Dazza49

Hello everyone who wishes to read this thread.Well we left the u.k on 29th OCT 2007 and spent 3 nts in singapore which was amazing then after a well earned rest on we went to Brisbane. After we picked up our hire car we drove down to the gold coast where we stayed with my husbands uncle at RUNAWAY BAY(what a beautiful place). We stayed with him for 2 weeks, in that time we were none stop, sorting tfn, driving licence, activating bank accounts which we'd open from the u.k.We found a brand new house to rent in Pimpama and also enrolled our daughter into Pimpama state school.Went on a huge shopping spree as we needed everything except the kitchen sink(we'd sold everything we owned back in the uk) and made arrangements for delivery the day we had keys for our rental.
So now we were settled into our new home it was down to finding work. I must admit I found it hard at first as I applied for all different jobs but no joy so then I applied for a cleaning job out of desperation to just be working as i've always workedand was successful and off I went cleaning peoples houses and I was fortunate to have wonderful clients who I really got on with and very happy that some are now good friends who I meet for coffee on a regular basis. My Hubby on the other hand managed to find work easily as he is in the management side of things . He went for 3 jobs and was offered 2. We both now had jobs.
Well XMAS was upon us,and I must be honest I found Xmas in the middle of summer very strange, I think it will take a few more years to get used to. I did the full on Xmas lunch with all the trimmings as our uncle has been living in oz for 38 years and hadn't had a traditional xmas lunch all that time, so it had to be done for his sake.
Well xmas and new year had come and gone and now that we'd got ourselves a home, daughter in school and jobs it was time to find some new friends.We went to a gold coast meetup which was held at the beach at southport. We met some nice families there and one family in particular are now our best and closest friends. Well making new friends came at us fast and furious as we now have quite a large selection of friends from all walks of life which is very interesting at times. Through one of these friends we were invited to an ozzy wedding which took place in a lovely little church on mount tamborine, and it was a really lovely day to which we have made more friends and see regularly.Our circle of friends was literally bursting at the seams and every weekend was spent meeting, bbq's etc. It sad to say but some friends we've met turned out to be right ***holes:curse:, the good thing is we found this out very early on, so breaking away from this circle was no real upset.
Our 6 yr old daughter was struggling with homesickness, I would find her crying in the early hours missing everything from the u.k Well we kept an eye on her and even though we'd enrolled her at guides and swimming lessons , trying to keep her busy. She was still becoming short tempered, easily frustrated. At the same time I was becoming fed up with her school, there seemed to be no structure to her school day, her education was suffering drastically, then the penny dropped.We realised that the school that she was attending was not what it was cracked up to be, so at the end of June we ENROLLED her at Livingstone Christian College in Ormeau which she started in term3. The difference in her was amazing, instead of coming out of school angry and upset, she sings and dances her way to the car. She is so happy, we now have our little girl back, she no longer suffers with homesickness .
A few months ago I changed my job and now work at the same company as my Hubby.
We have been very fortunate as everything has fallen into place. The only negative side of our move is I've got 3 grown up children and 2 grandchildren which still live in the u.k and I miss them loads. I don't dwell on things but missing them catches me by surprise on occasions which lasts for a few days then I'm fine again. My eldest daughter came over in Feb for 3 weeks and I found it harder saying goodbye at Brisbane airport than I did saying goodbye in the uk back in Nov. I cried for about 3 weeks after she went back home it was extremely hard. I felt like I wanted to get on a plane but not to go back to the uk for good just to go back to hug my
kids and tell them that I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!! All is good though we speak all the time which helps all of of us .
On the upside we love living here and look forward to the future and hope it continues to go well, but if it doesn't well we will just dig our heels in and work really hard to make it get better

Anyway sorry it's abit long but goodluck to everyone already on the road to there new life downunder, and goodluck to those who are just about to start, We wish you all the best, wealth and happiness to you all.

Allyson

Sally Simpson

Great update, very balanced!
Glad you have got schoolsorted & your daughter now settled & happy

Angib

Great post - god to hear the ups and downs especially with your little one that must have been heartbreaking - so glad things better now. We arrive on 30/10 agh so reading peoples stories like mad!!

Dazza49

Hi,
Thanks for your comment, I missed alot out as we have done so much and my thread would of gone on and on We are determined to make it work and fortunately everything is going well so far. We feel its the best decision we've made so far and at this point we couldn't imagine living anywhere elseWhere are you heading when you get to oz?Well I hope everything goes smoothly and goodluck and enjoy your new adventure.

Allyson

WelshSarah

As straight and honest a post as you are as a person....

I know EXACTLY how you felt when your girl left and I also know you will make a success of your life here because thats you...

Glad little one is now in a better place BTW...

bluekipper

Glad its going great for you all,, very inspiring story

Bluekipper

Carbery

Congrats on settling in so well - have met Darren a couple of times now, he is a top man (not just because he supports the Villa!). Keep up the good work.

mindblower

:[/QUOTE]

A heartening post for sure.