Hi, I’m Marie — and yes, Gamble really is our surname

I’m a teacher, a mother of two, a wife and apparently someone who moves country for a living. This is our fourth international move — from the UK, to Malaysia, then Germany, most recently Abu Dhabi, and now… somewhere yet to be confirmed.

My husband and I both work in education as teachers. We built a good life in Abu Dhabi. And then the world shifted in a way that made leaving feel less like a choice and more like the obvious next step. So here we are — two adults who’ve resigned from their jobs, two kids aged somewhere between curious and anxious and one family figuring out the next chapter in real time.

Oh — and then there’s Patrick. Our Maltese, who has absolutely no idea what’s coming and is currently doing his job of making all of it feel slightly more manageable. He’s moving with us, which adds a whole extra layer of logistics to an already chaotic situation. He’s also, frankly, the most photogenic member of the family.

“I didn’t start this blog because we had it all worked out. I started it because we didn’t — and we couldn’t find anyone else being honest about that.”

Worth the Gamble is where I write about all of it. The logistics of leaving a country. The strange limbo of job hunting with no set destination. Raising children through uncertainty and trying to answer their questions when you don’t always have the answers yourself. The online learning rabbit holes. The boxes. The decisions about what to keep and what to leave behind — literally and otherwise.

It’s honest, occasionally chaotic, and yes — our surname really is Gamble. We’ve leaned into it.

If you’re navigating your own version of a big life change — a move, a career pivot, a fresh start — I hope something here is useful. Or at the very least makes you feel less alone in the messy If any of this sounds familiar — whether you’re mid-move, mid-career-change, or just mid-life-wondering-what-comes-next — you’re in the right place. Start with the blog, drop a comment, and let’s figure it out together.