helwardman

Just to clarify.......I was not having a go at any one person in particular with my comment and I certainly was not having a go at Sugarmooma.

meauxna

JFC, you guys? What is this, new-user repellent? Everyone to separate corners?
And don't give ME any lectures about how new folk should be grateful for all the precious advice OR how regulars should be more polite to newcomers.

Bad netiquette all round in my opinion.

Bob

your on to a winner.... 3 days a week is $1500 a month down my way.

Bob

You do realise how daft your making yourself sound? There are plenty of people to have a hump with if that's your thing, but SM is not one of them.

SarahH1409

See... this is where I know nothing about schooling.

Are they 5yr old when they start preschool?

Here in the UK nursery/preschool starts at 3yrs and then primary education starts 4or 5yrs depending on when the little one birthday is.

I know there is a nursery close by to where we have been looking, past it serveral times when visiting family and it looks like a good one, but obviously I will still check up on it first!

Bob

Kids start school proper at 5/6 years of age....that's primary school.

Anything before that, you pay yourself, preschool ain't cheap, but then again, it might be in Houston, I don't know. Preschool usually is 2.9 years old, anything younger is daycare, and that's even more expensive.

If the preschool is any good, you'll probably need to put down a large deposit first and probably be on a waiting list to get in and usually, even if you don't use the time, you've still got to pay for it.

scrubbedexpat097

There is a BE member that lives in the Clear Lake area that I think works at a Montessori School....I'll try and remember her name. She could give you all the info you should need

MsElui

my son was 5 last week. he will be going to proper school - Kindergarten - in a month. I could if I wish - hold him back another year until he's more mature (and many parents do) - but I dont want him to be too far behind his english peers until im sure we are staying here (ie green card in hand). His peers back in the UK started school last year.

Also - Kindergarden here is just 2.5 days a week but that varies enormously by school district - so dont assume your child will be full time at kindergarden level.

The church 'pre school' i use - will take them from 2.5 - so my middle son will start there in Sept. Day care generally (equiv of a UK day nursery) is from 6 weeks (yes - weeks! - because the maternity leave is not long here). You can pay a lot more than that - depends on if you pick a real fancy montessori one or a more regualr one etec etc.

Mummy in the foothills

Our youngest has only just started preschool, 2 half days each week at $22 a half day. Very cheap for around here as it's attached to the local elementary school who realised that only low income kids had access to preschool through Head start and the rest of us had to drive an hour each way to a private school or go without. So far so good school went back on July 28th and so far she's loving it.
She'll be 5 in January and will start kindergarten in July 2010 full days 7.30am to 2pm each day.
She'll be a whole year behind her little UK friends

Rete

Absolutely UNTRUE.

My daughter and her husband paid for their first child's birth in cash. Had no insurance. They received a hefty discount for doing so from both the hospital and the OB/GYN.

tigerbaywarrior

I'm Welsh and living in Houston.

Can I have a cookie too?

SarahH1409

Thanks for all the advice on schooling... hugely appriciated!!

Yay to the welsh (my mother was Welsh )

elfman

http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/week..._pay_most.html

she learned that people like her -- who don't have health insurance -- often are expected to pay far more for their medical care than large insurers, health-maintenance organizations or even the U.S. government.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5290172/

Hospitals routinely charge uninsured people up to four times more than patients with coverage, financial experts told lawmakers

http://www.jhsph.edu/publichealthnew...l_charges.html

Hospitals Charge Uninsured and “Self-Pay” Patients More than Double What Insured Patients Pay

tonrob

Cookie coming your way...

Ouch! Better have another one...

Bomjeito

Hi - We are another Aberdeen couple moving to Houston! In Spring 2010. My husband is a contractor to the oil business, and I'm American (um, I am fully aware of fatbrit concerns and agree wholeheartedly with them) - so we worry about a few things.

1. Is it better over there?
2. Where do we live? (So far probably will work contract with the 'other' deep sea drilling that does not start in T and end in D.)
3. Do we get pregnant here or there?
4. How does US health care changes affect us by 2010?
5. Can we afford private insurance (we have ascertained that yes, we can.)
6. Selling our house here - does this affect any of our tax burden in USA? There is no capital gains tax on a primary residence sold in UK, so can we just transfer the $ to Houston to buy our next house?
7. We aren't being transfered by a company, so we are shipping our own. Anyone know how to connect up with other Aberdonians to ship a container? So many move to Houston! (No fancy relocation package, which one has to pay taxes on anyhow!)
8. Does anyone take their car and have it converted to left hand drive?
9. How to connect with the Aberdeen expats in Houston?

And so forth.

Just a small note, and I'm a newbie here and American - confrontive attitudes do see the 'american way' but we really don't get on well with folks who get testy so fast.... maybe we are hypocritical in that way.. smile.

Just for info, we are going on the I-130, as I'm an American and he's my husband! 4 months approximate wait, and bingo we go.