Well, well, well… After a year of writing blog posts about travelling with kids, grandparents and family I am about to begin the biggest adventure of my life – In July of this year, we (my husband, my daughter and I) are moving abroad to..
Hold on, hold on, rewind.. rewind.. rewind (if you’re a fan of Disney, you may have figured it out already from the title).
Before I get into our big adventure, let’s start a couple months ago.
Backstory
At the end of July 2024 I was made redundant from my Government department role. My redundancy was 3 months in the making, but still very turbulent and all together a defining moment in my career. It wasn’t a great time to be made redundant, lots of people were being made redundant from similar roles and departments which meant there was an influx of workers and a shortage of roles in the market. While it was pretty scary, I discussed with my husband taking a 3 month break to reset from a pretty stressful job, before getting back into the job market.
BUT that 3 month break never came.
An opportunity too good to turn down, presented itself, seeing me transition from corporate room to court room as a criminal defence lawyer. I went from the backrooms negotiating policy to the coalface, negotiating resolutions to help keep clients from custody. This new role meant I was supporting a great friend of mine in her new business and most importantly provide an income for my family. It was truly an unexpected turn in my career that I am so grateful to my friend for (by the way, if you’re in New Zealand and need an excellent lawyer check out Easy Law here).
Ok, back to the story – the reality was, while it was a great interim role (and maybe something for me to consider again in the future) I still really wanted that 3 months break to knuckle down on a couple of projects that have been on the back burner for a while.
A New Beginning Out of the Blue, Moving Abroad
At the beginning of the year, it felt like those 3 months might not come anytime soon, so as I was getting ready to make criminal law my future, my husband was approached to interview for a couple of international roles.
Now we always thought it would be me and my job that would take us overseas, but when my husband came home with these offers, I couldn’t believe it. We have always dreamed of living overseas and giving it a good go at experiencing a new culture, a new way of living and immersing ourselves into a different way of life, but we never thought it might actually come true. At least, not this soon!
After a couple days pondering, thinking through all the options, the what-if’s, the omg’s, the are we really doing this, we finally said yes and accepted a package that would see our family move to, Beijing China.
So here I am, writing a blog post, getting ready to hand over my client files and move to a completely different country, with my family and I am so excited.
The What, The When, The How, The Why
Ok, so we’re moving for my husbands role and guess what that means? Those 3 months off I wanted, I’ll be getting. I have a couple of plans in place, but I don’t want to share on those too soon – so for now, I will be filling those first 3 months with blog writing, Youtube filming and helping support my husband and daughter to adjust as they go to work and school in a foreign country.
We’re moving in July, which is SUPER soon and I am not even half-way prepared. As well as packing up all our things, selling our vehicles, saying goodbye to family etc. we have also had to do so much paperwork. Getting our visa’s has been a 4-month journey of love (and some frustration).
To sum up why we’re moving, all I can say is because we want to and we can’t wait. We know it will be hard, it will be so far out of our comfort zone, but we are also excited. Excited to learn the language, taste the food, meet the people and most of all, experience life living abroad.
So on that note, if you have any questions – feel free to send me an email at nicola@prettyfarfromhome.com otherwise checkout our blog space about life abroad for more info, here.
✈️ FAQ: We’re Moving to China! Our Big Overseas Adventure
Q: Why are you moving to China?
We’re moving to Beijing for my husband’s new international role. It’s an incredible opportunity for our family to live abroad, experience a new culture, and enjoy a change of pace from our usual routine in New Zealand.
Q: When are you moving?
We’re making the big move in July 2025—yes, very soon! Things are hectic as we prepare, but we’re incredibly excited.
Q: Are you still working as a lawyer?
Yes! And I will be in the Courts right up to 3 days before we leave (why do I do this to myself, crying emoji) I’m taking a break from criminal defence law when we move to focus on a few long-awaited creative projects, including writing this blog and growing my YouTube channel.
Q: What are your plans while living overseas?
The first few months will be about settling in—supporting my husband and daughter as they adjust to work and school. I’ll be diving into content creation, sharing family travel tips, expat life updates, and hopefully exploring some new ideas I’ve been sitting on.
Q: What about schooling for your daughter?
She’ll be attending an international school in Beijing. We’re excited (and a little nervous) about how she’ll adapt, but we know this experience will be amazing for her growth.
Q: Was this move always part of the plan?
Not exactly! We’d dreamed about it, but never imagined it would happen this soon—or through my husband’s job. Life threw us a curveball, and we’re choosing to ride the wave.
Q: Will you continue blogging about travel with kids and family?
Absolutely! In fact, living abroad will give us a whole new perspective to share—from travel within Asia to family life as expats. Expect even more helpful content, tips, and real-life stories.
