Meet the Global Families of Puget Sound

Who lives here? Tim and Linda O’Hare, and their children: Julia, 10; Henry, 8; and Lara, 4. Tim, 42, is a software developer manager for Amazon. Linda, 42, was a corporate strategist in Australia and is staying home with the kids for now.

Where? Bellevue

When did you move here? Tim came to Seattle first, in January 2015. The family joined him in February 2016.

Tim: I wanted to make sure it was the right place and the right job. We were worried about America in general because of guns.

What, if anything, did you know about Seattle before you moved here?

Tim: Lots of companies from here: Microsoft, Amazon. Once we got here: Costco, Nordstrom, Boeing, Starbucks.

Linda: Just gloomy weather.

Do you plan to stay?

Julia: Three or four years.

Tim: Let’s evaluate after that.

What has been the biggest challenge in moving to Seattle?

Henry: How much it costs!

Linda: Long winters. Sorting out schools. Meeting people. Has anyone mentioned “the Seattle freeze”?

Any differences between parenting in the U.S. and in Australia?

Julia: Yeah! They let their kids eat more junk food.

Linda: I would agree with that.

Tim: There’s more pressure here to be elite in sports.

Linda: We wanted Henry to start baseball. It was almost like, at 7 years old, he was too old to start.

Tim: We love the neighborhoods. All the kids on the street go to the same school. People have block parties. It’s a real sense of community and belonging we didn’t have in Australia.