I just moved from Seattle to the east coast (for similar reasons to you). My boyfriend and I shipped 34 (!) boxes via the good old US Postal Service. If you don't mind waiting 2 weeks for your stuff to arrive, the rates aren't that bad. We probably paid about $300 for all of it. We insured everything, shipped media rate and wrapped our breakables carefully. Nothing was lost and only 1 picture frame and a couple cd cases were broken.
Sell everything you can part with on Craigslist and use the money to pay for shipping costs. Unless you have lots of cash it's best to part with the replaceable items before a move like that. Travel with the few items you absolutely cannot lose and good luck!