Hi

Feel fairly productive today - have booked flights for myself and son. Earlier than we planned but the difference in price makes it worthwhile. Leaving on December 30th.

Have also booked dogs into kennels.

Hubby plans to follow a couple of weeks after us for a few weeks so he can remain earning for as long as possible.

We plan to buy a house rather than waste money renting as we know the areas we want to be in.

Don't want to think about what we will do if it goes belly up.

Having moments when I wonder what the heck I am doing and hoping I don't lose the plot. I just know that if we don't do it now it will just hang there and I guess we need to "suck it and see" as the saying goes.

Well done.
So much to do so little time.

Choccie, well done its all coming together. Is it just the three of you returning for now?
Where abouts are you heading?
Best of luck sorting everything out, the time will pass very quickly.
Good Luck

Hi Carole

Yes the 3 of us - well in stages anyway. I will go first with son and hubby will come a few weeks later but still return here to hand notice in if we are sorted enough that we feel brave enough for him to do that! The dogs will still be here although we won't have a house for him to return to so it's a bit messy but we want to take the cautious approach!

Really didn't expect to feel this stressed as it's what I have wanted for so long but guess am very worried about hubby and son being unhappy and daughter who is staying here. Not sure there will be much sleep happening but I'll have to catch up on the plane. It's strange isn't it - when we were there in April if we had been in a position to just not come back it would have been far less stressful!

We will be going back to Essex as that's where Mum is and where I need to be at this time.

How are things with you - guessing you don't have any regrets?

I think your right. It's so much harder going back. We didn't really question what we were doing when we went to NZ but when we could finally leave I was questioning myself everyday.
Your son being happy is of course a major factor, as is your work. We knew it hinged on our sons ability to be happy in school.
As you know my only sadness was leaving our daughter. In my head though I know it's her choice. She is happy and working hard at uni. I speak to her everyday which is great and she is already planning next years trip to see us.

Let me know if I can help in any way from here.

Carole

Hi and well done with the your home sale.....we have been back home for nearly 4 years!!!!!!! time really has flown by. Try and take things one day at a time and try not to worry about things to far in to the future as they might not happen. We had been overseas for over 12 years before our return home, we returned to a different area but still in the North West, a decent drive from our families but still close by. We still have not bought a home and are renting....we keep changing our minds about the areas we would like to live (we recently had another visit and stay in York and loved it lol) our two sons are doing very well with one have just completed his Uni studies and our youngest just starting his Uni course both live at home and commute and although we enjoy were we are renting we would really like to try an area we have not lived before, other than that its great to be home, I took things as they came along and if anything I did find hard to get use to (nothing much really) I just got on with things and tried not to do the old..."in Aus it was not like that" etc. GOOD Luck it will be lovely for you to be near your Mum and Essex is a lovely county with easy access to great parts of the Country

Thanks

Great to hear a positive outcome. Do you mind me asking how long it was before you secured jobs and how easy they were to come by? This is the thing that is worrying us most.

Most that post on here seem to secure jobs OK - but then I worry that maybe those that don't just don't post. AAARGH will have to adopt your outlook and try not to worry about things that might not happen (easier said than done for me!)

I did have quite a good day as I met a friend for coffee and as I was telling her all about it I was able to get excited and see all the positives. Shame I don't have that positivity at 3 am!!

Thats my major concern too. Im going to move over first with about $5k saved up, even thought I shall be living with the rents until I find work. Im hoping I will eb able to secure something within 2 months of arrival, Id love to line something up before I get there, but it doesnt really seem possible for me because Im not a "skilled professional".

I have sent off several letters of intent and copies of my C.V, And closer to the time, may apply for some positions, and attach a note saying if possible I am available for skype interviews.

But yeah. work is the main thing im concerned about

I've decided to take that approach too and am going to follow up all my applications with an email giving them my arrival dates and Skype address. So many applications seem to be online forms and there isn't always anywhere on them to make this clear.

Have sent a few CV's out to various places but not had any response so won't waste too much time on that anymore.

Just wondering when I could be brave and put my sisters address down - would have to be sure that would be back there in time for interviews but they don't always specify when these are.

I now focus on smaller projects. Today I made a nice cup of coffee. (alla turca - as befits an Ottomanophile).

When I was younger I had grander projects that obsessed me.

And the title of a brilliant song

Good luck with everything. Personally I'm glad we rented when we came back. I thought I knew the towns/villages I wanted to live in, but wound up in a place I didn't even know existed and that beats all my target areas hands down. I guess it depends on how well you know your chosen area. I was only 24 when I left so hadn't had time to explore the whole of Yorkshire.

I think for us as the main reason is to be closer to my Mum I kind of feel that I want to be really close!! She's still in the house I grew up in so I always feel at home in that area. Funnily enough I didn't really have any feelings for the area that we lived in before we left when we visited there.

OH served in the US Air Force in Turkey during the Vietnam War. Still brushes up on his Turkish, and from time to time will make a Turkish coffee thick as mud