Tangram

I aim to please.

christmasoompa

Anyway, getting back on track, one thing to consider is if you'd even be allowed to work? If you went to Manitoba as you mention, you wouldn't be able to get a spousal open work permit (as a truck driver is not a 'skilled' profession), so if you wanted to work you'd need to get your own job offer from an employer prepared to go through the paperwork/hassle of the LMO for you. There are only one or two provinces that allow the spouses of a truck driver to work via a pilot program.

I don't know how important you working is, but if two salaries would be high up on the wish list, it's something to consider.

allycat231

Short haul will be your best bet. I work short haul and make over $20 an hour, not bad for Nova Scotia. There are plenty of driving jobs, that you can come home every night. ie Fuel Truck, Dump Truck, Waste Disposal. If you get sponsored by a Trucking firm, they are most likely going to want you to drive long haul out of Alberta!!

Also does he have is PVC licence? He could also consider driving a bus?

MillieF

MattandLeah - this is a super forum, because, just with all the Wikis' it's possible to sort out so much info. I am sure that there will be lots of info on the Trucking bit of the forum from people with lots of experience. Sometimes it's not just a case of weighing up finances, you have to deal with all of the intangibles too, you can be better off somewhere but bloody miserable, or are willing to gamble your immediate security for a longer term goal. My husband works away for seven weeks at a time....that's never changed, but has sometimes been harder than others. He likes his work, but if he gets home and finds me miserable as sin life isn't so great for either of us. For the person left at home with children life can be horrrribly bleak, stretching into the future with no let up. If you presently have a good family support then you might miss that terribly. You need to make a dispassionate list based on the reality of your situation - it can sometimes make you realise that your life is not as unhappy as you think it is.

snowcandy

Canada, as much as I love living here, is not a cheap alternative to the UK. The country is amazing and we have a great life here, but without sufficient funds it would be hellish.

We are lucky in that OH has a great job, with a fantastic company who have relocated us to Alberta We are currently renting a smaller than ideal house, until we get our PR and although we have loads of fun here we are not extravagant by any means. We spend more time together as a family doing lots of outdoorsy things we would not have done in the UK, hiking, skating, biking, these don't cost a lot. If you start to throw skiing into the mix then it gets expensive

The OP wants real information and this forum provides it. The "real" information comes from those who are here living the dream (or nightmare)

As a former military wife, being at home with young kids on your own for months at a time ain't fun, and that was with lots of other friends in the same boat! Being in this position in a strange country, without the support network would be pretty miserable, after the novelty wore off. If you are used to having your family around you to help out with childcare, etc then this would make things even worse. I don't want to be too negative, just trying to help you make an informed decision.

IMHO as a young family with dreams for something better I think you may need to seriously look at what you want out of life. Canada may well be your answer and if you really want to make it happen you will, you may just have to wait a while.....

Good Luck with your decision.

mandymoochops

I'm sorry but all I can do is agree with all the rest.

3 children under 5 are gonna cost a fortune to entertain over here, schools don't run 'free' soccer clubs and after school activities. you have to pay for everything. Kit subscription travel etc etc

Can you imagine how much money it will cost if they all wanted to play hockey The local teams don't provide the kits - you have to yourself.

My niece is a goalie and is 10 - and her next set of pads when she grows out of these are $800 and they are the cheapest

On a single truck drivers income I think you woud be struggling very hard to make ends meet.

ann m

Yeah, but, but, but .... it's BRITISH Expats - that's what we do.

ExKiwilass

Yes that's surprising to me too, not that way in NZ either. But then a lot of sports were available thru the school in NZ, doesn't seem like that so much here.

jamesmc

well.... to get the lmo&twp for driving a truck it has to be long haul, but dont just look at the main players wi their 10-14 days away...there are smaller firms that have you back every wk..
also remember if you run south ,you are not allowed to take a backload anywhere else but canada after you reload in the usa.
remember that your contract will have a min amount the employer has to pay each month ..imo 3.5--4k per month.
jimmy

snowcandy

We bought skates for all our kids for Christmas, they have skated lots over the last 2 weeks and also out in the mountains on frozen lakes (all free) Now 8 year old has announced he wants to play hockey...I was rather hoping he might prefer to be the next Christopher Dean

I fear this could get very expensive, may have to bribe him with a hamster instead........

Sport for kids is v expensive here, as are all extra curricular activities That said there are plenty of fun things you can do that don't cost the earth. Just resist the urge to have to compete with other parents who put their kids into everything going!!

gillyd65

Both of our kids were swimmers in the UK, one swam internationally. It used to cost us approx 400-500 pounds per year including all the swim meets for them both. Here its $5,000 for them both just for the training then add on every comp, swim meet, national swims (air fares, accommodation) takes it up to $10,000. They both played instruments in the UK and were in ensembles, bands etc, and were members of other sports and teams. We have priced up for them to do what they did back in the UK and its going to set us back about $20,000 - $25,000 per year. Can't do it.

DandNHill

It sounds as though they all want to put you off but I don't think it's out of spite (well maybe one or two...).

It is a very expensive business just to move over here to start with.

My suggestion is that you weigh all the pros and cons up - using your head not your heart to make sure you would be doing it for the right reasons.

If I was you I wouldn't do it if it means that your OH will be away weeks at a time. I had decided to be a stay at home Mum when I got here but it lasted about 2 weeks before I went stir crazy and started applying for jobs. From the day I left my job in the UK to the day I started a new job in Canada it was 7 weeks. 7 weeks during which I was like a lion in a cage. In the UK if I hadn't been working I could have popped round to see friends but here I didn't know anybody! I decided I had made the biggest mistake in my life and if it hadn't been for personal pride I would have turned round and flown back to the UK, with or without OH!!!
Because I have a job I have met people and now 4 1/2 months on I'm starting to enjoy life and have "friends" to say hi to! Also OH comes home every night.

You realise how alone you are when you don't even have anybody to "bump into" when you go out...

I know that was a bit of a ramble but hope it made sense and you can benefit from my experience.

MattandLeah

Thank you everyone for ALL the replies, they have been very helpfull. We are really keen for the kids to sport and if it's going to cost as much as everyone is saying it is then that would be a no go and not fair on them, I also don't my OH away that long, the kids are 4,3 and 4 months - to young to miss out on and we certainally don't have $20k+ in savings to fall back on. I think our best bet is for me to take some time and train in a skilled job, get some savings and then may be look at this in 5 years time. My heart is saying don't be silly just go for it but having read some horrible stories where people didn't make it out there, I really don't want to be one of them!!!

Dave n Ailsa

Great idea.

If it's any consolation, we've been planning this for 15 years, lol. Not really been in a position to do it properly until now.

Good luck!

huddersfieldlass

Hi there - our family was where you were at 6/7 years ago.

We felt very depressed about staying in the UK and so considered Canada/NZ/OZ. IN the end after a couple of years we moved to Canada just outside Calgary. We're still here now and can only offer you our opinion based on our findings:-

Don't underestimate the amount of 'starting up' money you need to establish yourself in another country. From attended the emigrates roadshow, then selling our house, renting three times in UK and upon landing in Canada, buying cars, and a thousand other items from cars to kids snow clothing - it costs a HUGE amount and certainly battered our capital.

Once established I would say we are no better off than when in the UK. In fact we are worse off due to the fact that we have a slightly higher mortgage. Both myself and OH work full time. However we manage to pay for everything and have some treats from time to time as well.

All in all life is just different here than back in the UK - I would say its no better or worse. Kids are now fully canadian but us old parents will always be British!

I wholly accept we maybe were trying to run away from our problems and our perception that we were going 'nowhere'. There is no perfect life anywhere and at the end of the day you have to get on with life and that is the way we think now. I guess if we had stayed in the UK we would have always thought 'what if'.