To feel sad it’s just us

I never understand the purpose of such drastic comparisons. You are in a totally different situation to OP. Just because she has a family, doesn't mean she cannot miss her relatives and friends. It's normal to feel a bit sad or even jealous seeing other people celebrate with loads of people. That doesn't mean she isn't grateful for what she is. You can be thankful and still be upset. It's not a competition of who is worse off.

So… you and your husband have some talking to do!

Let her play out OP and have sobe couple tone with your dh. Not all families are big, I'd say that's the minority.

I’m working, my DCs are working and DH is watching the football. Families in the UK are not all meeting en masse for lamb dinners and jolly japes.

Plus it’s fucking sleeting here.

Your DH is right OP. UK Is shit.

Better than me! I am widowed and on my own today. My local ACs ands GC are with their in-laws today. Fair's fair - they were with me last year.

Enjoy the things that you have done with your DD and spare a thought for those on their own completely!!

I hate to say count your blessings, but it is on the tip of my tongue ........ !!

I’m on my own today and every day. Days like Easter Sunday when everyone appears to have family company are bloody awful. Be grateful for what you have.

I’ve lived outside the UK for 25 years now. We don’t really do Easter (have spent today gardening, doing housework, reading) and it poses me by tbh. But my expat book group are all sharing photos of them with each other, with the families, out on bike runs, etc.

Do you have a network of friends? Can you arrange to spend holiday weekends with others who are in the same situation?

Are you going ‘home’ for Xmas? Or summer?

If there's a good expat community and your DD is usually social and has lots of friends then I really don't see the problem with a day just spent with your little family.

Not everyone has a large extended family, and many people aren't spending Easter Sunday with others, you can just hear the ones that are. It's obviously sad to be away from family but it's not a great sadness for your dd to have one day at home with her parents, there's nothing wrong With a small Christmas or easter

Sounds sad, why did you agree to move?

So there is a thriving ex pat community

loads of them won’t have extended family out there

and just tell your dd to quit pestering you about going to the neighbours! And enjoy the bbq

But how often would you realistically see your family. Say you're originally from Glasgow but your work is in London you're not going to see family anymore than you do now.

You're perhaps giving up a lovely lifestyle to return to once a week visits...where one of you will be in the kitchen making food most of the time. It's beautiful sunshine here in North Somerset but way to bloody windy and cold to bbq.

And trust me big families ain't all that... I have 56 first cousins...it's not all happy families

I think it’s just mind set?

Its just dh and i, with child, also overseas. We just get on with it.
We have seen some friends with kids last week and met at park on Friday a few hours. But this long weekend it’s just the three of us. I quite like it. Did a bit of baking, long walk in woods yesterday, some gardening. Today dh did a little egg hunt in garden alone, and we have just pottered around in garden, about to have bbq. Tomorrow we will go to local castle grounds for a flea market. But no plans to see anyone we know. Ds hasn’t asked to see any friends, we would just say it’s Easter and he will see on Tuesday again when kindergarten resumes.

Some times we go invite friends over and then have local friends and other kids here or we go there. But family isn’t involved

Sorry OP but there are many many people who haven't emigrated who are in exactly the same position as you: they have no extended family living near them for one reason or another. I was in that position. My DH had no relatives at all, mine lived a couple of hundred miles away in the same country as me and we were low contact anyway.

Yes it is sad not to have a loving, extended family living close by, but it sounds as though you and your DH are making an effort and your DD obviously has close friends, so honestly I think it's a question of accepting the situation.

Unless of course there are other factors which mean you aren't happy with your current life other than lack of extended family? Because living close to family isn't all it's cracked up to be and tends to be idealised, especially at times like Christmas and Easter.

A family bbq and Easter egg hunt sounds lovely

tell your DD to quit badgering you asking you to go out!

So your husband just digs his heels in despite you desperate to return home?

how long have you been out there? Is there not an expat community?