My hubby works in the oil and gas industry as a pipeline welder, and he works away from home for 3 months at a time then home for a couple of weeks and away again

It's really getting to us now and the kids miss their daddy There's not really much choice though living here. We want him to be able to come home every night or at least every weekend, and as Alberta has such a a big industry it seems ideal.

We've never been though, and we are just not brave enough to apply until we know for sure! So in the mean time I have been researching every aspect, and planning a recce for May.

We don't have anything keeping us here apart from family, and we are still young (23 & 24) so if we're going to do it then it may as well be now before our kids are in school!

Would you more back do you think?

Shame he's away all the time - perhaps in Alberta it will be alot better

Definately come on a trip or 2 first, to be as sure as you can be on a holiday.

Would I move back?? well I never say never but my kids are settled and my o/h hates the Scottish weather and to be honest if we were ever to return (and he says he would at the drop of a hat if I felt I really wanted to, but he isn't prepared to flip-flop if I felt i'd made a mistake - understandably) it would more than likely be down south - Cambridge area for work reasons.

The longer I am here the less likelyhood of me going back - as long as I can fit 1 trip back a year it'll be okay - I think

I think we just have to be in Canada and either say "yes we love it" or "no way are we moving here". If it's a yes then we'll be straight home to fill in the application! From here I think we'll love it, but until I set foot in the country I just can't tell for definate.

Is it just your family you miss? If they were all to move to Canada would you still feel the same? Why does your OH hate the weather, is it the constant grey sky ? Plenty of that just now, and bucket loads of rain, it's horrible!

It's something me and my OH have spoken about too, if one of us wasn't settled. He says "If I move, I'm not coming back", which I think is a bit final! Like you, I would start off saying it's for a couple of years, maybe aim to get citizenship for us all, then try and work out what we want. Look at me talking about moving back and I've not even been yet

It would make it easier if they were all here certainly - but I also miss the culture, history, humour, architecture etc. Yes, my hubby hates the grey sky, feels like it's closing in on him and the amount of rain is horrendous - I even agree with that - being an East Coast girl, the wind chills you to the bone there........................but I still love the place. Whenever I touch down in Edinburgh or London, I feel i'm home - however, I'm also beginning to feel the same about here when I return - I guess i'm suspended somewhere over the Atlantic - a wee lost soul

I guess that's always the worry being an expat though, the idea that you may be torn between 2 places

Do you not get the British humour fix through expats in your area, and on here of course ?

I'm an east coast girl too and I agree the wind is awful - bit scared about the winter in Alberta

well not really - on here tis funny at times.........but in general Canadian humour is very different from ours.......We lived in Ottawa until this summer so most of friends there except 2 were Canadian - here I've met a group of English girls that are lovely...................

The winters are harsh in comparison to home, but personally (apart from the length of time they last) I don't mind that part - it's always bright and if you get into the winter sports here it's fun!

We actually prefer winter to summer so the length isn't a problem, I think the driving conditions might be a bit scary but I'm sure it's something we will get used to and learn to cope with.

Would love to get into the winter sports but as my youngest is only 18 months I think I'd need to sit and watch for a couple of years

We don't have a big group of friends here so actually looking forward to the idea of starting afresh and meeting new people

Thanks for the chat dollface...... and sorry to the OP for the serious case of thread drift

You'll get used to the driving.....honest!
Nice chatting to you!
Yep - sorry OP for the thread hijack

Thanks - obviously I need to add chalk to my shopping list!!

enjoy!

Don't forget to pack lots of Bisto Gravy Granules for your mince n tatties (you can buy regular bisto powder in the supermarkets though). We also get haggis here in NS as well as regularly hearing the skirl o the bagpipes and seeing all things tartan. A bit of a home from home here.

People, also get our sense of humour and their humour is not unlike our own - must be all the Scottish and Irish blood running through their veins

PS we moved from Aberdeen to New Glasgow, NS back in Jan 2007 and found it very easy to settle in (thankfully)

We've started looking at the East now too so thanks for the info

Kaye - Mr Cookie worked for 18 years offshore (telecoms). He rota was good the last 10 years (2 weeks offshore, 3 weeks home) but he always seemed to miss Christmas or New Year, plus anniversaries, birthdays etc. We both had enough of it all and moved here and he is in a job he really enjoys.

Ironically he is offshore at this moment (Atlantic Canada) - only a 4 day trip though and only his second trip since we arrived here thank goodness.

2 weeks on 3 weeks off sounds great! Know what you mean about missing everything though, this year my husband has missed both our childrens birthdays, our wedding anniversary and it's highly likely he will miss Christmas and New Year

Unfortunately for my hubby all the work is offshore, it's unlikely he'd ever find a permanently on land pipeline job. We just have to get used to the rotations, we've dealt with it for 3 years now but it would be nice to have a better rotation than 3months on 2 weeks off!!!

I've asked him if there's anything else he'd rather do and he said no! He has just informed me that he doesn't want to go to the East of Canada as it's too cold

The Joke thread is >>>>>>>>>>>>