Books were a great help for me, too -- even if I did have to rebuy the same ones frequently. (My mom didn't understand re-reading and would throw away my books, so I'd go out and buy them again.) I can imagine the passel of relatives were a comfort.

I know that the move to Belgium was helped by having lived in England when I was younger. We had friends who would visit us there or meet us for lunch if we went to London for a weekend. There was some continuity.