Contemplating major relocation...

Before I start in with my questions, let me to introduce myself. My
name is trish, I've been lurking @ this newsgroup for years. I really
appreciate all the knowledge sharing that happens everyday on this
group.

We have 2 little ankle biters: emma who will be 3 next month, and
ethan almost 3 mos.

My husband has a possible job opportunity in Australia (he's actually
an Aus citizen), and we are currently in Canada. We are seriously
considering the move, even if we don't take this particular job.

My husband still has family (aunts , uncles, cousins, etc) in the
Sydney area, but we would still be leaving behind alot of support
(parents, siblings, friends)

The plan is to sell everything, store whatever precious stuff we have
left, and move our clothes, some toys / books, and any other special
things we can't do without.

We would probably rent an apartment / townhouse in sydney (suburbs),
and would need to furnish it relatively cheaply (second hand, if
possible)

What I'm looking for is general advice from those of you out there that
have relocated to a new country with young children.

I'm also looking for where to find any info/resources/services in the
sydney area that can help me in any way, such as:
- where to buy used stuff (we'll need everything - furniture, kitchen
stuff, etc)
- resources for parents -- like preschool / kindergarten programs,
children's recreation programs, library services,
- trade / swap / second hand shops for kids toys / clothing / books

I don't check my mindless.com email, please respond to the group or
alternately to this address: (remove NOSPAM
from the address)

thanks in advance for any advice anyone can offer.

trish

On 27 Feb 2005 18:22:58 -0800, "lfc" wrote:

My husband has a possible job opportunity in Australia (he's actually
an Aus citizen), and we are currently in Canada. We are seriously
considering the move, even if we don't take this particular job.

You may want to post this to alt.aus.parents if you can get that
group.


--
Dorothy

There is no sound, no cry in all the world
that can be heard unless someone listens ..

The Outer Limits

In article .com,
"lfc" wrote:



My husband has a possible job opportunity in Australia (he's actually
an Aus citizen), and we are currently in Canada. We are seriously
considering the move, even if we don't take this particular job.


Hi Trish! I second Dorothy about taking this question to
alt.aus.parents. There has been a lot of posts on this topic recently,
as a member of the group is getting ready to make the move from the East
coast of the US to Australia. I made the move 2 years ago from NJ to
Sydney, so I could probably help you out with some info on stuff (but
read the current posts in aap first - 'cause my fingers are getting
tired! My DS was about 20 months and my DD 2 months when we made the
move.

One thing I will say about getting rid of your Canadian stuff and buying
again in Aussie - really think it through. Once you sit down and do the
math on how much stuff you'll need to replace, the cost of shipping what
you already have starts to look at bit better. People concentrate on
the cost of big ticket items, but when you start adding up $25 for a set
of dishes, $200 for a set of pans, $100 to dress each bed, and whatever
else you pay for wall art, glassware, bath towels, chopping knives,
clothing hampers, mops and brooms, etc - it all REALLY starts to add up.
First thing you should do is go into your kitchen and then your bedroom
with a pen and paper. Write a list of EVERYTHING that is in the room
(including on the walls, in the drawers, behind the doors, etc). Then
work out how much it will cost to replace all of that stuff. If you are
surprised by that figure, then do the whole house. You can then get a
shipping company to come out and give you a quote for the move. The guy
who did our quote was only about 12 square feet out on his estimate for
a container load! We decided it was about the same cost to ship what we
had as it would be to replace it all at the other end - and we liked the
stuff we already had, so we shipped it. International shipping costs
are calculated on whole or part container loads, so it often costs not
much more to ship a whole bunch of stuff as it costs to ship just a
little. We put a 2 bedroom house worth of stuff into a 20ft container,
and it cost us about $12,000 Australian, including them doing ALL the
packing and unpacking, paperwork for customs, etc.

You'll get a lot more specific responses in alt.aus.parents.

eggs.