Anyone else with insane family stories for the holidays?

I'm sure I am noe the only one sooooooo happy to be home. I went to my brother's -- which was great. But then the inlaws...

My husband's sister's sons need a boot camp or something. We brought home chicken dippers one night for supper and the middle one doesn't like them. So he tells her (not ASKS her) to go back and get him regular fried chicken. And then apparently she was not moving fast enough because he was yelling at her while she was apologizing "I'm putting my shoes on. I'm going as fast as I can."

Can you believe this!??? And her husband just sat there. He doesn't defend her and he NEVER helps around the house, much less the kids helping her. (My husband finally told the kid that he had no right to talk to his mom like that.)

After a few more incidents, I grabbed my stuff and went to a motel for the night. Maybe I overreacted, I couldn't stand it anymore.

I sent my mom a couple of really cool magnets for her fridge. She collects them. We were having a bad storm and I didn't want to go t the store and search for a small box to put these magnets in, so I went to my pantry and got a box of Knox Unflavored Gelatin, emptied out the envelopes, put the magnets in the box, sealed it up and wrapped it.

Found out when I called Christmas Day that my mother unwrapped the box, saw it was a box of gelatin, and tossed it in the trash heap! She actually thought I was that cheap that I gave her a box of unflavored gelatin for Christmas! Sheesh!! When I called, she was quite upset with me, and I told her to open the damn box- which she did and she loved the magnets, especially the talking bingo one! Good grief!

I had 13 people and 5 cat;s in my single wide moble home,for Christmas dinner, talk about fun! My brother-in-law never called his mom or sent her a card.She was a pain all day,mean to the kids,finally my hubby sent her to her room![ She's 89]. I was glad to go to work the next day!

Holidays + families = insanity, it's like one of the laws of nature.

My Christmas was pretty normal, except for the breakfast conversation. I sat in appalled silence as both of my parents expressed the need to "send all dark-skinned people back to where they came from."

I really felt like Holly Hunter in Home for the Holidays, when she said something like: Do you ever look around and wonder who are these people?!

Jerry Springer would be too scared to go to any of our family gatherings!

This is a GREAt thread!!!! Hissy....my gosh!!! Your mom thought you would send her jello for Christmas????

Normally I would have some similar stories to tell....but this year things went smoothly....I was invited to my brother's house for Christmas day, and although i sometimes feel out of place with his family, this year I really had a nice time! And even at hubbies family gathering I had a pretty good time.

I had a great Christmas this year, but a funny thing did happen today.

I IM'd my best friend to ask if she gotten a gift I left on her porch Sunday.

She had given me a hard time, only in fun, for not getting her gift to her before Cmas Day and the funny thing is her religion does not celebrate Cmas. I had been unable to find where I had stored this great gift and explained this to her.

Anyway, I had told her I wanted bring it by Sunday on the way to another friend's house. But when I went by on Sunday, she was not at home and I left it on the porch thinking she would remember our conversation.

When I IMd her she told me she loved the gift then whacked me over the head awhile cause there was no name on it. After a bit of this I just replied " You poor thang".

Anyway, later she calmed down and thanked me for it by email. :kitty5:

I cannot tell a lie: I hate Christmas with the family. Fraternizing with weird relatives you've never seen before, feigning interest in some 6th cousin's job a UPS, everyone walking around with that big smile that says, "I can't wait to leave."
I spend the holidays with my grandparents and Lisa's parents.
Everyone else can just forget about it.
-Ryan

I could never figure out why bars were so busy on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Then a few years ago, I realized it was so everyone could relieve the stress of dealing with their families.

I always get apprehensive around the holidays, you never know what fun family trauma is going to erupt. Usually the visits go smoothly, but you never know. I worry about my Dad. He is becoming so intolerant of everyone as he gets older. It can't be good for him. I love my parents dearly, I just can't deal with some of their attitudes and beliefs.

I don't understand the social pressuer to visit your family at Christmas. Why should you wait for one or two days out of the year just to do that? I can visit my dad whenever I want. I choose not visit most of my family during the rest of the ear, I won't do it on Christmas.
-Ryan

Ryan -

Spending time with family around the holdays is a tradition I enjoy, but you make a good point.

I wanted to go to my brother's for Christmas -- which we did. I got to see my new nephew for the first time (best Christmas present I got!). I got to stay in Nashville for a couple of days -- which I always love.

Going to my sister in law's was also my idea, but out of guilt more than desire. My husband's sons adore their cousins (why I'll never know). So they are heartbroken if they don't get to see their cousins every so often and on top of it, his family goes with the whole "we never get to see you" bit.

So -- in a nutshell -- often the holidays are spent trying to do the things that make you feel least guitly. Ugh -- I sound so cynical. Family is important to me, but trying to cram too much into the "holidays" is no holiday. I've learned my lesson! LOL!

Outside of religious orthodoxy, I fail to see how holidays are significant in any way -unless you're selling something. Any holiday tradtion can be practiced at any time of the year you please! Give to the poor, buy presents, visit your relatives; but you don't have to wait for the holidays. Plus, you don't have to try and cram so many things into one or two nights when you realize you have all year to go wherever, do whatever, and see whomever you want -within reason!
Tradition is a social thing. It is not binding in any way. Binding yourself to seasonal traditions is like being refusing to eat cereal at night becaue"cereal is only for breakfast." It's food! Eat it! We in America are free to decide when and how we do things, and yet we feel the drive to cram ourselves into tiny time frames. To limit ourselves seasonally. Why?
Well, I'm done being cynical for now! Probably not the best way to start the new year, huh?
Or, is that just another wholly meaningless tradition?
-Ryan