tleventer
7th March 2008, 06:02 AM
Found this board thanks to someone on another when I posted asking about NZ. It's a fountain of information and I'm very grateful. My family and I are looking into the process of moving from the USA midwest when we can -- which in our terms is probably 2 years off still due to wanting to go with no real debts -- all credit cards and cars paid off, both houses sold, etc. From what we've seen, read, heard and researched... we're excited at the opportunities and life we could have in NZ. Granted... it's a tad scary to move halfway around the world and I think of all of us, I have the most cautious/tentative outlook. But don't get me wrong... it's still exciting. We're all very outdoorsy people, very DIY when it comes to most things... and have found what we know and are learning about NZ to be right up our alley. Probably the biggest thing we're trying to research more at this point is the cost of living aspects. We aren't looking to make a million in the move but don't want to end up worse off than we are here either. Of course another big factor is the timing issue. In terms of actual immigration, I'm on my own legally... so timing my acceptance and successful job hunt with the others in my family is pretty important.
I'll probably be 40 by the time we could make the move (38 now with a birthday in June). I've been working IT (web development) for about 10 years now... did some IT training and systems analyst work as well. Have my bachelor's degree (although it's in Business Management, not IT)... in good health, no criminal record, etc. I wouldn't mind staying the web development field at all. I quite enjoy it. Hobby-wise, I enjoy working in the garden. I would like to one day get back into horses as well. I have evented here in the states and LOVE the sport. Very interested to know what the costs of keeping horses are as well as possible competition expenses, lessons and the like. I've worked on a very small scale with some of the best eventers in this country and while in no certain terms am I a great rider, I could hold my own and am always willing to learn more! My ideal would be to eventually have a small farm... with horses, a garden, maybe chickens and such to feed the family. Other interests? would love to learn to surf, maybe ski more, enjoy mountain biking. Oh, and did I mention I'm the proud mama to a currently 7 month old (over 80 pounds) Newfoundland pup? :yes
So anyway... thanks in advance for helping with questions that I'm sure I'm going to have.
I'll probably be 40 by the time we could make the move (38 now with a birthday in June). I've been working IT (web development) for about 10 years now... did some IT training and systems analyst work as well. Have my bachelor's degree (although it's in Business Management, not IT)... in good health, no criminal record, etc. I wouldn't mind staying the web development field at all. I quite enjoy it. Hobby-wise, I enjoy working in the garden. I would like to one day get back into horses as well. I have evented here in the states and LOVE the sport. Very interested to know what the costs of keeping horses are as well as possible competition expenses, lessons and the like. I've worked on a very small scale with some of the best eventers in this country and while in no certain terms am I a great rider, I could hold my own and am always willing to learn more! My ideal would be to eventually have a small farm... with horses, a garden, maybe chickens and such to feed the family. Other interests? would love to learn to surf, maybe ski more, enjoy mountain biking. Oh, and did I mention I'm the proud mama to a currently 7 month old (over 80 pounds) Newfoundland pup? :yes
So anyway... thanks in advance for helping with questions that I'm sure I'm going to have.