In-laws & Mommy Vacation

Dear Crazee Juls,

My mom and dad are taking my youngest son with them to the beach next week..they will be gone for two whole weeks (if my son can stay away that long)..so I need some advice on what to do with all that free time I will have for those two weeks?

-Carrie



Dear Carrie,

The possibilities are endless. Two weeks without your son might seem like agonizing torture....but it may just be the greatest gift your parents have given you since they gave you the gift of life...
I'm really excited for you....here are some things I definitely suggest be on your "to do while the son is away..." list.

#1. A very long bubble bath

#2. Read a book (here's a good one: The Shack)

#3. Enjoy time with the other kid(s) while the youngest is away

#4. Music-music-dance, dance--to something other than kiddie tunes

#5. Jot a note down every day to your son who is away, so when he returns you can show him just how much you missed him.

#6. Take yourself out for a special treat (coffee, ice cream, etc..)

#7. Another very long bubble bath

#8. Go to the movies, or rent a movie you've been dying to see...

#9. Get a pedicure..this is very important!

#10. Thank God for great parents who enjoy spending time with your children.



Here are some things you should definitely NOT do:

#1. Tons of housework

#2. Worry about him-he'll have a blast



Hope this helps occupy your week! :) Wishing him a happy trip, and you some fun "me" times.

Enjoy,
Crazee Juls



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Dear Juls,

What do you do when your in-laws are completely insensitive, rude, nincompoops??

-Yaya

Dear Yaya,

In-laws...the part of our spouse's family that we DIDN'T marry....yet have to put up with spend time with on a regular basis. I have heard that there are some people who are blessed in the in-law department.... and then, there's the rest of us.
Insensitive, rude nincompoops of people can really put a thorn in your side. Especially when those people are supposed to be the ones who love and support you most being that they're family. I myself have had my fair share of "real buttheads" for in-laws...who seem to gain their own personal joy in bringing me down. I've tried several tactics in this inlaw/outlaw combat.... Most didn't work:

• Playing on their level, you know returning rudeness & insensitivity ...when they were rude & insensitive. This only made me angry..and a hateful person, and fueled their unending irrational asinine behavior.... STRIKE ONE
• Confronting them, and pointing out their rudeness. This too, somehow made me wind up looking like the bad guy. STRIKE TWO

With two strikes.... I was wondering if we would ever be able to co-exist without the constant strife between us.... The chances were not looking very promising. That is when I had a revelation. I'm a little afraid to share it with you...because it's just so awesome... and simple.

Kindness--I kill them with it. No matter how they act, I am ssssssssoooooo kind to them. No matter what they come at me with...I no longer let them see me upset, make me cry, want to divorce my husband because of his crazee family... Nope, now I have so much happiness exuding from me when I am around them-- I'm really surprised that Rainbows & Sunshine are not coming out of my..well, you know. Do things still bother me?? Yep. Do I still think they're rude & insensitive-Yep. Do they know this? Nope. And it really has helped. And they have actually become a little more tolerable...because they know they're not going to get to me. I promise--this is tried & true... Although I wish I could change their idiotic, simple minded, butthole inconsiderate ways... I can't. What I can change is how I respond to them... so that's my advice...

Oh yeah, and just because I'm such a great person, I give almost everyone I know a nick name... I find it really strengthens my bond with a person. So, in light of my new attitude toward my family, I even have come up with nicknames for my cutsie little in-laws who used to give me so much trouble... Bob & Fab. They were really a hit... I wonder if they'd like they're new nicknames as much if they knew what they stood for...?!? Bob (Big Ol' B#*$@) and Fab (Fake A$$ B#*$@).... Oh yeah, and Bob & Fab--if you're reading this, I'm not talking about you...I'm talking about the other SIL's I refer to by those nicknames. :)

Good luck,

Crazee Juls