Simple Christmas...the travel edition

We, as a childless couple, had developed the habit of visiting both of our families on Christmas, within a few days' time. This would be easy if all parties lived near each other.  But the three legs of the journey total more than 13 hours in the car. And then we did this with an infant.  And then a one-year-old. And now, finally, we decided we just can't do it again.

We don't want to be exhausted by the holidays. We don't want to be so stressed. And we don't want a cranky toddler who's missed one too many hours of sleep.

It was a difficult decision: who do we visit, and when?  And then, the obvious solution came to us: see one family two weeks early. It turns out that one side of the family lives near a picturesque little town with amazing Christmas stores and displays.  So we'll go there first, while the pre-Christmas excitement is still buzzing in the air.

We had no idea how our families would react, but they were completely understanding. We were nervous for no reason.

Ahh, I'm looking forward to both trips already.