Extended Family

You know, one thing I really love about blogging, is that the longer I do it, the more I learn about myself :)

I am starting to realize that I am a bit of a control-freak. If people don't do things EXACTLY the way I want them done, it bugs me!

For example: In the 4 years that Gairod and I have been together (1 dating, 3 married) We have always switched each year, who's family we spend Christmas dinner with. Our families are very different. Mine has ALWAYS gotten together with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins for a big Christmas dinner! Gairod's family just does a small dinner, his mom, dad, and brothers, if that! Some years his parents go away for Christmas, and they do nothing!

We always spend part of Christmas day with both families, since they both live close, it is easy to do this. We usually get up Christmas morning, do stockings and presents, and get ready to go, at our own house, then go to whoevers house we are NOT having dinner at, do presents there, then go to the dinner house and do presents, then dinner.

As me and my cousins started getting married and having kids, we have arranged it so that we are always all there for the same year, that way we all get to see each other.

So this is our year with Gairod's family. At first, his parents were planning on going away for Christmas, and weren't even going to be here! I said that is fine, but then you won't have us until Christmas 2010, because next year we are doing my family. They ended up deciding to go away before, and be here for Christmas. I should also mention that we are the only ones in Gairod's family with kids. His one brother just got married this past summer, and his other brother has a girlfriend. Well yesterday, Gairod informed me that his one brother (the married one) is having Christmas at his house, with his wife's family, and his other brother is going to his girlfriend's family. WTF??? Do they not know that we alternate every year, and this is our year with them? Now they want us to go to Gairod's parent's house in the morning (after our own morning) and do presents, because his brothers have to leave in the afternoon. We are the ones with kids, they should be rearranging their schedules for us, not the other way around! Plus, we are supposed to go to my parents in the morning to do presents, then to Gairod's parents in the afternoon. SO now we are supposed to do our own morning, then go to Gairod's parents, then to my parents, then BACK to Gairod's parents for dinner. Plus we NEED to fit a nap for the triplets somewhere in there! Ugh!

I love our families, but sometimes it pi$$es me off that they expect us to rearrange everything to accommodate them, when it would be much easier if they rearranged!