Going North for Christmas

We're going to go up north for Christmas, to the parents. I'm kind of looking forward to this because I somehow have it in my mind that my life will be easier while on vacation. I won't have to cook. I won't have to clean. I'll have grandparents around to watch my kids. I'll have cousins around to play with my kids. We'll get to play board games at night (I LOVE board games).

But then I think about all the other times we've gone to the parents, and how crazy and dysfunctional it can get. First of all, the car ride is long (and it may or may not be unbearable with the baby-who-does-not-like-the-car, but I think it will be okay because the baby-who-does-not-like-the-car seems to kind of like the car in the morning, so that's when we're planning on driving). Second of all, naptimes and bedtimes will get all thrown off, and our usual stellar eating habits will be thrown all asunder. Stuff like that.

And the worst part is, and I'm just bracing myself for it, all the "little" comments about our parenting style that we're certain to get from our family. I can just hear them now:

• "Why don't you have your kids in school?" 
• "Are you sure she's tired? Look, she wants to play. Let her stay up later!" (Yes, mom, believe it or not, I do know when my baby is tired, and do you realize that if we let her stay up now that we're going to have hell to pay in about 15 minutes? Yeah, I didn't think so.)
• "Shouldn't Ocean be reading by now? Don't you worry that she'll be left behind?" (Which I'm sure will be followed by a Christmas gift that has something to do with learning how to read.)

Along with various other things (I'm sure we'll get at least something about elimination communication) that I'm sure I can post about when I get back. 

But it will all balance itself out because of all the good stuff, like not cooking and not cleaning, right? Right? Right?

Right?