Seeing overseas family - I miss my mum!

[BlueRaincoat1]

My mum lives in a nearby European country, as do my siblings and nephew. I haven't seen my mum since Christmas 2019, or my siblings since June 2019. My nephew was a tiny baby when I saw him last, he's hurtling towards being a 2 year old now.

My own children are 5 and 2.5, they are missing out so much on seeing and knowing my family, especially the younger one. It makes me so sad that they really don't know him at all - video calls just aren't the same.

Anyone want to speculate with me when we might be able to go them, or them to us, again? They are way behind UK in vaccination schedule - my mum is early 70s and doesn't even have an appointment for her first jab yet.

Sorry to hear that. I imagine if the roadmap continues it will be when people can leave UK for holidays.
In a similar situation but with family in another part of the Uk - but no travel allowed for much of last 12 months.

I'm living abroad and would love to see my family again. I have a flight booked for the summer that is flexible to be moved if needed but I hope I get to use it.

Tahns for the replies.

I guess I'm concerned that if we haven't had our vaccinations (DH late 30s, I'm 40), there might be continuing restrictions about going there in the summer. I had been so, so hopeful we could go in the summer, but the delays to the vaccine schedule are making me doubtful. There is absolutely no way we could go and quarantine for a fortnight in a hotel or something. And once the 5 year old is back in school, that means we cant go at all for ages.

Could they come to you instead?

I’m the same- really want to see family. The worse is DD started her first job in Brussels in September so haven’t seen her since then. To see family (we don’t have any in the U.K) we need to be able to travel to Belgium, Canada and the US.

I’ve got my fingers crossed for the summer. Hopefully a bit sooner if possible.

My mum could come to me, and hopefully will be allowed to once she has been vaccinated. But I'd love to go home for a week or two with my kids, see my siblings and my nephew and my friends. Hopefully it will be ok by August.

I can’t see my mum either. It’s awful, isn’t it? And there’s no date yet for when I will be able to. She has booked to come to visit in September of this year and we are keeping everything crossed. I last flew to England in 2018.

Same boat here....really missing them! Hoping that things will open up in the summer.

Same here and I am getting fucking fed up after MONTHS. My children want to see their grandparents. I want to see my parents. My dad is over 75 and not in wonderful health. I still hold a passport for the other country (as do my kids), they can’t stop me coming in! If there is no good news announced in April we will be breaking or bending rules.

So sorry to hear this, I feel your pain. My mum, brother and sister live in Melbourne 😢 we were all supposed to be seeing each other this August for a family wedding but they are still not able to get over so have now decided against it. I haven't seen my mum since October 2019 and my brother and sister before that 😢. Usually see my mum once a year which makes the distance bearable but this period of seperation has been horrible. My boys are only young and they have changed so much in the time we've been apart. Really hope you get to see your family soon x

My dad, September 2019. But we talk weekly now on WhatsApp which is wildly more often than BC (before covid). I'm slightly hoping Xmas 2021 will be possible for in person visit (we would travel). Otherwise they might suggest summer 2022.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56467813

This doesn’t fill me with hope. Can everyone just stop getting covid for a bit?

My mother and daughter in India. Mother vaccinated, but I haven't been yet. Am just taking each day at a time. Not much else I can do.

Never been a harder time to be an international family for sure.

I think it’s the not knowing when that’s hardest.

I really feel for you.

My dm lives alone in this country, too far away to get there and back in a day.

We haven’t been able to get down there for months as need to stay over and that hasn’t been allowed. We were tier 3 for ages too.

We are restricted by school holidays as well and our work which is pretty inflexible so we need to plan ahead which is impossible at the moment!

I really hope we can get there soon, but then equally, I really want this to be the last lockdown and not have a repeat of this every time they reopen things too early....

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Me too.

I miss my mum.

My dc miss their grandparents.

I would risk an illegal visit but they are being very strict. Despite having the vaccine.

Hate this so much, and so envious of people with family close by.

to all in the same boat. It is hard, this limbo. I really feel for my mum, my dad died about 3 years ago, and seeing her grandchildren means so much to her. She's now missed more than a year of all of their lives, when she would have been so involved otherwise. With no end really in sight yet.

I also have a brother in New Zealand, we were meant to see him and his son for the first time in years in August 2020. All cancelled.

I just really miss my family. As an emigrant i have always been conscious that I chose a certain amount of hassle in terms of seeing each other, but God none of us signed up for this.

Me too! Dm was supposed to visit xmas 2020. We havent seen her since oct 19. We've tentatively agreed a week in july. She'll be vacinated by then so I imagine good to go?

Same here. I haven’t seen my family abroad for a very long time. I do feel anxious about not being able to see them for a long time. Neither of us have been vaccinated, I can’t risk their health and travel unvaccinated, so the earliest would probably be early autumn. I do have a fear of them passing away without me having seen them for so long. It’s awful.

I wish they’d put some special measure in place for people with family abroad as I feel their need to travel trumps people who just want a holiday (as much as I want a holiday!).

I’m sure they could make a plan, involving testing and quarantining?

The same for people with family miles away in our country (like me).

I will go and see my parents abroad after we all are fully vaccinated. If there isn't any travel corridors I will travel for home for "funerals" and quarantine in their place.