If you are considering emigrating to New Zealand from America then you’ll have some questions. And I’m guessing that the number one concern is the USA vs New Zealand cost of living.
There is talk about town that the wages are lower in New Zealand and the cost of living is higher.
Have you heard that too?
Well, today you’re in for a treat! In this week’s podcast, we talk to Ryan. Ryan left the US 5 years ago to live in NZ.
Moving away from family is probably the number one factor that prevents people from emigrating.
There’s no easy way to say it.
Leaving loved ones behind, be it, parents, grandparents, brothers or sisters, while you and yours move far, far away to start a new life is tough.
But that’s not to say it’s impossible and that you shouldn’t do it.
Are You Considering Moving To New Zealand?
Do you wonder what life in New Zealand is (really) like?
Do You LOVE New Zealand & dream of moving here one day? Sign up HERE and I will send you my FREE Moving to and Living in New Zealand Guide. A 5 Part Video Series!
A travel bag is a funny thing.
While every woman needs a bag for travel, ideally, we would prefer not to look (or feel) as though we are lugging around some ugly, cumbersome (achy shoulder) carry-all that is housing the entire contents of the top drawer in our kitchen.
That’s not the look we are after when going on vacation.
No, thank you. Certainly not.
So, when it comes to choosing a bag for your next trip, what’s the answer?
Do we go for an ugly, compact and safe travel bag, orrrr do we opt for a beautiful, stacks of room, glam, sturdy, practical and beautiful one?
I think you know my answer…
We have been living in New Zealand for twelve years.
We arrived from the UK where we had a comfortable home, my husband was on a good wage and both of my kids were at school.
Within a year of moving to New Zealand, we were living in a rented house and my husband was on half the wage.
Did I want to go home? At times, yes. But we were so determined to make New Zealand work that we did everything in our power to make it happen.
Are You Considering Moving To New Zealand?
Do you wonder what life in New Zealand is (really) like?
Do You LOVE New Zealand & dream of moving here one day? Sign up HERE and I will send you my FREE Moving to and Living in New Zealand Guide. A 5 Part Video Series!
My son is leaving home.
In two weeks’ time, my boy, my firstborn, Sonny, who I adore more than life itself, is leaving our home and going to live in a flat with two other guys.
And I am heartbroken.
Every day for the past two weeks, I have woken up with a tight, clenching, knotty feeling in my stomach.
It’s hideous. Like a Rotweiller that refuses to let go.
I get out of bed and go into the bathroom. I sit on the loo and cry my eyes out quietly.
I don’t know if this is normal. This reaction. Probably not. This has never happened to me before, so I don’t know. All I do know is I wasn’t expecting to feel like this.
I have never understood the term ’empty nest syndrome’. Not until now, at least.
I used to look at other mothers who still have their kids at home past the age of twenty and think they were a bit weird. That kid needs to move out. Cut the apron strings.
But now it’s happening to me, and I feel as though my world is falling apart.
He’s not even going far, only into town. He’ll be right there. But I don’t care. He’s leaving.
And yes, I hear you, Tessa, when you tell me he will probably be home again in two months.
And thank you, my sweet girl, you are mature past your years.
But right now, I can only see today, and I am terrified of being without my entire family unit. It has always been us four. Always. I can’t bear it.
Two weeks of feeling like this. But you didn’t know, did you?
Of course, you never knew. Because I didn’t tell you.
You may have seen me on TikTok or Facebook. You may have read my chatty emails. And you didn’t know that these past 14 days I have been putting on a big fake front to hide the fact that my heart is breaking in two and all I want to do is take my family and run far, far away.
“He had to go some time. They can’t stay forever. You wait until he’s been gone a week, He’ll soon realise which side his bread was buttered”.
I don’t care. I don’t care. I don’t know if any of these things are true, but still, I don’t care.
I probably won’t publish this post, this string of jumbled words I am typing rapidly on my keyboard with tears streaming down my face.
But if I do, it will be for one reason only.
To remind you that the person who smiles or waves at you from across the street or sends you a happy emoji on Facebook? That person who cut you up at the roundabout or ignored your friend request? They’re probably going through shit.
They probably woke up crying.
They probably sat on the loo at eight o’clock in the morning and wished it was bedtime.
They’re probably going through a huge change and adjustment. Feeling like their world is ending.
So please remember. We are all the same.
It happens to us all. No one is immune to sadness. It’s shitty, and it hurts, and it’s horrible to go through.
Let’s always strive to be kind.
I‘m not entirely sure how long the term unplugging has been a thing.
It used to be (back in the day) that if you were told you to unplug it was because your parents were trying to save money on the leckie bill.
Someone once told my dad that if you unplugged the toaster, you’d save 5p on every bill.
But nowadays, the term unplugging comes with a whole new meaning.
Unplugging in 2020 means getting off the internet, stop watching so much telly and telling your son to look up from his phone so that his neck doesn’t develop a permanent hump.
I’m Liz, and this is my family.
I do Travel. I do Wine. I do being a mum to big kids. Sometimes I do all three at the same time.
I don’t do hormones. Or looking perfect for Instagram. Or dieting.
Read more about who I am and why we should be friends on our about us page.