Hi!

Introduce yourselves...
1

I wanted to say a quick hello and to introduce myself. My name is Billie, I'm a Londoner now living in France with my husband and two young daughters. We live in an area bordering Belgium and Luxembourg, and have been here for just over 4 years. My husbands family moved to Luxembourg when he was 14, then across the border into France a few years later, and once our children reached school age we decided to head out here too.


It has been a tough few years finding work (our move coincided with the recession0 but my husband and I both now work across the border in Luxembourg. Our daughters are 8 and 6 and have been in the French school system since the Petite section of Maternelle, and switch between speaking English and French as the mood takes them. My husband is fluent too having been through the European School in Luxembourg, unfortunately I find it far more difficult but I persevere :)


This year we hope to purchase a house, probably one needing renovation work, but are excited at the prospect after things not going to plan as quickly as we'd hoped when we moved over here.


When work and young children allow, I make silver and glass jewellery which I sell through a gallery in Luxembourg.


I hope to get to know you all better over the next few months.


Bye for now:

2

Thanks Ron. I'll wander over to the jewellery department.

We are fortunate with the frontalier scheme. Luxembourg sees daily commuters from France, Belgium and Germany. It does mean leaving home at 6AM in the morning and not being home until 8PM, but we're fortunate in that we have grandparents on hand to ensure the girls are looked after and get to school and get homework done, although not seeing the children before leaving for work in the morning and then having time for only a quick bed time story when we get home in the evening isn't ideal, but having had little to no income for 4 years makes us grateful for what we have!

3

Hi Billie,

Welcome to SFN. Lots going on here, I'm sure you will make many friends. I've just noticed that you make jewelry, perhaps you should join the Art Department.

( we don't have a jewelry section yet, probably an insurance/security thing! )

Yes, tough times career-wise, although taking advantage of 'cross-border' benefits can help, I'm sure.

Ron Birks