If they include football, vow to find out about football teams as soon as you arrive. If they draw their cuddly toys, make sure they accompany you on the plane not the sea freight. Ensure you have the addresses of their important people and that you have taken their photographs. Saying goodbye can be hard for everyone, but there is no value in deciding to do without friends at your next posting. If you learn to live without friends your children will follow your example.
Friendships develop vitally important social skills, after all.
Direct your energies into maintaining old friendships. Email is such a convenient method for communication that it has never been so easy, nor so cheap, to stay in touch. Staying in touch and support then, are two key ingredients to finding happiness for yourself, and by default, for your family. Joanna is the author of A Career in Your Suitcase and Forced to Fly. That Work, a non-profit association of expatriate experts that pool their knowledge and resources.