickers. These types of activities can help kids feel at home while they move around between different houses.
Chalkboard Wall
This is a savvy solution to the frequent relocation that army and navy families face. Of course, there are great benefits to being employed by the army. One major benefit is access to the veteran’s medical center in California should any accident befall you or your loved one. But kids probably aren’t thinking about that stuff when they move into a scary new house.
A chalkboard wall is a minimal investment that doesn’t have to be fixed when you move. It’s easy to find a can of chalkboard paint at most hardware stores. With a few quick coats of paint, your child can have an entire wall in their bedroom for doodling and expressing herself. Grab a multicolored packet of chalk and your child will feel right at home. They can make notes about schoolwork, create drawings with friends, and even track chores. The simplest design is to create a large-font version of their name, clearly identifying that this room now belongs to them.
Being a military child comes with perks. Help kids see the bright side by investing in temporary room decor to make every house feel like home.
Kws: military housing Los Angeles, veteran’s medical center California, veterans association Los Angeles
