According to the calendar it's almost PCS season, the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day when the military moves more than one third of their total shipments for the year, which is about 600,000 across all of the branches.

Last summer, the military moved 230,000 families and this year, due to base realignments and closures, the Defense Department's Personal Property Program is estimating an additional 10,000 moves will take place over the three-month period.

So with an even busier PCS season fast approaching, servicemembers and their families will need to get organized, stay focused and most of all remain flexible. Luckily there are some programs in place that can assist families, whether it is their first or fourteenth PCS.

The first priority should be meeting with the transportation office on base, otherwise known as the Joint Personal Property Shipping Office (JJPSO). Getting your move booked early, as soon as you have orders in hand, is the best bet. On Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the JJPSO office is open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, and can be reached at (253) 967-7230 or (253) 967-5093. However, due to heavy call volumes, servicemembers are encouraged to stop by in person at JJPSO, which is located on JBLM Main, inside Waller Hall, Bldg. 2140, Room 500.

Furthermore, the JBLM JJPSO also provides resources to help you prepare for a PCS on their website, www.lewis.army.mil/jppso/. Here you can find everything from a schedule of briefings on topics like moving OCONUS or domestic shipping, to a weight estimator for common household goods. There is also information on filing claims, should something be damaged in your move.

Servicemembers can also utilize the services offered at the Relocation Readiness Office on their current base for information on moving and post-move orientations. Most Relocation Readiness offices also maintain a loan closet from which families may borrow basic household goods. They also offer assistance with in-transit emergencies by providing classes on move-related topics and offer individual PCS planning. To find the relocation office (which is typically part of the Family Support Center) at your new duty station, visit www.militaryinstallations.dod.mil and select the installation, then go to "programs and services" and select "family center."

On JBLM, the Relocation Readiness office is also located in Waller Hall, Bldg 2140, and can be reached at (253) 967-7166, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Before getting on the road, its also advisable to visit the Finance Office at your current duty station to find out about the relocation entitlements that can help cover your moving expenses. The JBLM in and out processing finance office is once again located in Waller Hall and customer service can be reached at (253) 966-0272.

For some people, it's all about having a plan in place. The Plan My Move application (http://apps.mhf.dod.mil/pls/psgprod/f?p=MHF:RELO:0), offered through the DoD's Military Community and Family Policy office, is available online to help you create a customizable calendar that maps out your upcoming PCS. Tasks can be changed, moved, added or removed and you can also create travel checklists, arrival checklists, lists of documents to hand-carry and important phone numbers - all of which you can print out and take with you. Best of all, there is a Relocation Budget Plan tool that allows you to create an Excel spreadsheet to account for all of the expenses you will incur, as well as the entitlements you will receive as part of the PCS.

And if you think that you have a unique question that can't be covered by the more than 150 tip sheets that Plan My Move offers, you can visit the PCS forum. The Military Community and Family Policy office has created a platform within the social networking arena (www.facebook.com/MCandFP) for military families to have discussions and get answers to their PCS questions.

Of course Military OneSource also provides online resources through their Relocation Assistance Program (www.militaryonesource.com/MOS/FindInformation/Category.aspx?CategoryID=141) and live help at (800) 342-9647, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Among topics on renting or buying a home, spouses finding new jobs and the stress of relocating abroad, Military OneSource offers step-by-step guides to the actual, physical move.

The site can also redirect you to their Relocation Tool (www.relocationessentials.com/ aff/militaryonesource/default.aspx) that gives you access to local crime reports for the area you're moving to (which can influence your decision to live on or off base), school performance reports and even compares the cost of living differences between your current duty station and the next one.

To prep your children for the upcoming relocation, parents and kids alike can check out Military Youth on the Move (http://apps.mhf.dod.mil/pls/psgprod/f?p=MYOM). Children in elementary school through high school can view the site themselves to get answers to questions or concerns they might have, from how to make new friends to adjusting to a new school and even dealing with the boredom of a long car ride. There is also a section for parents to help them handle the stress that their child may be feeling.

The newest resource offered by the DoD is www.move.mil, which was created in an effort to make moving a little bit easier for military families and acts as the internet-based gateway for household goods and is called the Defense Personal Property System (DPS). By signing up for and using the DPS, you can submit your application online, instead of traveling to a Transportation Office, track your shipment, file claims online and receive the full replacement value of lost or damaged goods. Plus you can complete customer satisfaction surveys on the moving company you are assigned.

Once your things are packed and on the truck, you might want a resource that can help you learn about your new duty station.

The PCS America Military Relocation Network (www.pcsamerica.net) is a comprehensive tool that can help you to find an apartment, search homes for sale, homes to rent, research local schools, search job openings or even research base housing. PCS America's information is laid out on the local level, making it easy for you to find your way around the new installation, regardless of which state it is or what branch you're in.  

To request their Military Relocation Guide, which is printed monthly and includes local real estate agents and property listings, mortgage lenders, rental companies, and apartments from over 200 US military installations, simply email pcs-customerservice@earthlink.net.

Lastly, there are a few sites that can help you figure out where you'll live when you arrive at the new duty station. Your BAH rate will most likely change, so visit www.defensetravel.dod.mil/perdiem/bah.html and simply put in the new zip code with your rank to get the appropriate BAH rate. Once you have the numbers straight, the DoD sponsored Automated Housing Referral Network at www.ahrn.com can help you secure housing off the installation, or you can try www.remilitary.com and www.militarybyowner.com, which both feature homes for sale and for rent near military installations.