Conniebygaslight

We moved back after 8 months with 3 children but ours are younger, the eldest was nine when we returned. The fact that we hadn't been gone very long was a bonus as we just fitted back in. We've been home over 3 years and haven't regretted it for a single second....and my husband is an Aussie! Good luck to you...it's possible to start again xx

Hi, not sure if this is relevant but when we returned to UK we didn't have to prove how long we'd had anything...it was a much simpler process than when we shipped stuff to Oz.

I personally like the fact that we, as a nation moan and grumble a bit....to me it shows we question things rather than being accepting of everything. It does get a bit much at times though but the inane grins on most of the Aussies we knew got on my nerves just as much, to me it was like a kind of moronic brainwashing.

I agree that it's in our culture....when we were at the airport in Manchester abut to embark on our 'new life in Oz' the woman at the check in desk said 'brilliant I wish I was leaving this country for good' conversely when we left Brisbane on a one way ticket the check in woman looked personally wounded as if we'd smacked her in the face....lol x

Oh it really makes me smile....A FB friend of mine was moaning about something the other day (which is fine) but one of her friends commented and said 'I'm sick of this country, I've just been watching wanted down under and the Australian's have got it right' It's so funny....if you move to Australia you can work really short hours, have a massive house and spend all day at the beach......lol. Mind you my brother in law (Australian) talks about living in 'the lucky country' but when he goes on holiday it's to Bali and Fiji....Australia of course seems 'lucky' in comparison my very well travelled sister in law...thinks Oz is pants and so does my aussie husband. Which is why we are still so glad to be back in the UK.

I thought today's episode was particularly entertaining....

Lovely pictures Kev....they make me quite homesick and I live here!! Glad you had a good time x

Lol Melza...can you imagine the Ozzies making a programme about a new life in another country.....it would be banned immediately x

Are you sure...? he said their mortgage was going up x3 and that shopping bill would be £4000 more per annum.....my mistake if I'm wrong x

I record it so it can entertain me when I'm doing my ironing, I'm off today as kids still not back at school so watched it. I always wait for the moment they see a large open plan kitchen as that 'always seals the deal'. This couple today were no exception as the lady announced she would 'happily give up everything to live in this house' (that was way over their budget). When they did the sums they were going to be £1700 per month worse off despite earning 20k PA more. They would also have to sell their house at a loss at around £185k but had a budget in Oz of £300k..? (Their annual shopping bill increased 4k GBP). But of course they still chose Australia because it would be a better life for their children. In Australia everyone finishes work at 3pm and heads to the beach...even if that were true it would bore me rigid. And don't you notice when they show you the residential areas it's like a ghost town....this is actually the only reality I can see-all the 'outdoor living' we found to be none existent. All that said I think they are young enough to give it a try- just maybe need to open their eyes a bit...could be the editing I suppose.

And when you come home you remember it's Hokey Cokey...not Pokey lol x

Not sure if I'm missing something but for a 4 year old boy to miss his gran desperately (which seems to be the case) it is huge. He obviously misses the stability and familiarity of his gran's home and the love he had there and while this is part and parcel of moving away he is too young to have to deal with it alone. I think he needs support and understanding which in my opinion is not pandering to nonsense. If his gran had suddenly moved out of his life you wouldn't be dismissive and expect him to just get on with it. OP you sound as though you are very in tune with your son, I would continue to be as supportive as you can be, talk to him and keep trying to encourage his new life. As adults we often make the mistake of expecting our children to look at things through adults eyes....x

Absolutely true...spot on.

Not always PC...it is possible for people to miss the UK as a country.....we did, we left Oz and all the family there because we missed the UK and didn't like Australia.

We made the move to Oz in the first place to be near family my husband is Australian and all his family live there-we have 3 young children. We have no family in the UK (that bother), but when we got to Oz we realised that the only thing we enjoyed was the family, our life in the UK was so much better. We moved back under a year and have no regrets at all, we miss the Oz family dreadfully and they were really upset when we returned and that continues to be hard. But 3 years on we still feel that as a family the UK is best for us by far.

I may be wrong but if they don't require a detailed inventory it may mean that they are only insuring against loss of the whole container (I.E if the ship sinks). We went through the whole lot and listed everything when we went to Oz (40ft container + 2 cars) as to replace goods in Oz is very expensive. However on our return to U.K we only insured large goods I.E cars and large electrical items, this saved a fortune and any breakages could be replaced cheaply in the UK.

We used Chess and they were brilliant-we only insured large electrical items and our car and that saved a fortune (any personal effects we too on the flight and things are so cheap to replace in the uk anyway) Good luck with your move back-we've been back home nearly 3 years and have never once regretted it

A burger is the bread roll which holds the filling.....I.E 'Egg burger' is an egg buttie, I asked for a 'plain cheese burger' in Macdonalds (as my son hates all the relish)..and I got a bread roll with cheese in it, the poor guy didn't get me at all. You can also wash your dog with your car?!!! The colour maroon, is pronounced marone.....

I read the Daily Mail....in fact we have it delivered, it doesn't mean that I'm a homophobic, immigration hater. In fact the DM has absolutely no influence on my political views at all. I cannot stand all the bitter posts on here and FB from people who constantly go on & on about 'the state of this government and the benefits system' etc. My Brother in law reads the Guardian and he is always going on about us Daily Mail readers as though we were the devil....it's funny because to me he's just Kev...

Lol.......:wink:

To be honest I think splitting your family is nuts....it will be horrific for you giving birth without your husband and terrible for him working all hours without his family. Either stay where you are until you can afford to come back or if you can't stand it then all come back. It's not easy coming back and starting again but it's possible-I imagine that the damage of splitting the family will be much worse. Good luck

These are exactly the things we moved back for-not for the usual 'family & friends' (no family here-husband's an Ozzie)-don't underestimate the power of the 'small stuff' this is what (IMO) makes the UK an incredible place to live.......Good luck with your return x

That's very nice of you Bob.....glad to see you are keeping the 'fair trade' going lol x

Not really laziness Wend...just prefer to spend my time doing other things- if I go to a farmers market it's because of the wonderful things they offer not because I can buy a whole bag of loose grapes for a steal.....

What is the explanation for books and paint....oh and dentistry?