# middle-aged with kids?



## tamarisk (Apr 26, 2013)

Hi everyone - we are thinking of moving to Dubai - we are 40s couple with 2 kids - has anyone else moved out at this age? How did you you find it? I worry that we will be surrounded by 20s and 30s singles and that it's more of a place for young people than families. Can anyone reassure me? Also we won't be earning heaps, so will probably have to live in apartment rather than a villa.


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## Chocoholic (Oct 29, 2012)

Oh not at all, there are plenty of 40 something families here.


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## Elphaba (Jan 24, 2008)

As Chocoholic says, there are plenty of people in their 40s (and older) here, although this forum does seem to attract a lot of younger, single posters.


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## vantage (May 10, 2012)

My name is Vantage, and I am 40 with 2 children. It has been 1 day since my last drink.


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## suzieirl (Aug 13, 2012)

me and hubby,over 40,2 kids, 13 and 11,1 dog,1 cat and 4 goldfish,we love it!


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## Beach bunny (Apr 20, 2013)

We came in our late 40's with three children ranging in ages 13 down to 6. Best thing we ever did. School is the natural starting point for meeting other mums but also other check out other expat sites local to the area, there are several, a good place to look at, they also arrange coffee mornings and so forth. It's a wonderful place for children, it is expensive, and it's easy to become seduced by the glitz. For children there is a fair amount of peer pressure to have the latest must-have gadget/phone - I don't know if you'd consider 11 year olds with iPads and Blackberry phones to be outrageous, but that's pretty much the norm amongst the school children I know. Our DD was furious not to get her iPad til she was 14!??

2 dogs, 2 cats and various others in the garden and feral cats we feed, so plenty of pets! Schools are good, not cheap, but v. heavily subscribed, so if you're serious get moving on the school places. British Curriculum there are some good schools out here. If you're coming from NZ I don't know what would fit best IB or British Curriculum?

Good luck


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## fcjb1970 (Apr 30, 2010)

Beach bunny said:


> We came in our late 40's with three children ranging in ages 13 down to 6. Best thing we ever did. School is the natural starting point for meeting other mums but also other check out other expat sites local to the area, there are several, a good place to look at, they also arrange coffee mornings and so forth. It's a wonderful place for children, it is expensive, and it's easy to become seduced by the glitz. For children there is a fair amount of peer pressure to have the latest must-have gadget/phone - I don't know if you'd consider 11 year olds with iPads and Blackberry phones to be outrageous, but that's pretty much the norm amongst the school children I know. Our DD was furious not to get her iPad til she was 14!??
> 
> 2 dogs, 2 cats and various others in the garden and feral cats we feed, so plenty of pets! Schools are good, not cheap, but v. heavily subscribed, so if you're serious get moving on the school places. British Curriculum there are some good schools out here. If you're coming from NZ I don't know what would fit best IB or British Curriculum?
> 
> Good luck


Wow, that is a glowing recommendation.


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## murraya2 (May 22, 2012)

Hi we moved out in October last year, both myself and my husband are in our 40's and have a 16 yr old son, it is expensive and only my husband works and we don't have tons of spare money but its worth giving it a go, just make sure you have enough money to live comfortably before shifting the whole family


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## tamarisk (Apr 26, 2013)

Thanks everyone for your answers - you all seem very positive about it which is really encouraging. But something a couple for you said - re the peer pressure for gadgets, and glitz, and the need for enough money to live comfortably - we would be on one teacher's wage with a package to cover part of the cost of housing and schools, but not a lot of disposable cash...how is it if you're a less well-off family? me and OH are fine with that, but i worry that our kids would be the 'poor' ones at school (i know its all relative, but i'm thinking from our kids POV!), and that to join in activities and weekend fun, we / they would need plenty of cash in their pocket.


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## murraya2 (May 22, 2012)

Once you do your sums, as long as you are not worse off then go for it, the weather is a bonus as even if there is not a lot of spare cash for fancy brunches every week the beach is free and with a home made picnic you can't beat a family day out there


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

It will be a bit challenging for your children. I don't know what school they will be attending but if it's a typical Western expat school, they will be surrounded by peers who live in nice villas and whose parents think nothing of giving them a hundred dirhams every time they go out to the malls on the weekends, and going to the malls is a popular pastime for teenagers in Dubai. Then there's the constant travel - families flocking off on weekend trips and holidays in Thailand or Europe. After school activities seem to cost a lot of money as everything from swimming lessons to sports clubs are normally extras on top of the tuition. My coworkers with teenage children are constantly complaining about the expenses associated with raising children and they are on pretty generous packages. 

The irony is that most families in Dubai are not well off, but it's one thing to be a South Asian family surviving on 10K a month for everything, as there's a large community of families in similar situations and they can provide the strong community support. But western expatriate families, who will be your 'peers' do have a high quality of life and westerners are concentrated in areas where everything from the restaurants to supermarkets have significant markups in prices. 

Still, as long as you're pragmatic and realistic and can put up with a couple frustrated/disappointed/jealous temper tantrums among your kids, you should be fine. You can get a lot out of Dubai without spending much money. Beaches are great and free. Camping in the desert/mountains is cheap as all you need are a couple inexpensive tents from Carrefour and sleeping bags. Avoid western style restaurants where the bill for a family of four can easily exceed 500 AED and instead head for the brilliant and cheap Indian/Pakistani/Arabic restaurants in the older parts of town where you can have a feast for 20-30 AED/head. For me it's been the low key and inexpensive pastimes that have created the best memories of the UAE. 



tamarisk said:


> Thanks everyone for your answers - you all seem very positive about it which is really encouraging. But something a couple for you said - re the peer pressure for gadgets, and glitz, and the need for enough money to live comfortably - we would be on one teacher's wage with a package to cover part of the cost of housing and schools, but not a lot of disposable cash...how is it if you're a less well-off family? me and OH are fine with that, but i worry that our kids would be the 'poor' ones at school (i know its all relative, but i'm thinking from our kids POV!), and that to join in activities and weekend fun, we / they would need plenty of cash in their pocket.


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

My nickname is lxinuk, I'm 43 married happily with 3 kids (two teenagers), and we love it. I drink every day LOL. We have been here a year and continue to have a ball....it's what you make it.
Lx


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