Moing to Northern Ireland from Cheshire with teenager son and 12yr old daughter.

[mazda123]

Hi.New to mumsnet,not good with computers,so apologies in advance!!
Any advice welcome re dealing with 2 children who don't want to move to Northern Ireland;daughter will be 12 when we move, son will be 16,just.The area we would be moving to is on the Northern Antrim coast,stunningly beautiful.My husbands family live about an hour away.Our son says we are ruining his life!I have tried to explain that he will be able to do the same things over there,golf,playstation,gym as he does here,hopefully more given the location,watersports etc.Would love to hear from people who have a made a similar move or generally can advise.Thanks.

Hi ,I moved to NIreland a few years ago withDH and 4 daughters who are now all teenagers - so younger than your kids now.It was difficult particularly for my eldest daughter who was very upset about leaving her best friends/ familiar environment. Took her as long time to make friends and she resented the move a lot.Having cousins same ages here was a huge help - and a big benefit as we had limited family around in England. Check out early the schools with the kids and arrange a visit with them if possible.Different school set up over here as you probably know but some excellent schools with good sporting facilities etc - which will hopefully appeal. But ultimately it is the friends issue which will be challenging.People are friendly and welcoming - and the initial comments re the English accent soon stop!I did try to keep in touch with friends and encourage the kids likewise but personally found it too emotionally exhausting! My eldest has though through her own efforts hooked up on FB with many of her friends and likes that. I don't regret the move at all - best all round for the family and that's what you need to decide.Good luck!

Thanks for that.Sounds like you have experienced what we are going through now.Great to hear you don't regret the move.We have been told we can rent the house we like before deciding to buy which does give us a bit of a safety net.I think we just need to bite the bullet,make the decision to go and stick to it.The should we shouldn't we is making us ill.Ultimately we can't bare the thought of getting to old age having not tried.