Ren Posted September 12, 2019 Report Share Posted September 12, 2019 Hi Everyone I can't believe that in 2 months time we will be in Oz starting our new life! The best decision that we ever made was sending my hubby there on a LSD trip this month because at least one of us will kinda be orientated when we arrive (neither of us had ever been to Oz before). So it helps that he already has his driver's license, bank card, knows the transport system, has booked an Air BnB for our first 3 weeks there, etc. We have 2 small kids - 3 and 6 years old and I am assuming that they wouldn't start school this year since we will only be arriving mid November and that I will need to stay at home with them until they start school at the end of Jan. Hubby has already made a whole lot of connections on his LSD, some of whom want to see him again once we are settled. So we are hoping that a job can come out of it for him. I just want to know what people do in my situation - I would like to start applying for jobs as soon as we arrive, yes I know the market will be quiet, but it is still worth a shot - how would I go for interviews etc with my kids? What do you do? In SA I would just leave them with the nanny or call a friend or a grandparent, but we wont know anyone in Oz when we get there. One of the people that my husband met wants to meet both of us for coffee to discuss a potential position for me - how do you do it with kids? I also don't want to be in a situation where I can't start the job hunt until they are in school because then it will be even more time without a salary. I must also add that my children are both VERY busy boys and the Terrible Twos have nothing on my 3 year old - so asking them to sit at the table quietly while mommy talks to someone is not an option. I know a lot of moms stay at home with their kids to avoid paying the costs of daycare - not an option for me. I will go nuts and so will my son. Then in addition to the above - if by some miracle I do get a job, how does one shuffle the work and mom responsibilities? What do you do during the holidays or if your child is sick? My kids are constantly picking up germs from school but it doesn't really impact me because I just leave them at home with our nanny - what do you do in Oz? I'll probably get fired on my second day :-( Please help calm my nerves! I am assuming that there is a way around this since there are so many people there with kids.... but we will have no support structure. Gosh..scary! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisH Posted September 12, 2019 Report Share Posted September 12, 2019 The Aussies are very different when it comes to this stuff. Family comes first here. My wife initially didn't work and waited for the container to arrive and at the same time found a daycare for my son. 11 hours ago, Ren said: I know a lot of moms stay at home with their kids to avoid paying the costs of daycare - not an option for me. I will go nuts and so will my son. After 3 months my wife was also starting to lose her mind at home. The logic of saving $1000 by not working has never made sense to me, even on minimum wage you would probably make enough to pay for daycare and have spare change. 12 hours ago, Ren said: how does one shuffle the work and mom responsibilities Dads play a big part of the childrens lives here. If both parents work, you simply have to share the responsibilities. You would be amazed how often dads take carers (sick) leave to look after a sick child. Most Aussie companies are also very flexible with work hours, my wife for instance have Mondays off. We usually spring clean the house on a saturday morning, mow the lawn, etc. Keep in mind that nobody has maids, gardeners or full-time nannies (they do have the luxury of grandma and grandpa). If each partner puts in his/her fair share of the effort you'll be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rozellem Posted September 13, 2019 Report Share Posted September 13, 2019 I would very strongly suggest that you put your 6 year old in school as soon as you arrive. Even if he does no real academic school work in that time, he will be occupied and making friends till 18th of Dec when the Xmas holidays start. You will also have been introduced to a few school families that you can hook up with in the holidays. You do know school only starts right at the end of Jan 2020, so it would be great to organise some playdates (hopefully with younger syblings) and you could pick the parents brains. Please, please consider this. It will be a lifesaver to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FromDurbs Posted September 14, 2019 Report Share Posted September 14, 2019 I moved with older kids, so this is not first hand experience. Just looking what my friends and colleagues do. About doing interviews with children: There are lots of people who advertise babysitting for a fee. Older people, stay at home mum, students etc. I have no idea where they advertise, but finding a paid babysitter might be a solution. I have a friend whose university age daughter does babysitting for a fee. I think childcare stays open during the school holidays. At least for pre-school children. I am not sure what you do with a 6 year old during the school holidays, but my colleagues with younger children are fine during school holidays and do not take time off to be with the kids as people did in South Africa. When the kids are sick you take carers leave. You and your husband have a certain entitlement for carers leave during the year. I also find my employer very accommodating. They would even let people work from home in cases like that - not sure if all employers are like that. Mine is generally very nice and accommodating. You might not be able to get the kids in school immediately. For starters you need to know where you live before you choose a school. I would strongly recommend living VERY close to school. It makes your live easier in so many ways. It also makes it easier to make friends and to do play dates. The cities here are large and you could easily spend an hour driving between suburbs. Trust me, play dates disappear when it takes an hour to get there. So you need to decide where you want to live, find a school close by. Or choose a school you want and then find a house close by. We struggled with that combination and ended up moving to a different suburb we originally planned because in our favourite suburb we could not make both the house and the school work. It might be bad to put the kids in a school and move them again when you finally find a place to live. Also look for playgroups to make friends. There are many playgroups at libraries, churches etc. The Australians are big on community. Go to your local community centre or library and find all the activities put up for children. I have not tried this myself (a bit weird to find friends for teenagers), but assume parks would be a great place to find friends for your children as well. Some of the childcare centres are full and have waiting lists, so you might not be able to get the 3 year old in anywhere immediately. Although many people take extended leave in November/December/January so you might be able to get a temporary place. Childcare is VERY expensive. You might not want to pay for childcare until you have a job. A bit of a chicken and egg situation. Where are you moving to? Best of luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riekie Posted September 17, 2019 Report Share Posted September 17, 2019 In South Africa I had to use annual leave to look after sick kids. For the first 3 years I had zero annual leave left for a holiday. In Australia, this is considered carer's leave so you can basically use your own sick leave to take care of sick kids which helps a lot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TamTam Posted September 17, 2019 Report Share Posted September 17, 2019 Centrelink will pay a rebate for a number of activities including look for work. https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/child-care-subsidy/how-much-you-can-get/your-activity-level-affects-it/recognised-activities Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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