I know you're supposed to do it, especially if you have kids. But having kids is precisely why I stay home for the holidays.
A few years ago, my husband and I started vetoing the whole madness that is the I-must-travel-for-the-holidays-because-everyone-expects-me-to nonsense. Travel is stressful. The holidays are stressful. Kids and parents should actually enjoy the holiday season.
Instead, we invite the grandparents to visit us. That does mean added stress of hosting people in our home, but it also means that the kids get to open gifts, decorate a Christmas tree, have dinner and do all those fun holiday things in the place that is most familiar to them.
It's also a matter of one child having a birthday close to Christmas, which means we would have the stress of throwing a birthday party, immediately followed by packing for a trip. I don't think so.
I know what you're thinking. My parents would never go for that! They expect us to pack up the car and make the annual exodus with about a kajillion other parents dragging grumpy kids along. It's a tradition, after all. But you can just say no! Start a new tradition.
Get some tips on the Holiday Travel Dilemma: Deciding Whether to Stay Home or Travel. If you simply must go, though, you can make things go easier with my tips on Holiday Travel with Kids.
