gil
5th July 2007, 07:55 PM
Hi there,
Reading so many great 6 month posts has made me think I really ought to do ours, so here we are, The Sewells Six Months In.
I think I'll take it by the different areas of life that matter to us, so, in no particular order:
Home
is where the heart is, and our hearts are firmly here. We have found a tremendous sense of belonging now that we have moved into our own house. We found the Howcik Mototr Lodge a good start point, but were mighty relieved to move into a rented 4 bed house in eastern Beach ($650 per week) and to have a bit of space. That house was fine for 3 months, but I really wanted to feel settled into somewhere of our own, so if the dog DID wee on the carpet, it wouldn't be so much of a problem :D and that the kids could relax proerly. (Properly has included spilling red pop on the carpet of the rumpus room during our housewarming, but we can live with that!)
Our house is fab, on the cliffs overlooking Bucklands Beach (Mini Bucks or Little Bucks, rather than Big Bucks; i.e. the small bay end) It did cost us big bucks and has meant a bigger mortgage than anticipated, but we think it's worth it. It really makes a difference being in your own home, so hang in there those renting still, it will be worth the wait!
Our house is very warm, with underfloor heating in all the bathrooms and a gas fire in the living room. Can't wait to open all the ranch sliders and go out on the decks in the warmer weather.
Social Life
I have to say, we have a far busier social life here than we did in UK. That's partly because I am not travelling so much with work and so am more available, but also (like Lupin) we do lots of home socialising. We have found it quite easy to make friends, although they are mainly ex-pats, with a couple of Kiwis now starting to become good friends. We went to everything we were invited to in the first 3-4 months and have met some lovely people especially through this forum (you know who you are!) We had a housewarming last weekeknd and had about 80 people here; it felt so lovely to know so many nice, fun people in such a short time.
Work/Career
Both found work within 4 months. Steve has made a career change and seems to be enjoying it, something he would probably have struggled to achieve in UK. I am doing a similar consulting role here and am working for a great firm, well established with a great client base and high quality of work. I would love not to work, but the house choice we made dictates that I do. Imogen does loads of babysitting for $10 per hour. She looked into working at PaknSave, but the hours were too many and at odd times, so she decided against it.
Children/schools
The schools are very good here. However, if I am truly honest, Franca (9) has settled best. Will is starting to feel more settled as his friendship circle is getting established, but he has also made the transition to Intermediate school, which is challenging him, especially as he would still have been in primary in UK. Imogen is enjoying the academic side of school more here, and she is a bright girl. She finds that the teaching is better, mainly because the classes are more disciplined and quieter, so teachers have the chance to tecah, explain and explore, rather than spend time keeping the unruly in check. (And she went to a Church school in Cardiff!) Uniforms are costly, and school contributions are high (decile 10 area). They all seem to be doing well in every sense though.
Financial
We are on pretty good salaries, one goes entirely on the house, but we have a good standard of living and feel very blessed. Jeremy Henderson of broadbase is our FA and v good too.
Spiritual
We have not yet found a church where we feel settled. Most seem too evangelical in style for us, but we will see.
Health/Leisure
Loads of opportunity for sport, brilliant! I love that we can run in mild conditions most of the time! I walk the dog on the beach at 6 a.m. every work day, and never feel intimidated or scared in the dark. Different from Cardiff, I must say. Steve plays footie on Saturdays and trains on Wednesdays, good social overlap too.
So, all in all, it's a positive move for us. Only downside is eldest daughter went back to UK after 7 weeks. I miss her so.
Everything else is better than we could have hoped.
Love to all,
Gil
x
Reading so many great 6 month posts has made me think I really ought to do ours, so here we are, The Sewells Six Months In.
I think I'll take it by the different areas of life that matter to us, so, in no particular order:
Home
is where the heart is, and our hearts are firmly here. We have found a tremendous sense of belonging now that we have moved into our own house. We found the Howcik Mototr Lodge a good start point, but were mighty relieved to move into a rented 4 bed house in eastern Beach ($650 per week) and to have a bit of space. That house was fine for 3 months, but I really wanted to feel settled into somewhere of our own, so if the dog DID wee on the carpet, it wouldn't be so much of a problem :D and that the kids could relax proerly. (Properly has included spilling red pop on the carpet of the rumpus room during our housewarming, but we can live with that!)
Our house is fab, on the cliffs overlooking Bucklands Beach (Mini Bucks or Little Bucks, rather than Big Bucks; i.e. the small bay end) It did cost us big bucks and has meant a bigger mortgage than anticipated, but we think it's worth it. It really makes a difference being in your own home, so hang in there those renting still, it will be worth the wait!
Our house is very warm, with underfloor heating in all the bathrooms and a gas fire in the living room. Can't wait to open all the ranch sliders and go out on the decks in the warmer weather.
Social Life
I have to say, we have a far busier social life here than we did in UK. That's partly because I am not travelling so much with work and so am more available, but also (like Lupin) we do lots of home socialising. We have found it quite easy to make friends, although they are mainly ex-pats, with a couple of Kiwis now starting to become good friends. We went to everything we were invited to in the first 3-4 months and have met some lovely people especially through this forum (you know who you are!) We had a housewarming last weekeknd and had about 80 people here; it felt so lovely to know so many nice, fun people in such a short time.
Work/Career
Both found work within 4 months. Steve has made a career change and seems to be enjoying it, something he would probably have struggled to achieve in UK. I am doing a similar consulting role here and am working for a great firm, well established with a great client base and high quality of work. I would love not to work, but the house choice we made dictates that I do. Imogen does loads of babysitting for $10 per hour. She looked into working at PaknSave, but the hours were too many and at odd times, so she decided against it.
Children/schools
The schools are very good here. However, if I am truly honest, Franca (9) has settled best. Will is starting to feel more settled as his friendship circle is getting established, but he has also made the transition to Intermediate school, which is challenging him, especially as he would still have been in primary in UK. Imogen is enjoying the academic side of school more here, and she is a bright girl. She finds that the teaching is better, mainly because the classes are more disciplined and quieter, so teachers have the chance to tecah, explain and explore, rather than spend time keeping the unruly in check. (And she went to a Church school in Cardiff!) Uniforms are costly, and school contributions are high (decile 10 area). They all seem to be doing well in every sense though.
Financial
We are on pretty good salaries, one goes entirely on the house, but we have a good standard of living and feel very blessed. Jeremy Henderson of broadbase is our FA and v good too.
Spiritual
We have not yet found a church where we feel settled. Most seem too evangelical in style for us, but we will see.
Health/Leisure
Loads of opportunity for sport, brilliant! I love that we can run in mild conditions most of the time! I walk the dog on the beach at 6 a.m. every work day, and never feel intimidated or scared in the dark. Different from Cardiff, I must say. Steve plays footie on Saturdays and trains on Wednesdays, good social overlap too.
So, all in all, it's a positive move for us. Only downside is eldest daughter went back to UK after 7 weeks. I miss her so.
Everything else is better than we could have hoped.
Love to all,
Gil
x