Help! Interfering mother and perfect sister alert!

[Lizzy74]

I have the whole family coming for Xmas this year - I have a 8 month DD and I'm just about holding it together! My mother can be a bit overbearing (I'm sure you know what I mean!) and to top it all my sister is a perfect mother - gorgeous 18 month old who is adorable.

Any tips for coming out of the festive period with sanity intact??

Cook as much as you can in advance.

Make lists of things you have to do. Start now, then you won't feel overwhelmed.

Organise everyone into helping (so that its you doing the organising, rather than being organised (my mother gives overbearing new meaning))

Christmas Eve sit down make a plan for the day (ie 7am get turkey out of fridge, 10am turn oven on) etc etc. Sounds anal, but it does help you, and fob off any "I would have the oven on by now"

Buy whatever you can't be arsed to make.

Open the wine early as soon as is decent. Don't go overboard, but do have a quick snifter to help the day run smoothly.

That's why Mum's go to Iceland
I'm going for a shop on Friday to see what good cook from frozen eats I can pick up (not that we're going to be here for the actual day but it'll be for the New Year etc when I wont feel like cooking etc!)