First, yes I am probably being selfish. Second, yes I am anti-social when it involves obligatory rather than voluntary together-time. Third, I love the holidays..I am not a Scrooge.
So, basically I grew up with small, quiet family holidays. I remember maybe 2 or 3 Thanksgivings and/or Easters at Grandmas with all the cousins and such, but my mom kept it to a bare minimum and we never, ever had Christmas with the relatives. I remember spending one Christmas in a cabin at Big Bear as my mom's "fuck you" answer to the family pressure (probably my 'Fuck You, Grandma' Grandma but I don't remember).
Anyway, Hubby and I moved away from the families like the first year we were married, and spent over a decade doing what we wanted. We got a hotel on Mt. Charleston for Christmas 2 years in a row, ate T-Giving dinner at Casinos, and at Disneyland one year, invited friends over sometimes...in general very relaxed and pleasant.
Now we live near family, and have a child and that child has bio relatives that want to see him, and my in-laws are here and I can't be myself around them, nobody except my Mom (thank Dawg she understands me) ever wants to adhere to my idea of "no store bought/new gifts", and Kiddo's b-day is Jan 2nd and I feel like it's the same party and people we see 5 times a year for all the other kids birthdays. I haven't fully enjoyed the holidays the last two years, which should have been Magic with Kiddo
Other than my initial idea, which is to run away somewhere for Thanksgiving and Kiddo's b-day, what else can I do to get out of the stress rut? Guess I should just put my foot down and do what I want, huh?