babybella

It def takes 1 year to settle, my first 6 months in the UK I used to take my youngest to school, get back into bed and cry.
It took a real effort for me to realise that it was up to me to get out and make some friends and a life. I found everyone in the UK very unfriendly, then I realised that they don't need new friends as they already have them, it's me that has to make the big effort. Now I have a group of lovely friends that I will miss very much when we leave. Came to a head last night when my youngest staying 3 hours away had a diabetic crisis and was taken to hospital, lovely friend arrived in 10 mins to stay with the others so we could get to the hospital. Good friends are hard to come by but if you are a good friend to them they are there.
KAZ

babybella

Forgot my good news, my neice phoned me from Aus this morning. I AM GOING TO BE A GREAT AUNTY!!
CAN'T WAIT
Kaz

bookemjano

Congratulations - that's really good news. Hope it all goes smoothly for her.

Stephen Jones

Hi Jan,

I know what you mean and thank you for your advice. I lost my job in Cardiff and now work Mon-Friday in Surrey because I couldn't find more work in Wales. Unfortunately I would have to borrow big, even after we have sold our house in Wales, to live in Surrey permanently.

The price of housing in Britain on the whole has reached madness proportions - and is bound to crash anytime soon!

We (Lynn & I) took a view that now (if we are going to ever do it) is the time to make a change in our lives - we are just not certain where....but Auckland/NZ figures big in MY plans.

One bit of good news we got today is that our eldest has passed his A-LEVELS! I am so pleased for him.

Thanks

Steve

bookemjano

Congratulations to your son - great news!

We're not going over with much money, just enough to put a deposit down on a house, or to use if we have to return so we're lucky that we do have a kind of safety net. We wouldn't have that much money if not for the housing market, but we're getting it now before it does crash and we're left with very little.

uk+kiwi

Hi Jan,

Gosh you've really thought it through long term. I therefore wondered how your kids feel about the move then, and how you will feel if they come back to the UK before/after uni (likely if they've got the passports?) and if they don't come back to NZ? Or is it simply that you don't honestly know and are willing to take the risk?

bookemjano

The eldest, Chris, does not take to change very well, and really this couldn't be a worse time for him. He was very badly bullied in his school for a few years, took us ages to get him into a new one, but he has really settled in it and made loads of friends. But we've talked a lot about it before making the decision and he himself has always been able to see that this country has problems. He's very politically and socially aware for his age and can debate all sorts better than I can. We discussed his future here, the positives as well as the negatives, and what we believed NZ had to offer, and then left him to choose. If he'd have said a definite no, we wouldn't have gone yet, we'd have waited at least another year for him to finish his GCSEs and then decide, but he slowly but surely got more positive about it then said yes (huge relief!). He's now all for it, can't wait for it. He's worried about saying goodbye (even now he's at his Gran's, determined to cram in as much time as possible with her before we go), worried about starting a new school, but pretty positive about the whole thing as well. He's committed to doing at least a year there, is definitely happy to do that and get his NZ quals, then it's entirely up to him if he wants to come back if we're staying there. I'd never stop him, even if I could. But, he's very musical, I think NZ is going to be great for him.

Helen, age 12, just can't wait - running round squealing with the excitement of it all. She's dead sporty - another great thing about NZ, she'll fit right in. I can't see her coming back, her ambition is to be a choreographer (next week she'll be wanting to be something else!)

Chalk and cheese my kids!

uk+kiwi

Thanks for that Jan. We have chalk and cheese as well, interestingly our eldest is also the one we'd worry the most about settling also. However she's only 5, but already very aware that she gets 'scared' in new situations. Thankfully she is very bright academically speaking so that helps her confidence, and also mature for her age so we are starting to talk things through now which is great. She also really tries to overcome these huge hurdles which is such a good attitude to have. She is 5 going on 35.

Oops, could natter on for ages, but must get the little-ones bathed & ready for collecting hubbie at the station. Remember those days?

Stephen Jones

Thanks for the congrats.

The 'deposit' plan sounds a good one in case things don't work out.

Steve

Batty

Congratulations It's the nicest feeling in the world that.

shepslady

Congrats Kaz isnt that exciting news

I became a great aunty for the first time last month & now I know what my sister felt like when my son made her a great aunty...Im loving it & so l ucky I get to see him every week too. Neice comes from a family of girls & as I had 3 sons she is always asking me advice but I havent had the heart to tell her at this age they are all pretty much the same, I just like being involved so I will keep that part secret for a while longer

uk+kiwi

That is so sweet Cindy. Chuffed for you! Carmen.

Radio Ham

We are just back from a 3 week planning trip. We're in Birmingham in UK and I work in London a lot too. Auckland is no big deal .. really well laid out and if you avoid the bridge rush then the commute is easy. IT jobs are available and the lifestyle choice is what promted the trip.. we were not disapointed, so now just need to sell the house, cars and get over there!

Rad