getting down under

Hi Fluff, I'm pretty new to this community but thought I'd Just have to pay you some serious respect where it's due.

My in-laws moved over to Australia about 12 months before we did, they settled just north of Sydney, we settled in Perth

We've still had them over for a visit though and i have to say it was damn hard work!

I'm not sure what it is about parents. It's almost like payback time. We looked after you as a child for all those years so you WILL entertain us!

Anyway mate, well done! I hope everything settles down for you

Cheers

Mark

eddie007

No worries... I often don't understand things. I wouldn't have MY in laws here living with us for all the tea in china.... becasue no matter what I did it would never be enough... (actually FIL is dead thank God)

were they like that before they came?

sincere condolences

FluffyTheCampfireSlayer

Yep, they were the same before we left for Aus last year!

It's funny how we thought they would come out here and maybe be 'different' - you know, 'happier'? How wrong we were!

They possess the motivation of a lump of hardwood!

busterboy

Dear Gorgeous

Loved your post. We have just gotten rid of 4 months worth of visitors. Never again! Totally ungrateful and ungracious bunch. Best one was OH's brother from Joburg, confused me with his maid back home, took him six days to lift a cup. Came home at a 14 hour day to find them all sitting around the dining room table like little chickies waiting to be fed.....

don544

hi r&c
seen a lot of your posts over the last 2 years and your wish for a better life in oz.
hope you can now sort your life out, with out hinderence from others.
dom

St.Georges Girl

Oh jeez, don't you just love 'em. We too have had 'guests' like that who have gone into holiday mode as soon as they stepped off that plane. We've been a free hotel and restaurant to more than I care to remember over the years too.

busterboy

We are soooo broke because of this....did it hit your bank balance too?

eddie007

If this is going to turn into a shoe box in middle o't'rood sketch I bags winning it..

After nearly 2 months (I don't begrudge a minute of it, they were great... it was MY parents)

Our house guests wrote off another vehicle and smashed up OH beautiful baby... ripping off the roo bar...

(that was my Dad... been out to buy some prawns on his last day... forgot undertaking is allowed and pulled into the slow lane)

Have them back tomorrow in a flash..

St.Georges Girl

Of course, but when you have an extra 4 adults to stay for 3½ weeks and one coughs up $100 and the others nilch, it does put the funds at rock bottom, especially as OH only had about 3 days work at that time too and it was Xmas. Then one month later we had 3 adults (the 2 lazy women) and were only given $50 between them, which wouldn't even have covered the extra phone bill, as the grand daughter phoned her boyfriend every night. It is a shame, 'cos it really does spoil what should be a nice time.

moneypenny20

Jeez, and I moan because no bugger seems to want to come visit. Think I'll keep it that way The thing is though, would any of you have contemplated having these people stay at your home in the UK for more than a week? I think not most of the time. Have them for their first week, move them into a B&B and then have them for the final week. They'd soon get off their arses and explore if that happened.

St.Georges Girl

I would of actually, but we lived quite close (within a 7 mile radius), so there was no need. What really gets me is that most of them seem to think they are doing you a favour by coming to visit.

asher

Fluff to be honest I think it was doomed to fail before you start.
I have no option but to have family staying for a long while to look after me and being dependant is shite! and it is such a strain as we all need peace and quiet for a while.

However back to you, your parents don't have any friends or acquaintances they are also at an age when it is more difficult so will be overly reliant on you which puts a heavy strain on your relationship.

I think things will calm down after a while but try to help them meet people get them to join clubs like the RSL and places like that so they can get out. Get them to do some voluntary stuff to help meet people and get them out of your hair.

travelbug

Families indeed
5 weeks - i dont know how you managed to last that long!

travelbug

That's just taking the P.... $100 and $50 - what do people expect for that...
At least when we stayed with my OH's rellies in Perth last year we paid our way. We deliberately didn't eat their food in the house (apart from breakfast stuff - which we replaced as we went along and the odd packet of crisps or biscuits etc for our two kids)....we bought beers/drinks in most evenings rather than drink theirs... We ate out often - and when we did all do a social get together with all the rellies we gave them money towards the cost of the food etc for picnics/bbq's or for the odd takeaway - sometimes i know i gave enough to cover the cost of their food as well as our own. I did not want people talking about me saying that we'd not paid our way... and to say thanks for having us we took them out for a meal a couple of days before coming back to the UK. I even used our UK mobile to ring home a couple of times as i didn't want to be seen to use their phone too much...

FluffyTheCampfireSlayer

Pah!! They had no friends and acquaintances in the UK!!! As for helping them to meet people! We joined the RSL 2 days before they arrived so that we could sign them in once they got here (no other reason). Took em there, MIL wouldnt even step through the door!! Said she wouldnt be seen dead in an old fogies club!! WTF!!! Redcliffe RSL is one of the best around and FAR from full of old fogies! Had ACCA DACCA there last Saturday night even!! SO, we tried joining the Moreton Bay Boat Club - went in for dinner one night - whinge whinge whinge!!! Mil left and vowed never to return!