The only drawback was, my husband would go first, leaving me behind to handle all the details. Me, whos never even been outside of my own State! No problem. I could do it with the help of my friend the Internet. First thing I did was google international moving company. I found several international moving companies that would move everything we owned, door to Chinese door.

All I needed to do was put in my home state and my destination and each international moving company that I chose gave me free quotes. One thing that I read in my research shipping everything that you own via the lowest priced carrier can be a big mistake. Check the international moving companys license and reputation, (BBB, epinions.com), before selecting one to transport all your household goods.

I made my selection according to reputation and arrangements were made for the date the international moving company would come over with their crates and barrels and overseas container to pack up the house.

Phew! But there was still so much to do so many questions still unanswered! Back to the Internet. I googled international moving company again. I followed links and found expatriate forums where Americans discussed what its like living in China from housing to food to medical insurance. Thats what I needed to know. When you have kids, medical insurance is so important! Heres what it said:

China Health Insurance has extensive experience in providing international health insurance plans to expatriates living in China.

As one of Asia s largest insurance intermediaries we can offer plans that will provide comprehensive cover for individuals, families, travelers, teachers, and groups.

Perfect. Several plans were listed on the website. All I had to do was choose the one that best suited our needs and the whole family was covered.

I decided to post a question of my own on the forum. My husband is a picky eater so I wanted to find out if Western food was available in Shanghai near the hotel where he was presently staying until we got there.

The reply I got was to advise him to get over it! Business in China is often done over a meal and it would be considered an insult if he were to not try Chinese food, even if just a bite of each dish. Another thing I learned is that it is considered bad manners to completely pick your plate clean when eating at someones house as it means they didnt feed you enough.

My kids would be totally on board with that!

At last, thanks to international moving company and its wealth of information, our lives are all packed up and were ready to be transported to another place and time.