By Juanita Ecker
In a perfect world, Christmas at your home would look like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting: a roaring fire, happy children playing with their presents, and adults blissfully singing carols while sipping eggnog.
In reality, however, there’s bickering, overcrowding, nosy questions and frayed nerves.
The question is, how do you avoid tension with your family members and focus on a smooth, joyful holiday? Try these helpful tips:
Don’t expect perfection. Try not to let the small annoyances—Cousin Al’s burping, your sister’s failure to help in the kitchen—bother you. A little patience goes a long way!
Avoid touchy subjects. Every family has “don’t go there” topics. Maybe you and a relative have different views on how to raise your children, or perhaps there are issues from the past that you will never see eye to eye on. Do you really need to bring them up over Christmas dinner? No! And if someone persists, just tell him or her that you’ll have to agree to disagree before changing subjects. (more…)
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