Fiona&Ricky

<p>Our private medical plan is $175 a month for a family of 4 and covers everything including dental. Jodie wears glasses and it pays towards them. We are also under a chiropractor (Tasha is a dancer and always has knee and back pains) and that is also covered. Mount Annan is nice but very spread out and very hilly, many house are split level and it obviously costs more to build on hilly land as more ground work to do. It doesn't have the parks and sports grounds we have on Harrington Park or a central shopping centre. They have just put in a lake at Mount Annan but as it is so spread out only a few people can live close to it. I have a friend who lives there and is next to a reserve but with a reserve comes snakes and spiders - she gets a lot more than we do (including a red belly black snake in her front garden, a blue tongue lizard in the back and spiders in her pool) I have only seen one snake on Harrington Park and it was flattened in the middle of the road! Our dog is a small fluffy one but in the past we have had a rottie and a golden retriever. I'm not putting Mount Annan down, it is a nice place and we looked everywhere before deciding to buy here. Living in a community would certainly help you as a mobile hairdresser. I have found people here to be friendly, but like anywhere you have to take the plunge and jump into a conversation. We don't have any rellies over here but mum and dad arrive on 24th Sept for the school hols - haven't seen them for 2 years. I know how you feel about sending your dog off, I missed Rosie when I went on school camp and judging by the welcome back I got I think she missed me. Fiona</p>

<p>We arrived on 23rd July and the girls had 8 weeks holiday because we came over so fast we were on holiday visas & they couldn't go to school until we had our 4 year visas. After a couple of weeks at school they had 2 weeks holiday and another 6 at Christmas - they couldn't believe their luck! It is so manic when you arrive and you will have jet-lag for about a week, so sorting out houses etc first will probably be a good thing. Remember you will have uniform to sort out as well. The worst thing for me was for 8 weeks I knew nobody as you start to meet people at school and Rick was at work - he even disappeared to Melbourne for week. I'd like to think that us keeping in touch will help you when you arrive. I thought you might like our phone no. Home is 4648 1263 (put 00 11 61 2 in front if calling from the uk) and mobile is 04242 64749. You will have to come for a welcome BBQ when you arrive. If you go too grey - there's a great hairdressers on Harrington Park and they do a great job covering up my grey!! Enjoy the choccie bics and just so you know chocolate hob nobs have just arrived in our shops.</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>Hi Deb, Tasha was 14 in July and is in Year 8, so Jake would be in Year 9 and would probably be about the middle age wise. Some would have turned 15 in maybe May and some won't turn 15 until next Jan / Feb. Lou would probably be in Year 3 as Jodie turned 12 in June and is in Year 6. She is among the older ones (she was also one of the youngest in England). We break up for a two week holiday on Friday 26th September and go back Monday 13th October for Term 4 before the 6 week holiday at Christmas. So if you want them to have a few weeks to settle in before going to school you could start them in Term 4. It depends how fast you want to throw them in! Catholic schools are fee paying but we pay about $2000 a year (just under 1,000 pounds) for Tasha and about $1,600 for Jodie- not bad for private school. The Anglican schools are the expensive ones. Tasha is at Magdalene & it is an excellent school. It is only 10 years old so has all modern facilities. It will be easier to get in half way through the year as kids may have left. Jodie is at St Paul's (she starts at Magdalene next year) which is also where I work 4 days week. If you want me to check out availability, let me know. We do have to buy exercise books at high school but not primary. Can't wait to meet you all, feel like I know you already.</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>Did you know about the difference in school year & age. In the UK Natasha would be starting Year 10 in September, over here she is half way through Year 8. It seems a big difference but here they have 1 extra year at primary school and 1 less at High School, so it all balances out in the end and the kids leave school at the same age. It was nice that Tasha went to High school at 12 and a half instead of just 11 years old. Don't be tempted to push your kids up a year, they will just end up being one of the youngest. Our kids repeated some of the work, but having just moved to a new country and having to make new friends we decided it would be nice if school wasn't too hard.</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>We came over with 127,000 pounds from the sale of our house, but property prices here were higher and have now dropped by about 15%. They are now fairly stable. Mortgage rates are 9% but seem to have peaked and hopefully will start to come down. The peak in the mortgage rate obviouly brought the property prices down. You money should equate to about $200,000 and with a mortgage you can get a really nice place with a pool for about $450,000. So the amount you are bringing over should be fine. You may have the same mortgage as you did in the UK but you will have twice the house. Hope that is helpful.</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>Just so you know, Rick had the same problem renting even when he was already here. He had been in his job for about 4 weeks, had no references and no history in Australia, but he did manage to rent. There are more houses available to rent at the moment as we have had a few interest rate rises so less people are able to sell. This means they are renting out a second property rather than selling it. One mistake Rick made was he assumed the house he rented had heating & Air Con - which it didn't! We had to go out and buy lots of heaters to keep warm during August. If the rent is cheap, there is a reason why. Did you say you are bringing all your own furniture and is it on its way?</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>Good Morning</p>

<p>Just so you know, there is a primary school on Harrington Park that is fairly new and I've heard very good. My girls go to a Catholic School. St Paul's Primary School in Camden about 2 mins from Elderslie and Magdalene High School about 2 mins from Harrington Park. Tasha has to get the bus home because she finishes at 2.35pm and Jodie and I finish at 3.20pm. They are not public transport buses and only have children from the same school on them, so I know she is safe. Elderslie is a nice place but just to promote Harrington Park a bit we have a lake, miles of cycle paths, soccer fields, basketball courts, a small shopping centre, community centre, an oval, great dog walking and lots of parks. We decided to move here as we knew nobody when we arrived and you can't help but bump into people walking around here. If you need any help looking at different areas when you get here we are happy to show you around. Narellan has a good but not huge shopping centre and about 10 mins drive away we have Campbelltown which has a big shopping mall and Macarthur Square which has the clothes shops our kids love, movie theatre, ten-pin bowling, restaurants etc.</p>

<p>Off to work and school now, Tasha starts at 8.00am</p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>We were supposed to be in our rented house on Harrington Park for 7 months but after 2 months we were in our own home because I (Fiona) hated the rented house. Just so you know the school bus system is fantastic (very different to England). Natasha's bus stop is a couple of minutes walk from our house and takes her straight to school - same on the way home. I work at Jodie's school, so we go together. We bought our dog in Australia, so no transportation problems. Building is great, especially with your trade, but I wanted a home fast! Rick came out two months before the rest of us so he rented the house ready for us. We come from Maidenhead, Berkshire and have been back once in 2005 for a holiday. Don't blame you for just winding down, it's hard to be motivated when you're about to leave everything behind. </p>

<p>Fiona</p>

<p>Hi Lee, We live in Harrington Park minutes away from Mount Annan and Elderslie. We have been here for 5 years and everything is great except can't get social life off the ground, mainly due to no babysitters! We have two girls Natasha 14 and Jodie 12 who love it here and would never go back. Lots of building going on in this area so should be easy to find work. We need some rendering done if you want a first Job!!!! We would love to see you when you arrive.</p>