Living in America 2012--Because It Is No Longer 2011

[MmeBucket]

This is what happens when I start threads--they get stupid titles. Someone else needs to start the next one. Hopefully we can get this one filled by 2013.

Link to old thread for reference

Not much happening here. The kids have been off school for 25 days. I am soooo looking forward to them starting school tomorrow. Except it is my day to help, so instead of getting a break from my two, I'll have 22 of them to deal with.

Where is everybody???

I'm here. Waiting for a baby, not much else to say :).

Hope things are getting better with DS girl

Hope you are taking this time to put your feet up Nancy! Good luck with the impending birth.
Hope Ds is ok girl.

Good luck with the baby Nancy - how exciting!
Girl - my two are just coming out of feeling like this and are now very happy to be here. It may just be the sun coming out more and the pool in the garden(!) but I don't mind what the reason is, at least they are easier to live with now.

Girl - it was really hard with ds at first. I remember when he used to cry : "I want to go home to England" every time he got told off. But two and a bit years down the road and he has adapted well. He was 4 and a half when we arrived.

You just need to stay consistent with him and show him that everything will be fine. The two thing si think helped most was starting local activities - soccer and summer camp - and sticking to his routine with no changes from the uk, early bed and plenty of sleep.

Good luck!

I can't believe it's happened but I'm here in New York City! Waves to all the New Yorkers and in fact anyone in the tristate area!!!

Spent 10 minutes cursing the effing lift which kept on beeping everytime I pressed 0 for the ground floor and ended up with super sweet coffee because I said yes when they asked if I wanted a 'regular' coffee but hey-ho, guess that's part of the fun :)

Hi, just marking my place here... English mum of one with Aussie hubbie moving to California in June - eek

Any tips greatly received, either about the move or after. DD will be nearly 3

Hi everyone, catching up with MN while my brand new DD snuggles on me.

FSB where in California are you moving to? I'm in San Jose. Been here since Dec.

Elaine hope you're settling in well.

Aah - Nancy, congrats.

Hope Mme B is getting better.

I went back to blighty for a week. Suddenly got a bit homesick for it - I may know how naff all that Cath Kidston stuff is, and would turn my nose up at it if I lived in the UK, but for some reason, living in the US makes me yearn for printed cotton tea cloths & union jack crapola.

Hullo from San Diego. We've been here for 13 yrs.

Yay congrats Nancy - how was the birth? What have you called her?

Where are you moving to FSB? We moved to LA 6 weeks ago with 3yo DS and 3mo DD

I am missing proper cities more than I miss home particularly ATM. LA is weird, big and sprawling but the traffic is so bad nobody really leaves their little area. I don't like it. Residential streets are alright but the bloody dual carriage way boulevards are doing my nut. I've discovered some areas I like but we can't live in them because they're either too expensive or the commute would be horrendous for DH

Have rented a house though which we love so just waiting for our stuff to clear through customs then hopefully it'll get easier. But right now I either want to go home to London or move to NYC/SF or another proper city....

Hop, how do you feel after 13 years? Do you miss home still or prefer the US?

Congrats nancy on your DD

We will be in San Carlos... Not sure where that is in relation to anywhere else, except I've already discovered that there is a train to San fran that takes nearly 40mins (typical londoner - got to learn to drive..!)

I can imagine everywhere is going to feel enormous because everything's more spaced out there... We are quite localised these days where we are, so that wouldn't bother me so much (as long as its a nice area)... My cousin lived in LA for a year last year and loved it, but I'm hoping San Carlos is going to be more relaxed/less chaotic...

Kick, I miss our family and friends more than home itself. This feels more like home most of the time. I still have the occasional hiccough with the language though. On sunday my friend took me out for a birthday brunch and she asked me what a 'roulade' was. I struggled to remember the American for 'swiss roll' for quite some time.

Mousey, we moved here right before our eldest turned three! Welcome to So Cal! I'm not a huge fan of L.A. although certain bits are nicer than others but there are so many things to do there.

FSB, our friends used to live in Burlingame which is north of you. They ended up moving across the bay because it was too chilly on the peninsula. They used to live in Hotlanta though and the weather shouldn't have that sort of effect on a Londoner.

Congratulations Nancy! Enjoy that lovely snuggly newborn stage!

Welcome Elaine. Would love to visit NYC.

Have planned 3 weeks in the UK this summer kickass. Not looking forward to the flights with a toddler on my lap though!

Hello Hopskip. I went to San Diego on holiday last year and loved it! We drove through LA on the way to SD girlwiththemouseyhair and didn't fancy stopping there at all!

Good luck with the move FSB.

Might be finally getting some spring here in Central Oregon. It was snowing last week but seems to have got sunny again now!

Congrats Nancy. That snugly newborn stage is so lovely it almost tempts to try for number 3, if we weren't so far away from home!
We've just had a lovely few days in San Fran and we're off to Yosemite and National Sequoia Parks, then back up the coast road to SF. Any tips on places to go with a 3 and 5 year old along the way?

Can't remember any specifics but did that trip about 15 years ago and it was great. Enjoy

Way to make me feel better about living in this city for the next few years guys

Does anyone know the best way to send stuff to a BFPO address? My brother's on tour in Afghanistan so packages under 2kg would be free from home, will the post office here or ups do me a good deal?

Sorry, GirlWithTheMouseyHair. To be fair, the highway doesn't pass through anywhere nice, though the 405 looked a bit more promising, but by then it was dark!

Does he work on a joint base? Is there an AFPO address he could maybe use? The Post Office do a box (in different sizes) that costs the same whatever you post , though it is quite expensive to post international.

Hello, I hope you don't mind if I jump in here. I'm new to the site and we are living in Northern California in the hills, planning our return home to Wales.
I have three children although two are no longer children, oldest already moved himself back to Wales after finishing Uni here and next will follow after high school graduation this June, so just me, Dh and little Dd (age7) left to move. House to do up and sell then off we go, so I'm hoping for next Spring.

Hello MumPaula! Whereabouts in the hills are you? I live in Central Oregon so have driven through Northern California a couple of times on the way to SF and further south. In fact our favourite motel is the railroad one in Dunsmuir. Have you got a house to go back to?

No house to go back to, the plan years ago was to sell up and buy one for cash. That idea went down the toilet with the property market, we will buy my Mums house and probably need a small mortgage, depends what this finally goes for.
We are in the hills above the central valley East of Stockton/Lodi area. On the way to Tahoe.
My biggest worry, will my Dd fit in at school and will we be able to find jobs!!! But family first, and Mum is getting older so we want to be close, no family left for me there and sister just moved to Spain a few years back for work.
I have some friends who went to Dunsmuir and rode trains with the kids they had a lovely time. With school schedules and Dh's work we don't get much traveling in. Shame theres so much to see.

Thank you for all the congratulations! . I can't believe that this time last week I was in labour.

sorry tadjenny am being over sensitive and instead just need to se the great things about our new home - spent Saturday in Little Tokyo and yesterday DD and I andered rond Venice after a baby class, hung out on the beach, got an amazing vegan lunch and walked miles in the sunshine through Santa Monica - it really isn't that bad!!

We move into our house on Monday, I'm so excited!!

Girlwith, have you been to the botanical gardens in pasadena yet?

Tadjenny, you should obviously come back again then!! :o