We left the UK to come here a year ago and it's all gone so quick.  I remember it all so well..... all the lists.... all the organising.... trying to remember everything.... trying to fit in visits to see everyone to say good bye. All the different emotions .... excitement to be going, and sadness to be leaving everyone behind.

So what have we done in the last year.

For the first 2 weeks we stayed with my other half's boss in St Johns.  They lived in a lovely house.... my son enjoyed playing with their older daughter.  My OH went off to work the very next day after arriving here and I was left all alone with my son in their house.... I wasn't too happy about this as I had no transport, even the shops were miles away.  I started getting really depressed and wondered what the hell we'd done.

He managed to get a day off work and borrowed the bosses car.... and we went house hunting. All the houses we saw were on tiny little plots and I hated the way all the houses were in each others gardens. I never expected Auckland to be like that and neither did the OH, he had lived in Oz and for some reason expected it to be more like where he lived there.  I got more and more depressed as we saw more and more houses and they were either next to filthy industrial sites or on the side of State Highway 1 or in somebody's else's garden and totally overlooked. A good fenced garden was a priority as we had a 19 month old at the time but we just could not find one.  In the end we agreed to rent a house in Wattle Downs where the road it was on was well kept and smart.

We bought 2 cars from Esanda, Mount Wellington.  A small runaround Honda tin can thing for me and a newish Mondeo for OH to go to work in.

After 3 days in that house we decided we just could not stay there.  The house had a few problems that the rental company said they would sort and they just didn't.  The cooker did not work and was falling apart, the waste disposal squirted mashed up crap everywhere into the cupboard beneath it.  The house seemed very damp all day, we bought a dehumidifier at The Warehouse and left it on night and day. We also bought oil-filled radiators as suggested to us.... big mistake.... first leccy bill was over $200 for just a week!!!

All it seemed to do was rain. I was left at home with my toddler son and just ended up walking around the shops trying to find him some toys he might play with.  I didn't know anybody and when things went wrong I felt I had nobody to turn to and got so depressed I remember writing emails back to my friends in the UK, they were worried about me... I sounded so unhappy.

One day my OH rang me from work and suggested I go look for somewhere else to live .... I had to hurry as I knew the container from UK would be with us in a few weeks.  I drove out East to Beachlands and Maraetai and walked into the local Estate Agents where luckily the rental lady was there to speak to me.  She gave me several addresses to go and drive past to see if I liked the look of them.  I saw several houses in Maraetai but they didn't seem too toddler friendly.  I drove past the house we are in now, (Beachlands), and though t... "wow thats nice".  We agreed to look at it at the weekend even though the rent was a lot more than we really wanted to pay.  We loved it when we saw it and arranged to move in a couple weeks later..... just 3 days before our container arrived.

I met a lady with a little boy down at the park on the beach and she gave me the details of the Playgroups in the area.  I went and immediately got introduced to a British lady who has become one of my good friends here.  Strangely enough the coffee group that we have is made of British people.  I have met some lovely kiwi women but I really think that they have their own friends and family here and don't really need any more in their lives.  So us British tend to stick together and we have a good old "whinging pom moan" .... we laugh at a lot of the things here.  We are all friendly and welcome others into our group as we know what it's like moving someone new and not knowing anybody.  We help each other through the different stages of Culture Shock too.

After a few weeks here I knew I wanted a horse again.... I had a horse in UK and had to leave him behind as he was photosensitive and had rain allergies.... no good for this climate!  I secured some grazing and then went to see a lady who rescues ex racing Standardbreds from petfood fate.  I rode a couple and decided to buy the naughtiest liveliest one who tried to chuck me off.... mad yeah I know!  He's only a baby but he's turning into a beautiful kind natured horse who I'm proud to own.  The riding here is pretty limited but I get to ride down into the sea near Whitford which was always something I wanted to do.

We haven't really got out and about too much to be honest.  We've been and done the touristy things in Auckland ... we've been to Piha and Waihi... we stayed in Papamoa for a couple of days.  The countryside is beautiful and the beaches are all amazing and all so different.

The OH moans about the driving into work.... the roads really are a nightmare around Auckland! I don't see it as it's pretty quiet out here but I can see why he gets frustrated.

We suddenly decided the other week that we don't want to rent anymore.  Its time to buy a place in Beachlands before we get priced out.  My house sale in the UK is going through, the tenant is buying the house off me.... Im so glad she likes it so much.  We are buying an older style house here but its on a full section (1/4 acre) and has plenty of room for all our still yet to be unpacked boxes!

My parents came out here to visit us in February.... the weather wasn't that great for them but a lot warmer than UK.  They have decided they wouldn't want to live here as they are too old now to make the move which is fair enough... they have a good life there. It was good of them to come out and see us.

I've just found out that I'm pregnant again so I'm to have a little kiwi this time.

The hardest thing for me is missing my family. I don't really miss the UK that much and I can't imagine we will move back there. I still have days that are quite difficult and I feel very alone most of the time as my OH is out of the house for 12 hours a day because of the busy roads.  There are pros and cons to living here but we are making the best of it.  I'd love to be able to see more of New Zealand but money is tight right now.

Good luck to everyone who's moving here.  Its a huge adventure and you will have ups and downs..... ride it out and give it a chance... its a lovely place to live.... and the weathers not too bad either!

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