Ex-pat Mums in Oz??

[yummimummy]

Is there anybody out there......?
(Apart from me)

OMG!!!!! the price of bananas has just risen by 90% because of hte damage

have to admit that I don't like Australian bananas, I yearn for the less starchy and sweeter ones we used to get form the Windward Islands.

i know - amazing that it rose straight away. I did manage to get some eco bananas - but they are imported. I hate the taste of bananas but the girls and dh loves them - tend to buy the lady finger rather than the cavendish ( ones being affected.)

Hope all is okay with you hannahsaunt

So, Australia is doing bloomin' well in The Games.
Currently they have more than double the number of medals ( and they're not even all for swimming!) than all the UK countries together with less than half the population.
Britain really needs to pull its finger out. That's what I say.

Hannahsaunt ... been looking at the TVNZ news and thinking of you ... those poor people without homes ... nightmare ...

yummimummy ... It is a bit embarrassing about the Aussie medals isn't it? I mean, the UK is 2nd on the medal table but has only a third of the amount of gold medals that Australia has ...

And the kiwis? Well people are getting so fed up with people only coming 4th ... I can't tell you how many 'just missed the bronze' stories there are here

It can only be because the Aussies put so much time and money into sport for young people. Sports academies and such like ...

Hello! Eidsvold - glad your friends in Cairns are ok. Townsville is back to normal (other than watching and waiting for Cyclone Wati) but the Bruce Highway is closed from here north due to flooding and landslides. Innisfail had 30cm of rain in the last 24 hours which is really hampering the relief operation. There are still problems getting aerial shots to assess the damage because of the cloud cover as well. The army made it through yesterday afternoon and the doctors/nurses were able to go as well. Hospital here is still waiting for the patients that need evacuated... It has to be said that the pre-event and post event management and co-ordination seem superb; it has been very impressive. Apparently the SES conducted one of those exercise days a month ago with a scenario involving a 5 cyclone in Cairns so they were well rehearsed for the real thing. I think we are just beginning to appreciate the enormity - the cyclone itself lasts about 2 hours but the follow through with the rain etc and the scale of devastation is just huge - 1000s of people just up the road are homeless and will be for a long time. I don't know how much of that is news beyond QLD - the cyclone is the "glamorous" bit that hits the international headlines but the follow through just doesn't spread really and it's actually quite sobering when you're so near it. Dh's parents arrive in a couple of weeks and we had planned a round trip up to Cairns and back through the Tablelands - don't know what to do now - part of me thinks we should go because they will need the tourist dollars, part of me really wants to see first hand what has happened but then some of me wonders if that's just a bit voyeuristic. My mum arrives tomorrow which is nice but I haven't really been able to concentrate on that v much the last couple of days. I think I found it more stressful than I should have done because dh was away for so much of it.

Anyway. We're pretty chuffed in our house with Scotland's medal record - quite good for a wee country not known for it's swimming prowess!

You're right Hannahs, the Wee Scots are doing marvellously.
Glad you are all ok.
Sounds like major destruction.
I'm sure you are right that they would appreciate your tourist dollars up north.
I'm not sure what sort of holiday you would have up there in 2 weeks' time though with the clear-up operation in full force.
Are you here for a year? I assume your DH is an OTD.
Just reading your first post "nice breeze today".
Reminds me of poor old Michael Fish when he gave the weather report just before the 1987 'hurricane' in the south east.

Yummimummy - dh is indeed an OTD and the bother we had with the Medical Board of Queensland to accept that he could speak English!!! Went to the wire in terms of getting our visa so we could board the plane and they finally agreed that his 11+ exam result was suffice to acknowledge that his English proficiency would do (the fact that he had A level certificates, his MBChB cert, his MRCP cert didn't count for anything!).

We're here until mid July then back to the UK through the US. Just realised today how much we love it here and how very, very hard it is going to be to leave...staying at the moment though isn't an option.

what's OTD?

could they not extend your dh's working visa - could he not apply to other hospitals through QLD Health.... dh works in the Royal Children's - admin side of things not medical.

I was reading in the paper today hannahsaunt that they don't want people to cancel their holidays if they can help it as the tourist dollars will be very helpful for them. I am sure if you intend to drive and stay around Cairns and the tablelands you might be okay.

wasn't going to mention the games however am getting a little weary of hearing advance australia fair... was so nice to hear the welsh national anthem last night ( mothers side are 1/2 welsh, 1/2 english) and scotland the brave the other night.

Surprised how many athletes come from our little shire/district here in Brisbane.... a number of swimmers, gymnasts, a kookaburra ( hockey player - I taught him English back when he was in high school)

OTD = overseas trained doctor

We have to go back not least because I am contracted to go back to my job for at least a year from 1 August. If I didn't we would have to pay back the three months salary they've been paying me for my research project that I'm doing (all part of the deal of having a year's leave of absence from my 3 day a week university post).

Dh is in year 3 of this SpR training, this being his general medical year so has a further 2 years of his training contract to complete and he couldn't do that here either. All in all it's much easier for 100s reasons to go and come back. We may well be back but to a major centre for 6 months in about 18 months time as dh has to do 6 months in a transplant centre before becoming a consultant. So we're looking into Sydney and Brisbane as options for that. We also own a house back home, have a niece that we haven't met yet and another due just after we get back etc so if we were to come back we really need to go home and do more planning rather than just extending our current stay.

Good experience though - would highly recommend . And would even come back to TVL, cyclones and all!

well, Hannahsaunt, that all sounds pretty reasonable and well thought-out ( you sound so grown up too)

at being considered reasonable and well thought out!! Must be all the practice in telling the grandparents that we will be coming back and they will see their grandchildren again!

Hopefully home long enough to plan the next trip . And next time hopefully we'll have learned some lessons on how to go about it all (like having an agent deal with house rentals and the like...).

Hi Hannahs,
I am an OTD also.
Came over in 1998 for 10 months as part of training and met DH ( is Australian)......back to UK for 2 1/2 years and then back here in 2002.
For me Oz was the graveyard of ambition as I was going to be a specialist before that but the lovely 9-5 lifestyle I had here with every 2nd weekend off put paid to that and am now a (very uncareer-minded) GP - well I will be when I go back in June.
Eids - I don't think I've actually heard an anthem oher than the Australian one yet!
DD's godfather is physio to the swimteam and was in the opening ceremony march!!
He is training for a marathon and goes jogging daily. Last week he was joined by one of the African runners each time he went out (hope it wasn't the one who'se gone walkabout!).
Bet you are proud of your hockey player

PS I know the Med Board has gone a bit mad since a certain 'rogue doctor' from Bundaberg.
I deregistered to go on mat leave and a dreading the rereg process!

Good morning everyone

Right, a little confession - wouldn't put in anywhere else on the boards; DH suggested I go back to London for 2 weeks in September sans efants, to have a break and just go back (we came out Aug 2004)
and.... I don't want to go!

Don't want to leave the fragrant boys for that length of time, don't really want to be in London for more than 3 or 4 days without them and generally can't be arsed. My parents are coming out in October for a month anway. London will always be there.

Eids, does your dh feel similarly or do you think he'd be back like a shot for a break?

Hi Suzy

What a thoughtful dh! Two weeks is an awfully long time though. Would you stay with family/friends? I think I'd feel like a limb was missing or something without them all. I have been away for 5 days sans enfants but with dh and that's quite different. Sympathies with your dilemma. Suppose it's a long way to go for less than 2 weeks though...how will you decide?

Hi Suzy
I have to agree with Hannahs about the length of time away from kids.
I really thought I'd be the sort of Mum who goes away but as it turns out I'm just a bit soppy and pathetic. ( We do have a weekend away in July planned though, sans DD - 10 months)
People do do it though. We have friends who left their 9 month old twins at home to go skiing for 10 days (then again they probably couldn't wait to get away )
And a friend of a friend is off on a 5 week trip without their 2 yo.
Why does DH feel you should go?
Have you got other family there, apart from your parents?
I guess the family in Austraia vs family in UK thing is aways going to be a dilemna and require compromises.
I've done 1 trip home so far and plan to go back annually but we'll see when I have more than 1 child and they are mobile and more difficult to travel with ( and the cost of travelling en famille escalates).

funnily - dh really has no great desire to go back to the UK - me I would love to see friends and his wonderful family again - very conscious that his mum has never met dd2 and they are her only grandchildren. My MIL is so beautiful a mil/person that I miss her desperately. I even tell dh we could go in the aussie spring/summer - so he could see his beloved Chelsea play and he is like - maybe......

However - I don't think he would go without us - I have thought about going without him - but the cost is sooo huge and we are trying to sort out/renovate the house.

We'll have been here two years come June - seems like an eternity since we left England... that just seems like such a historic phase of our lives.....

Would you go if the boys were with you or do you not have any great desire to go generally iyswim?

My ex-student hockey player - whose older brother I also taught was a fabulous young man - a wonderfully bright diligent student who was respected and liked by all who taught him. Very pleased to see him do well in his sport - had done well whilst he was at school - fabulous to see him in the olympics and now the commonwealth games.

Dh's parents - mum and step dad are walking about perhaps coming over here next year - aussie winter.... hope they do think they would love it but I think they are a little nervous at flying all that way - dad is in his 70's, his mum is in her 60's. I am sure once they fly it once - it would be fine. We though perhaps we could meet them in Singapore and have a week or so there before coming back to Aus with them.

Sorry for the long answer Suzy.... but I can appreciate where you are coming from... long way and you feel like - what is there for you to go back to?!?! I just miss some fabulous friends I made who were sooo supportive and wonderful to us through Dd1's birth, surgery etc... and I miss them knowing dd2 too.

Oops better scoot - have to get dd1 from kindy!!

Hello everyone

Well I have made my decision, I am going to take a weekend health spa retreat in Margaret River followed by two nights in a hotel in Fremantl and invite a male guest in for one of them (dh of course). That will do me, charge up my batteries etc etc.

yes I would feel I had a limb missing, I would like to see friends but I would just miss the Wong boys so much and they are only little, nearly 5 and 2.5. Mr Wong is generally a thoughtful chap and thought I would like to go home, but this is my home, now, and London will always be there. Maybe in a couple of years time when we have a spare ten grand (and the rest) we will go back all four of us.

Eids I can totally understand your dh, maybe he is a bit scared he will be sucked back in to England, you kind of want a longer probation period than 2 years so you know you have made the right decision in emmigrating.

Where are you going for your weekend away YM?

THat sounds fab Suzy - jealous - Margaret River is supposed to be fab. Dh promised me a spa day after dd2 was born and I have yet to take him up on it. I am debating whether to have it all in one go for a day or to try out the new therapy place down the road and have treats over a period of time.

I think DH just thinks that - the Uk was another lifetime ago. He loves living in Aus - absolutely loves it - he doesn't regret emigrating or really miss anything about the UK strangely. Oops - perhaps not being there last year to see his beloved - life long love Chelsea winning the premiership BUT really he just thinks that other than family there is nothing there that he wants to see or do.

I know leaving my two would be hard - they are not quite as old as your two but you do feel weird when they are not around. I remember the first time I went out without them after dd2 was born. I almost had a car accident - I had checked my blind spot to change lanes and had a momentary panic when it registered that there were no little ones in the back seat - empty car seats. Then I remembered I was off to a lecture and they were at home with their dad!!

hey eids, have you seen this in the paper today about \link{http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,18571194%255E2702,00.html\pre-school places for all 4 year olds}? I get a bit confused, is Grade 1 proper school and pre-school and kindy not compulsary? Anyway, it shows they understand the importance of investing in kids in this country

Suzy ... I love the sound of your w/e away ... (lol at 'male guest' relieved it will be your DH )
FWIW ... if DH suggested I went back to England without the children for a fortnight I wouldn't be able to do it either ... Too far, they are too young, and I would miss them ...
I know there are loads of people who come on MN and post a 'should I/shouldn't I?' thread on this subject and I always say "If you want to go then go for it!" but I wouldn't want to go IYSWIM? I don't have a problem leaving my kids for 1/2/3 nights for a girly weekend away or a romantic break with DH but 2 weeks on the other side of the planet??? Nah, couldn't do it!

Hi Suzy

Retreat sounds fab! Only thing I know about Margaret River is that lots of lovely wine comes from there...and we're doing our best to support the industry!

In QLD the system is changing with a prep year for available for all (though not compulsory) for all turning 5 in a calender year before the June of said year so all will be at least 5 1/2 before starting grade 1 (i.e. pushing it back by six months from the sit at the moment). Haven't heard about free pre school places though here. Prep starts from Jan 2007. Would make sense to have a preschool year too...we are finding that ds1 is very ahead academically having done preschool in the UK and not starting g1 until Jan this year (he would have gone last August had we stayed in UK).

Yummimummy - Bundaberg lives on...shame MBQ seems more concerned with language than training though - at the moment the dr shortage means that they are letting OTDs start work in advance of their medical quals being confirmed which seems to be inviting another Patel case all over again...they are a bunch of numpties there (IMHO!!)