It's been a long week....I'll call it fridayitis


I've got a visitor from England just turned up today, Making up his mind If he is going to stay or not.

Travelled all around from Exmouth WA, and now at my place here in Melbourne, and going right up to cape york, Via as many points inbetween as he can get.

So I'm orf to bed after night shift, so I can show him what this city has to offer this arvo and later tonight

I meant your "nanny post" it was what I was thinking, but I am too polite to say

I keep reading all those that say if you dont like it you can always come back and yes I was one of them 5yrs ago.
We lived in oz for 1 year with the intention on staying we have visa till may 08 and sold almost everything car bike furniture house.We loved it for the first 10 months but then decided it was not for us family of 5.
been back now for 18 months and its been the hardest 18 months of our lives.
Getting kids back to school way behind others yes after 1yr,
finding a house that was as good as the one we left,
getting back to where we were at work not to mention being thousands of pounds out of pocket and the strain on our marriage.
If I went back I would rent my house out and that would take some of the pressure off.
So yes you can always come back but I would not take this advice from anyone that has not done it.
All the best Steve.[/QUOTE]
I agree in some ways, for some people it is not so easy to just go back.
But in my opinion if you are going to make this life change, you need to cover all scenarios. So yes in one way keep the house back in UK , but for some it has to be sold.
We had to sell, we did well on our house, we worked out a budget, and we stuck to it, well sort of.
It does put a lot of pressure on your family and even the strongest marriages can fall apart, luckily we got through it.
I think if we had to go back, it would be hard for our kids to settle, but we are ok at the moment. Things can change though.
I hold my hat up to everybody that does this as it a big risk, when we where emigrating people would say how brave we was, sold up came over 5 cases 5 tchest, brought 3 young kids , left 3 older ones. And its only now that i think, bloody hell it was, my mum and dad where the 20 pound poms, and they went back after 4 years, and always regretted it. Now they where the brave ones i think. Denise

If i'd kept the house in the UK I think I'd always feel I had a get out of jail free card making that option to easy so sold the lot.

You only loose on the money side if you do go back as have to start all over again a 2nd time where as if you only do it once you take the hit and then settle into normal financial life.

If you do stay here and everyones kids are 1 year behind that's the norm and plus they do do one year extra at the end so it all equals out in the long run... .

I'd rather do it and know i'd tried than never do it at all and spend rest of my life thinking what if!!!!.

I would say be careful! Do some serious soul searching into the kind of people you really are. My partner and myself and 2 young children have been out here for nearly 18 months and both agree that Australia is a great place, the weather being the major bonus! BUT, I think if you have a good standard of living in the U.K and are close to your families you will face many difficulites here along the way and will always be comparing it. We got carried away with the myth that we would have a better familiy life and more time with the children, for us that simply didn't happen, my husband works longer hours here than he did in the UK and things really aren't much cheaper, you get more house for your money , but thats about it. We have no regrets about coming here, as we both thought about it for a long time and if we had never done it, it would have been difficult thinking What if? My partner and I are both lucky in the fact that we both have jobs that enable us to work more or less anywhere and even if we went back to the UK we could get back to where we left off at least. Having said all that it isn't that easy to say 'oh just go back to the UK if you don't like it' You both would have to agree on that decision, which can cause lots of problems! It's a hugh financial and emotional decision. I would read the moving back to the UK forum also and discuss the 'ifs and buts' . Best of luck!!!!

Could you not write that a bit bigger please,
we had a great standard of living in UK, AND do here as well
i left a very close family and some are here at the moment but i dont really miss them because i speak to them all the time on MSN.
We are settled here, but could settle back there if we had to, but would rather be here.

It isn't a Myth, A Myth is something that is not true, (eg: A fictitious story).

For many people Australia has created a better life.

But I agree .. It hasn't been for ALL.

But just because some do not get a better life from it, does not mean that it is a MYTH.

If we'd stayed in the UK was more of the same old same old and no excitment left in life, good house, good jobs, good salary, good holidays but bit like being rich everything to smooth need a bit of a roller coaster to keep things lively and stop the rot setting in... .

Plus we don't need spend all year waiting for those 2 weeks in the sun instead we get 2 weeks of rain instead... .

Ok so Myth might be the wrong word but tell my why people think that by coming here to Australia they are suddenly going to have a better life with the kids? Could they not have achieved exactly the same in the UK with their kids and family life? I think its all wishfull thinking, You can still do as much if not more with the kids in the UK so why will traveling halfway around the world suddenly make your family life better. (Don't mention the weather as I'm not buying that one)

You should come and live in "good ole bradford" mate, then you'll know why.

Yes, we could move to another part of the UK. We did look into it. Couldn't afford the houses, not enough jobs about etc.

I think if i am gonna move family home, kids schools, our jobs then I ain't gonna piss about moving a few hundered miles down the M6.....

The thing is I can't think of anywhere else in this country I would like to live anyway, so we will try another country and have a complete change!

Yes but in the UK you have a huge choice of things to do with them that doesn't involve having to cover them is sun / insect cream and make sure they covered up from the sun.

I think its all down to attitude, In the UK people CHOOSE to work late and at weekends rather than spend time with the kids, The choose to do anything other than spend time with the kids then for some unearthly reason they think that a move to the otherside of the world is going to make them spend more time with the kids.

One of the biggest differences I have noticed here is that parents take the kids out with them and involve them in everything they do. I've been to many a meal out with Aussie friends that alway bring the kids with them. Back home the baby sitter would be employed and going out for a meal is a method of getting away from the kids. So why don't people just do this same thing back home? Then maybe there would be no need to emmigrate.

Good for you, we did it anyone can, home is where the heart is.
And for us it is here in the beautiful Bunbury.
Denise

Yes I agree. There is no need to emmigrate to spend time with the kids. I spend most of my time with mine. (although sometimes I'd rather be at work )

I also have no intention of dragging the kids everywhere with me :scared:

We dont spend all our time with the kids over here, my daughter has our kids every Thursday night, and that is mine and David night.
We go away occational weekends me and hubby
But we do spend lots of our time with the kids as well, as we did in the UK.
And we expats babysit for each other, i babysat Tuesday night for expats that came over a few weeks ago.