I think unless you lie about swine flu, you may be stuck for this year. But start now with your Holiday Boycott of 2010 Master Plan. Book some trips to visit your families in mid-fall or late winter, before or after the holidays next year.
Just tell everyone that with your new house, you're focusing on simplifying your traditions and having some quiet holidays for a few years. Your families won't feel neglected if you visit at other times, and you get to wipe your calendar of any hoilday crap from now on. After a few years, they'll be used to you having other plans on holidays and it will be easier.
The worst will be the first year, so just work now to have a plan!
I boycott them fairly often actually. Even when I lived close by.
Thanksgiving (the Canadian version) has never been a big deal in my family as my mother is from England, where they just don't celebrate it, so that is an easy one to get out of. We never really did Easter either (which is kind of weird as my mother is a former Catholic).
I tend to show up at my family's place for Christmas at some point, though it varies depending on whose family is having what and when.
However, this year FI and I are boycotting both our respective family's Christmas celebrations (they live in different cities than us) as we are seeing our immediate families a week later for the wedding, and don't feel like driving/flying a week before as well. We originally were going to go to my family's, however they were quite cool with it when we said we changed our mind - mainly as we neither felt like driving 12 hours in a probable blizzard, or being stranded in an airport after spending hundreds of dollars due to said probable blizzard.
We are going to visit FI's family mid-December in a city mid-way between us and I imagine we will sort of have a mini-Christmas with them.
We are looking forward to the actual Christmas holidays just being the two of us to be honest.
We will likely go to my family's next year however.
I have boycotted holidays for years...sure I still say happy thanksgiving and merry christmas...but I don't do much... My tradition growing up for Thanskgiving was for my mom and I to head to the movies...we loved when the Harry Potter movies started coming out onThanksgiving! This year, my FH and I had an amazing meal at our church potluck with all the tradtional Thanksgiving food...so we agreed I was not going to cook. My mom had to go out of town to take care of her ailing father, and so we slept til noon, woke up, fumbled around the house doing random odds and ends all day. Then I took a nap, woke up and cooked dinner before taking a shower, having him clean up, and heading to work... I love doing the non-traditional as tradition. The huge family things always cause more drama than what they are worth, and this year I just hung with the fiance' and enjoyed beign with him. I have to work all night on Christmas and new years too..so I guess I miss out on the midnight kiss. Oh well...good luck with the boycott!
Re: has anyone boycotted the holidays?
Just tell everyone that with your new house, you're focusing on simplifying your traditions and having some quiet holidays for a few years. Your families won't feel neglected if you visit at other times, and you get to wipe your calendar of any hoilday crap from now on. After a few years, they'll be used to you having other plans on holidays and it will be easier.
The worst will be the first year, so just work now to have a plan!
Thanksgiving (the Canadian version) has never been a big deal in my family as my mother is from England, where they just don't celebrate it, so that is an easy one to get out of. We never really did Easter either (which is kind of weird as my mother is a former Catholic).
I tend to show up at my family's place for Christmas at some point, though it varies depending on whose family is having what and when.
However, this year FI and I are boycotting both our respective family's Christmas celebrations (they live in different cities than us) as we are seeing our immediate families a week later for the wedding, and don't feel like driving/flying a week before as well. We originally were going to go to my family's, however they were quite cool with it when we said we changed our mind - mainly as we neither felt like driving 12 hours in a probable blizzard, or being stranded in an airport after spending hundreds of dollars due to said probable blizzard.
We are going to visit FI's family mid-December in a city mid-way between us and I imagine we will sort of have a mini-Christmas with them.
We are looking forward to the actual Christmas holidays just being the two of us to be honest.
We will likely go to my family's next year however.
My tradition growing up for Thanskgiving was for my mom and I to head to the movies...we loved when the Harry Potter movies started coming out onThanksgiving! This year, my FH and I had an amazing meal at our church potluck with all the tradtional Thanksgiving food...so we agreed I was not going to cook. My mom had to go out of town to take care of her ailing father, and so we slept til noon, woke up, fumbled around the house doing random odds and ends all day. Then I took a nap, woke up and cooked dinner before taking a shower, having him clean up, and heading to work...
I love doing the non-traditional as tradition. The huge family things always cause more drama than what they are worth, and this year I just hung with the fiance' and enjoyed beign with him. I have to work all night on Christmas and new years too..so I guess I miss out on the midnight kiss. Oh well...good luck with the boycott!