[auskiwi]

After being back in NZ for six weeks, it feels like time to post my impressions as a kiwi returning home after living in the States for ten years. Firstly, getting through customs with a husband (on an American passport and a visitors visa) and three kids with ten 50lb (23kg approx.) suitcases was quite an experience!

I had shared my concerns on the forum with the issues that may arise coming into NZ as the kids and I had one way tickets (we are all dual Australia/ U.S citizens) and OH was a US citizen travelling with a visitors visa. No problems at all - he simply went through the visitors line and the kids and I went through the returning residents line. We had bought his ticket seperately from the kids and mine, so there was no indicator of us travelling together anyway.

After squeezing all the kids/suitcases into our rental car and my mums car, off we went. It was a cool, clear morning and I felt great about being home. I still can't believe how good it smells here-the air is fresh and sweet smelling. The birds sounds are incredible too-may be enhanced by the fact that we are staying in the rainforest like area of Titirangi!

I spent one day recovering before calling all the schools in the area around mums place to let them know I was available for sub-teaching. By the end of the day I had the following week completely booked up and have managed to work as a reliever every day except three since arrival! Pay is around $250 a day, so the income has been much appreciated as I hadn't expected to get quite so much work! Within two weeks I had a permanent fulltime teaching job starting Jan 30 next year. Talk about feeling like we had landed on our feet!

The girls started at Titirangi Primary a few days after our arrival - they LOVE that they can kick off their shoes as they walk through the school gate and moan at having to put them on when they are picked up...I can't quite get used to the idea of having them be barefoot in other public places yet-maybe I will adjust...Their observations of school are that the teachers are meaner, the work is easier and the school "must be poor as they don't have a cafeteria"! I have noticed that kids are way healthier (as they dont have a cafeteria!) and that they are much more "kid like" than in the U.S. No make-up, nail polish, sassy clothing etc...all the reasons we moved here. We are reclaiming our girl's childhoods. Yay for that!

Hubby is adjusting to life as a stay at home dad...I love that I can go off to work and know he is taking care of the girls needs (not to mention cooking me a hot dinner every night!) He has suffered a little with waves of depression-definately missing his friends and family, but still positive about the move and the choice we have made to be here. We are looking forward to getting our own place as it is hard to feel truly settled while staying with mum!

So, on the housing front: We have been absolutely mortified at the price of rental housing! About $440+ per week for a decent three bedroom home in the Titirangi area...so we have decided to try to buy something and have a big (yet manageable) mortgage until our section in the U.S sells. Once our U.S land sells we will be able to significantly reduce our mortgage. Wish the U.S housing market would heat back up as it is absolutely horrible right now-prices falling more than ever on record I read yesterday :(
We made an offer on a place yesterday so I will give an update (and post photos) if that works out. It is in a lovely seaside area but commutable to my job...Fingers crossed.

Amy.

[StevieD]

Great post Amy, nice to see this angle. It certainly whets the appetite, just to escape the choking fumes of cities and the grimy atmosphere must be lovely.

Good luck, will follow your posts with interest.

Steve

[veronica]

Glad for you that its working out. have you got any other impressions of the differences between then and now, and the US. Are you finding it 'old fashioned' here. I know that we don't in most respects but be interested to hear what you have to say from your viewpoint as a returner.

[jess]

Thanks for the great post! :)

[Angie and Mick]

Hi

Great post, keep us posted on the house buying, good luck.
Angie.

[spudulike]

Great to hear you have settled so quickly! Hope your husband feels happy and settled soon.

Welcome home :cheers

Louise :)

[K&CS]

Hi Amy

I'm glad you're happy to be home. It all sounds pretty idyllic! Hope your hubby feels better soon. Adjusting to being a stay at home dad must be hard. It still feels strange for me being a SAHM, I must say, although I do enjoy it now (although not forever).

Hope you manage to find a nice house soon and keep us posted.

Kate x

[MB]

Cracking post, Amy. I'm really looking forward to any other accounts you care to post: comparisons with the US, etc. Please write more soon (if you want to, of course!) Great stuff.

All the best to you and your family. :nice1

[sarahw]

Loved your post - interesting to see what its like for a Kiwi returning home. One of my friends has just returned after 12 years in Aus & although its not quite such a cultural difference as US is to NZ, she's still found some things really strange, but has loved others.

Great news that you've landed on your feet with your job too!! Sounds like the girls are settling really well. Hope your husband overcomes the home-sickness - sure he'll get out there & meet some new friends in the coming weeks.

Would love to hear more about your experiences!

[Klipa]

Just a quick question...as I am in a similar situation to you. I have dual Canadian/Australian citizenship and we are planning a move to NZ in aug/sept '07. Was your husband able to apply for a work visa or only a visitor's visa based on your partnership? Does he plan to apply for PR now that you are in NZ?

Just trying to figure out our best options...I think he can apply for a work visa based on partnership then apply for PR upon our arrival.

Thanks!

[xanctus]

HI Amy,
welcome back home to your home land. :D
Which part of the State have u been living at?
I also used to live in the states for 10 years...are you still having your american accents? :D

[Ana&Steve]

Wish the U.S housing market would heat back up as it is absolutely horrible right now-prices falling more than ever on record I read yesterday :(

I hear you on that! Feels like we're watching our money melt away. :(
Congrats on your homecoming! :D
Ana

[auskiwi]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for your notes of welcome! I will try to address questions you have had...
Generally a few people asked about my impressions of NZ now compared to ten years ago. Overall I haven't noticed a huge difference, which was frankly good news to me. I was hoping NZ would still be able to offer us an opportunity to reconnect with each other and our communities in ways I so missed in the U.S. It seems it can. I'm sure some of my feelings of content are due to the fact that I am finally back in familiar ground-I get the sense of humour here, I know which back roads to take, I can share childhood anecdotes with my kids ("Mummy grew up in that house"). It seems every corner holds a memory for me. I craved for that as a foreigner in the U.S once the thrill of being anonymous finally wore off. So to that end, my opinions of being "home" will likely differ to the opinions of those arriving for the first time as residents.

I have never considered New Zealand as "old fashioned" although I have heard it said many times! In fact there are many aspects to life in NZ I find to be a little more progressive to where I was living in the U.S. (such as art and cultural appreciation). There were times in the U.S when I felt I was living in the Stepford Wives movie, so it is a relief to reclaim my equal stature as a woman! I must note that I was living in rural America, so some of the social protocols were different simply because I was living in the country, rather than in America. My poor husband had to hear me lament many times that I was sick of feeling like I was living in the fifties...Perhaps the only thing I have noted as being old fashioned are the children. I am teaching in an inner city, highly multi-cultural school and the children are delightful. If that makes them old fashioned, I'm in favour!

Klipa: My OH came in with a visitor visa and is in the process of applying for a work visa / PR. As an Australian citizen, you can only sponsor your partner if you are actually residing in NZ, and can prove it is your primary place of residence. That is why we had to come in with him on a visitors visa. They look for things like rental agreements, mortgage papers, proof you have shipped your goods etc, to verify your residency in NZ and subsequent suitability as a sponsoring partner. Feel free to PM me for more info.

Xanctus: We were living in Oregon and Northern California mostly...I am trying to ditch my slight American accent! Of course the girls (who were born and raised in the US) have strong accents which makes them quite a novelty at school - although there are lots of kids with lots of accents at the school they are attending.

Regards,
Amy.

[Hannah]

Great post Amy, and WELCOME HOME!

I loved the bit about shoes (or rather lack of them) at school. My kids didn't wear shoes at all (and i mean NEVER) in the 6 months we lived in NZ. When we went on holiday at the end of our stay we got about an hour into the journey and realised they had no shoes...and we were going on a walking holiday (up rocky hills etc.) so had to stop and buy a cheap pair of jandals from the $2 shop (failing mother or what!!!!). when we came back to the UK the school my son had been at gave me 3 pairs of shoes in a bag - they were his shoes from when he started...he'd lost all 3 pairs and they'd ended up in lost property. It was funny because he'd grown 2 shoe sizes in that time so they didn't fit him anyway. The great thing was that noone ever mentioned the fact that the children didn't wear shoes - we went into restaurants, cinemas, libraries, everywhere and i don't recall the children ever wearing shoes (even when it was raining). No wonder their feet grew so fast!!!!!

hannah

[veronica]

now I know for sure that Hobbits come from NZ. !!

[westies]

Hi & welcome home,
Sounds like you are quickly settling in, great news.
We are also in Titirangi and love it here, will take something really special to make us leave this area.
Good luck to you all!!

[Debbie P.]

Hi Amy,

Great post. This bit made me laugh:

[QUOTE=auskiwi]The girls started at Titirangi Primary a few days after our arrival - they LOVE that they can kick off their shoes as they walk through the school gate and moan at having to put them on when they are picked up...

It reminds me of myself as a kid growing up in Bournemouth - we used to go around barefoot all summer. Come autumn, my feet had spread so much that I could hardly bear to wear my school shoes!

[willsken]

I remember growing up in South Africa and it was like that, we never wore shoes. I also remember mum soaking our feel in Meths to harden them!

Amy I’m so glad to hear you managed to find a job so quickly after all! Such a weight off your mind. Good luck with the house search, I’m sure you’ll find something lovely. I really enjoyed reading your post. :nice1

[marcia]

Great post - our youngest is already starting to walk around without shoes - the older two still are not yet sure yet - but then again it has been raining most of the time we've been here so far.

[Park City Partner]

Glad to hear you folks are settling in nicely. My partner is a Kiwi who returned home from the States after 12 years and I am now a stay at home American Mom (mum) so I can relate to your hubby's feelings. We are in Auckland (north shore though) and he should feel free to pm me if he needs some support during the day whilst you are at work. Good luck with the house hunting!