Contract signed

Hi family and friends,

Welcome!

We decided to create this blog as a way to keep in touch with all those that are interested in our move to the UK on assignment. We intend to keep the blog updated regularly with posts sharing all our experiences as we settle in to our new life. There will also be links to photos so the hope is that you'll be able to get a feel for what we're up to.

Speaking of photos, if you look to the right of this post you'll see a link to our photo album in flickr. You can click on this to see all the current and past photos.

You probably know that back in mid January I was approached by my employer to take a role in the UK. The timeframe would be around 12 months with the company picking up most costs. Of course, we jumped at the opportunity. Merrilyn and I have both been to the UK before (and I have been there a number of times on business). We are keen to experince life in another country - and with continental Europe at the doorstep - we are intent on making the most of travelling. Particularly to Itay! Its a favourite.

And with our little James at 2.5 its an ideal time in our lives to take this opporunity. Although he'll surely miss his many friends, we have no doubt he'll make new ones.

So since accepting the opportunity we've been divided between preparations for leaving and getting the contract finalised and signed. Along the way we've sold our home, cleared out the junk, and made our to-do list (now somewhere north of 30 items!). Well - the good news is that we finally have a signed contract. This also gives us a planned departure date of 5th May. What a relief. Now we can focus on all those things that need to be done to get a family over to the UK.

I've been flying to and from Sydney quite a bit over the past month. So on Sunday night we took James to the airport for the first time. He was able to see all the planes as they taxied and loaded up. "Look at the BIIIGGG one!" He'd point to the night sky seeing a plane with its light on and say "Look Dad, is that you're plane?"

Merrilyn has been reading books with a travel/moving theme. James is now well aware that we are moving home to the UK. He'll coming running up and say "Are we going to London? With Daddy, Mummy and James".

So its an exciting time. With lots to look forward to. Of course, we'll miss our good friends back home but know that we'll be rewarded with some wonderful experiences.

In the mean time - our Easter long weekend is to be filled with endless chores such as packing our kit into boxes. Sorting stuff into the: Storage, Shipping, Air freight, or Carry on piles.