101redroses

Hi Glenn Sorry to hear about your accident & the long term impact on your health. I work in HR & strongly suggest you get some legal advice as Workers Comp is very complex. Regardless of that if you are on a 457 visa your employer has a responsibility to pay for the return cost of your airfares. This includes all family members included on the visa. You have to formally request this & the employer is legally obliged to pay. This includes all situations of employment ending including voluntary resignation. I've personally arrangement payments for departing employees so know this is accurate! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You can change your mind. That's life & it's okay. I don't think that's manipulation. There are no winners in your situation. I really hope you can find a compromise soon. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

For economic reasons my husband & I lived apart for approximately 18 months. We were no longer "love's young dream" after nearly 20 years. The distance nearly broke our marriage although I admit we had other challenges like personal illness & a family bereavement. We are back on track now with the usual bumps along the way. I wouldn't recommend a long distance relationship but if you feel so strongly about living in the UK it sounds like he should have a solo adventure. What will be will be ... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Firstly thank you for this great post. I would be interested to get any tips on how you managed to get your daughter into A levels without having GCSES (with the exception of maths & english). Hope you continue to enjoy the British Summer & the children settle well into their new schools in September.

What is employment like in Hampshire? Not worried about being near Liverpool as in our minds we will be near anyway - it is all relative!

Hi all A few months have passed since my first post and I still hope to return to the UK in about 12 months. I have not lived in England since 1997 so I would appreciate recommendations on locations to settle. I work in the corporate world and my husband is a builder so we need a city within close reach (not really problem in the UK) and we have 3 kids. I'm originally from SE London/Kent and OH from Liverpool and have family in both locations. I'm sure work will determine where we end up but it's would be good to hear about places you have returned to and settled well. At the moment we live in Sydney. Thank you!

I have insurance and top cover... but this does not cover much. I also recently had breast cancer and my gap bills were $10K. Hopefully you will have good health and not need to find out that you are still faced with huge bills. I wish it was only the excess of your insurance but the reality is the Dr can charge what they like and you are only reimbursed with the scheduled fee. I certainly am not complaining about the treatment but when you face tough times it is a double whammy when the medical bills kick in and you think it will be covered by insurance.

I have to admit the expense of Australia gets me down.. just this year I have bills for braces $7.5K for my daughter, Root Canal and dental surgery $5K for my son from an accident at the skate park and then to polish things off I needed root canal work costing $2K. I earn good money but it just seems to disappear so I really don't know how others get by..

Loved your story, very inspiring... It reminded me of a quote i read today - Live every moment, Laugh every day, Love beyond words ...

Good advice, thank you and I'm glad you are happy back in the UK. YNWA x

Thank you for your honest and realistic thoughts. it sounds like you and your family have a wonderful life here but no doubt faced challenges and loss along the way as we all do. I totally get what you are saying - well the brain does as the heart is a bit too emotional at the moment.

haha - sounds like we have a similar sense of humour as well as being married to scousers!!! i agree my teenager is the tricky one but at the same time she is great girl and I'm sure that in the 3 years we would have to live there to prevent international fees for Uni we could work out a plan so she meets the educational requirements. My problem with waiting till she finishes high school is my parents. Now this thought is in my mind I would struggle if something happened to them and I had waited here until the time "seemed right". Again there is another "hangover" for me - my husband's mum died 2 years too (2012 was not our best year :-) ) and it was a reminder that time will not wait for you. However, today is a stunning day in Sydney and I'm telling myself I am insane... The internal torture will no doubt continue for a while. Happy Friday to you x

I agree, I have a different perspective on life now. When my surgeon told me I was basically cured of breast cancer I felt that not even a lotto win could feel as good as I felt in that moment. I was walking on sunshine and then you get thinking about what is really important to you..

Thank you for your kind words

Hi everyone, first all of thanks for listening to me, it just feels good to get this out of my head... I first arrived in Oz back in 1993 and loved it, really loved it from day one. The distance from the UK never really bothered me, in my mind it was just a day away. Fast forward 21 years, technology has certainly advanced from the fax but now I feel so isolated here, how ironic.. In past 21 years I have embraced Australia completely, have wonderful friends who come from all part of the globe and I thought I really was at home here. I have 3 children who love their Australian life but at the same time are very proud of their English/Irish roots. My husband is also from England but we met here and he has lived here for most of 30 years. Anyway what changed? I think my unsettled feelings are now coming from what I call my breast cancer hangover.. I was successfully treated for breast cancer 2 years ago and all things considered I had the best possible outcome if you are going to get one from this wretched disease. But blimey it has left some emotional baggage.... I now worry about things I never worried about before.. What if I died or my husband - how would he or i cope on our own? Yes we have friends but it is just not the same as family. When I was having surgery 2 years ago, again I had support here (wonderful support) but the phone calls, FB messages and flowers from the UK was treasured so much more. More recently we have been getting life back on track and I've just returned from a month's holiday in the UK. I went over with the kids and it felt great, it was 5 years since our last trip and I laughed like I hadn't laughed in years. My kids were blown away with how much extended family they actually have as we are a small unit here. My eldest daughter who is 15 yrs loved the vibe of London and decided she wants to go to Uni in England. We are also huge LFC fans and we went to a match (TG they won) and it was in their words "the best experience of their life hearing you never walk alone." Gosh I feel teary thinking about it now. Anyway I'm back from a fabulous trip, the weather was also sensational in both England and Ireland and I am concerned I am seeing things through rose coloured glasses (which I have a tendency to do - it is my greatest strength and weakness). I would dearly love to take the family on an adventure to the UK but the hurdles and risks seem huge. They have such a great life here and what if their pre-menopausal mother is messing it up??? I also need to add in that my parents although in good health are in their late 70's and I feel the responsibility of that is left on my brother who has never made me feel guilty for living on the other side of the world. So I would love to know how other long term Pommies have adapted to life back in the UK and if you have taken children back too. My kids are 15 years, 10 years and 5 years. I have always worked and would need to find work quickly as funds are limited (another story) and I would like to know if Australian work experience is valued/respected by UK employers. Thanks for listening to me and I appreciate your comments.