When did your plan to move back start to feel real?

Next week a vet will visit us to give our animals their rabies shots, which they must have before being allowed back in the UK. Around a month afterwards they have blood drawn for a test to prove that the shots have worked and that antibodies are present above a certain level.

Once the blood is drawn we have to wait six months before the animals are allowed to enter the UK (and in practice this means us too!)

So our move in around February 2012 is now finally seeming very real!

When did your plans to move back turn into reality and at what point did you start to feel: "this is really happening"?

Also, what else do you think we should start doing, six months or so ahead of the move?

Yesterday for me Killerhales

I handed in my notice to my boss yesterday and am giving him 9 weeks notice so that he can advertise, interview & train somebody. It was such a huge relief to tell him & now I feel so much better. Plus I have just paid for our return flights and booked a self-contained apartment for 3 weeks when we get back, so doing all that cements the reality as well.

We have been 'moving back to the UK' for over 7 years and this is the first time that it has felt truly real - it's definitely happening for us this time whereas we've always chickened out in the past. It's a good feeling to KNOW that we are finally going - but a little bit scary at the same time as my hubby doesn't have a job lined up and I'm 13 weeks pregnant and will be about 6 mths by the time we return, so won't be able to work initially. Other than the odd pang of nerves I feel totally relieved that we are making the move back

Its all happened very suddenly for us. Been here 10 years but realise, finally, I was never truly happy, always planning a visit home or waiting for someone to visit us. Went home in March of this year, put in an offer on a property which seemed too good to be true, turned out it was ! Returned to USA, very sad, all our kids are there, including new grand daughter. Our son sent details of yet another house he had found, fell thru, he kept looking and suddenly found us one, said shall I put in an offer, so we thought yeah why not and it was accepted. YIKES !! so we put our house on the market and it sold in 12 days ! YIKES again. so, we are off, I am so excited, all this happened in the space of maybe 7 weeks, obviously meant to be. The dog has had his shots, bloods next week. Someone coming to give a quote on shipping on Tuesday, still torn on that one. We are renting our own house until September, then possibly moving unto the campsite where we both work for approx 6 weeks. We also have to wait for the dog, but considering letting her finish quarantine in the UK, we suddenly cant wait to be home, if we wait for the dog to be ready we are looking at early December, not sure I can wait that long. We are ready, so ready !!