WHERE'S BEST TO LIVE IN NZ ETC :PART 6!!!

[AngryBeaver]

Wow! Part 6...got to be a record.

MN Towers, where's our prize?!

Hey,

Phone sorted now so it can handle downloading rest of the thread to read.

Sounds like a tough decision about the meds justa but, from what I know of you, you're not a woman who takes decisions lightly and I'm sure whatever you and dh decide will be the best thing for your family. Hope you start getting the support you want and need soon.

Frik take the free hours, honestly, I assume you'll be contributing soon and I'm sure that will be more than you'll take from the ECE.

We worked out a plan with our "home-based educator" so ds1 still goes to Kindy and she picks him up when needed.

Work is going great, I'm absolutely loving getting out of the house and having adult conversation. I got home on Saturday and the house was spotless, including dp getting down on his hands and knees to scrub kitchen floor and cupboard doors, and dinner was all ready to eat. Bliss!

When's the move AB I'm sure it's here somewhere but still have to go back and read thread properly.

Can't remember who mentioned it but dp uses LinkedIn a lot for contacts etc. Sibble what is it your dh does? (Again, you may have said but haven't read back yet)

Ps: bit chilly this morning. Might have to go and get me some proper flannel pj's and bed socks.

~waves to everyone in a not-sufficiently-caffeinated haze~

I love the bus lanes here. I'm on my way into lectures & currently speeding past almost stationary traffic

Oh yes xMinerva, flannel pjs & bed socks will probably be essential at some stage... but not yet I don't think. Due to be too hot 26 degrees today again.

A question: DH is doing the school/crèche run tomorrow as I have an early meeting. He has no real concept of getting both girls up & out in the morning, although he's pretty good most of the time with everything else. Seeing as he's doing me a big favour, it would be a bit mean for me just to leave everything & let him figure it out, wouldn't if?

M&S sale starts 8pm on the 11th too according to email I just got :)

Where's lolly? I haven't seen her in a while. OMG saw a job that would be perfect for me, but we are supposed to be sabbaticaling, and I should never ever have looked, but now I have and I found one which seems to be very serendipitous. But of course am now frantically writing, editing, re writing, re editing to infinity the covering letter to my cv. Aaaarrrggghhh. I should just print it off right and then march myself over there and introduce myself and hand it over.

Lolly is on the bus! And man it's hot. Not coping with the heat.

I have no news. Work calmed down a little which is good. House hunting - so over that. Truly depressing in Auckland. Always find myself buying in a sellers market the world over.

MIL skyped yesterday. DH asked how long she is visiting for when they come Feb 14 (the trip they will have been saving for for 2 years). 3 weeks apparently! (they are both retired by the way and will be staying with us). Finances will be blamed for the very short stay (we pointed out we will cover their housing and food costs) but the reality is MIL will probably not want to leave SIL. Dh is disappointed. They won't be talked round though.

Skyped DB this weekend - sad-his marriage not going too great and he seemed so down and Skype not good for serious stuff.

Good luck with the move AB - keep us posted on it all. How is your furniture getting there? Removal van in the Ferry?

Hi girls, been a little while again, lovely to catch up. DH has been looking into a Perth job which continues to look elusive (lack of funding for the post continues, plus Brits hardly get a look in these days in metropolitan areas) but meantime has a phone interview for Middlemore on Wednesday, eek! We'll see what transpires! I have been worrying about finances a bit - lolly like you we are always trying to buy in a seller's market, btw! - anyway obviously we'd be renting initially. Rents are high, aren't they?! We're newly installed in a bright, cheerful, modern, low-maintenance, well-insulated house here in the UK and as I hate being cold, I really shrink from something draughty and damp! I saw the perfect house in St Heliers online yesterday, thought, hurray, and then realised it was $800/week when I converted that into pounds I was slightly horrified..
lolly three weeks sounds like the length of trip my parents plan - I always find it just right, myself, when they've been staying with us Down Under; sometimes in the past they have rented their own little appartment for longer stays, but obviously that's a big ask.
AB I've been checking out your island paradise on various Auckland sites - it looks stunning, I have to say!
It is minus one here and painfully cold with a bitter wind - brrr! I hope you're enjoying the balmy temps over there back soon xx

PS frik great you are now installed in gorgeous Tauranga (we'd still love a job there, but no can-do right now, apparently!) and I am so, so sorry about your friend, it's so desperately sad. I too agree with those of you who love to walk as 'balm to the soul', I have got through various past crises, one of which involved a great loss, by walking alone in beautiful places, not least in South Island NZ. As justa says, for me it is about the spiritual aspect of nature and that feeling of connection to the whole that she talked about. But the sadness remains, and as others have said, we're all here for you and hope that you will write down whatever helps you through this tough time xxx

Thanks meerkate, and your post couldn't have been more timely as I have just had a terribly upsetting call from my friends mother. She is being admitted to hospital now and they don't expect her to make it through the day. Thank god we are on our way to the South Island this afternoon after we pick DD up from kindy. I think I am really really going to need some beautiful vistas.

There's lolly :-) glad all is ticking along for you, will keep elbowing the gods of property for you and hope something awesome comes up. You know we had all that stress and drama because of course we have a dog, so out of the 200 properties for rent in tauranga, we could only view 5. And we would never ever have looked at the house we are in of our own violation. And it has turned out to be freaking awesome. Literally the best house ever. So you never know, what may now seem like a bunch of painful obstacles may just be priming you for the best place :-) here's hoping anyway!

Hi meerkate :)

Aw, frick...how distressing. I hope the South island brings you some comfort. Big tight squeeze for you from me xxxx

We have had an offer on our house! We dropped the price to silly £ and got 3 viewers in 3 days. Aproperty developer wants to buy it. He has offered cash. We will loose a.lot. But we can't carry on like this, so we have to take it.

So prepare for incoming Waiheke property porn!

My Mummy is on her way to the airport. I am missing her already.
The kids were all upset this morning too.

lolly you're a much better woman than I.
There is no way I'd be encouraging my ILS to increase the duration of their stay! No freaking way!
I salute you ;)
How are the boys getting on (the furry ones I mean!)

Posting and dashing. M&S sale and FREE delivery to NZ!

Hahahahahahahahahaha

That's the sound of slightly hollow laughter from me.

The reason? One of dh's friends (in NZ) proposed to his gf on Sunday (how lovely) and phoned up yesterday to ask him to be best man (how lovely, again)

Today dh met up with him for a chat. Dh has just phoned me and I said "oh, have they thought about a venue for the wedding yet?", expecting him to say somewhere in the Waitakeres or at a vineyard or something like that.

Dh says "yes, they want to do it in Mexico"!

Apparently it will cost about 5K per person so they wanted to tell us now to give us time to save up .

There is NO way we could spend that much on 4 of us going to Mexico! Dh started to work out how much it would be and I said, look, it would not be me and the dcs. If it happens at all it will be just you.

I would start an AIBU about it but I don't dare to post in AIBU .

I am chuckling to myself as I can't BELIEVE they think people will be able to afford this. Their first dc is due soon so they will be down to one income too - I can't believe they can afford it!

5K per person! WTAF? We only spent about 10K NZD on our whole wedding!

How are you going to tell them? Or will you wait till everyone else has said no first?

Plus Mexico is the last place on earth I would take a small child. I was so sick there I lost half a stone in 10 days.

It gets better!

Dh has just got home and told me that in addition to the estimated 5K per person for us to go they were hoping that instead of wedding presents everyone will donate and pay for the wedding couple's costs to get there, stay etc.

So as well as our, what, 15k for four of us (dcs being cheaper - not that four of us would go) we would be expected to give another, what $500? $1000? To pay for them. Because apparently they can't really afford to go either!

I'm really really NBU, am I?

Dh thinks the same, it's crazy. If we had a spare 5K there are loads of more important things we could spend it on. He has done his best to point out the flaws in their plan. And flying, what 14 hours to get to your wedding?

The 5K cost is an all inclusive package apparently, flights, accommodation, food, drinks, etc etc etc.

Actually, littlestkiwi, I could do with losing half a stone in 10 days, that's the only bonus I can see

Oh dear whatshesaid - I really don't thinu YABU. I love the fact that they want other folk to pay for them to get there as they don't have the money themslves. It's always comedy how people disappear up their own arses when they get married. I can't think of many places I would rather not go with small DC - we'll perhaps several parts of Africa but YKWIM. Weird isn't it when there are so many amazing places in NZ you could get married.

Today's happy event is that DH did a record at work and his boss emailed him and said to take me out and charge it all back to his work. I'm staggered - this sort of thing never happens to me. Sadly babysitters are cash in hand!

Frik - you OK?

Unfortunately, I then got a hunger. I ate everything in sight and put it all back on before I flew home.

Maybe they will reconsider when they realise quite how hard a 14 hour flight would be with a little one. If I were getting married now I'd probably do it on Waiheke or in the Pacific- but that would be on our own.

Yep, there are some great venues for weddings in NZ. Lovely outdoor ones as well as indoor. The first wedding I went to here was outdoors, which I thought was terribly exotic at the time.

They don't have dcs yet so I don't think they have a clue what it will be like to fly that distance with a baby ( who will be crawling by the time they get married).

We got married in Oz and spent virtually nothing on it as we just did it on the quiet while we were on holiday there. Told everyone when we got back and had a party at our house. Total cost, very low.

Well, I got a text and my friend had a blood transfusion and is now alert and talking! I am hoping to speak to her tonight. Her mum said its a temporary fix, and she isn't sure of wether it's the right thing to do prolonging it all, but all I can think is that I might get to hear her voice again.

We have just driven 522km and I am shattered. But DD was so so so good I am very proud of her :-)

Woohoo for your DH lolly! And even more so for the meal, go somewhere really really nice, g'wan you know you want to

Am absolutely ASTOUNDED by your DHs mates whatshesaid, I genuinely think that's the worst case of bride/groomzillaish behavior ever. And it's a big field!!!

Just tell them no. Sorry an'all that, but like, NO. Bloody hell.

Justa, I have lost 4kgs since moving to NZ and am trying very hard not to put it all back on during this road trip, which is looking increasingly unlikely as I ate about 4000 calories today alone :-( stress eating.

Right. I really need to go to sleep as we have to be up at 6am for the ferry, but I am hoping my friend calls....hmmmm will just switch off lights and leave phone on.

Glad to hear about your friend frik. Sorry it will only be a temporary fix, of course.

Sorry to hear that frik. You must be very important to your pal.

Enjoy SI.

Lolly- well done to your DH. A friend of mine reckons that St has been a bit flooded by chance takers who have heard about a few big sales and are trying their luck atm.