Richardedd

We moved from Oxfordshire to New Jersey 7 months ago and are now relocating (again!) to the Bay Area.

We have found a house in Cupertino and will be moving there in the next couple of weeks.

We have a 3 (nearly 4) and 5-year-old. We have sorted out the school for our 5 but have yet to decided on a preschool for our 3-year-old. Does anyone have any recommendations?

I am also looking for writing groups/courses for me (an aspiring novelist).

Any other advice about the local area - groups, events, things to do, places to eat etc would be gratefully received.

Bob

FB, LinkedIn, Meet up and the library would be first places to look I would imagine.

Library for kids stuff too.

Wintersong

I'd suggest waiting until you move, getting recommendations from the other Kindergarten parents at your 5yr old's school, and then checking them out in person. Different people look for different things in a pre-school. Both Stratford and Challenger schools are highly regarded, but they're very academic, which may not be what you're looking for.

My eldest went to Stratford but we then moved house and there was no Stratford campus nearby so my youngest went to a much less academically rigorous pre-school. Both have their pros and cons, but I tend to think my youngest had the better experience over all. She didn't learn to read as early as my eldest, but the atmosphere at the school was much more warm and loving.

Wintersong

Also:

Santana Row has some great restaurants. If you like Indian food, Amber does a great lunch buffet at the weekends. It's also a nice place just to hang out on summer evenings.

Saratoga and Los Gatos are nice towns to wander around in and have some nice eateries and more interesting shops. There are some great county parks to the south and west of you (e.g. Sanborn). Check out Mountain Winery, both as a winery and as a concert venue.

For day trips, you're a short journey away from some great places - Hwy 1 for beaches (we like Pescadero), Santa Cruz for beach & boardwalk, Ano Nuevo for really cool elephant seal viewing, Swanton area for strawberry picking in the early summer.