Prospective,
First of all, you and your family have to be mentally strong when it comes to the weather and cost of living. Edmonton experiences snowfall from Oct to March. Right now it is freezing cold and it is just -14C. But life goes on here, nothing stops. You may miss social life as more than half the year your family will be inside the house at least 5 days a week with the heater on when you are at work.
As for clothing, try to get winter jackets with fur inside. Since you will be landing after the winter season is over, you may not need these on arrival. you may have to buy other winter clothes after you arrive since you may or may not get real winter clothers in city / country where the winter is mild.
To start with, a one bedroom apt would be enough for your small family to keep your initial cost of living under control. After you get a good job in your area of specialization, you can switch to 2-bedroom apt. Most apts have an initial 6 month lease.
Please do NOT bring any electrical appliances / gadgets as the voltage is different for Asia and Canada. There are lots of Indian and pakistani grocery stores and you get almost everthing that you need for your daily needs. You may bring your regular day to day clothes for the first 6 months use.
Since you will not have any credit history or rental history here in Canada, there could be a bit of difficulty in getting an apt. If you stay in touch with me, I will try to guide or show you some apt that will give to newcomers like you.
Please email me if you have any further questions. I have already postd my email address in this thread.
Good luck.
