Let the professional do their job.

With all the packing, lifting and the anxiety of wondering if everything is going to go smoothly, moving days by nature are very stressful. Luckily, a proper plan and the right attitude can minimize this stress and help make sure that your big move comes off without a hitch.

Realtor Jeanette Henderson is the chair of the California Association of Realtors' Housing Affordability committee and has received special recognition as an outstanding committee chairman. Here she offers ideas for making moving day successful and worry-free:

• Provide food and water.
  Have food and water available for your family and for the movers. Packing a picnic basket makes it more portable and a little bit festive.

• Pack valuables yourself.
  Save the space in your car for things that are extremely personal, important or fragile. Add another box for the electronics you'll need right away, like a CD player or your alarm clock.

• Pack an overnight case.
  Even if it's a local move, pack an overnight case and include a change of clothes, toiletries and your medicines. This way you will have a survival pack for a day or two, and you won't have to go hunting through boxes.

• Load kitchen and bathroom last.
  Ask the movers to load the kitchen and the bathroom last so that those will be the first items to come off the truck when you go to the new house.

• Stay out of the way.
  According to Henderson, you should let the movers do their job, which is to lift the boxes and load the truck. You should concentrate on your own job, which is deciding exactly how to organize your own home.