I know this sounds negative but I dread going on holiday! Anyone else feel the same? Hate the stress of packing, hate the expense, and the AWFUL car journey/travelling to get to wherever it is with screaming, hot children and a grumpy husband who refuses to stop at service stations unless there's a national disaster! Relatives are hard work.....they think they're helping and they mean well but actually they're just everywhere at the wrong time, getting in the way, saying irritating things and you can't say anything because you're supposed to be grateful and happy to be on "holiday." Hate the starting-from-scratch-settling-baby-and-overexcited-child-at-bedtime in a new environment after months of hard work to get the kids into a manageable routine and the inevitable sleep deprivation that follows. I get up at 5.45am with the baby and a highly-strung toddler, everyone else stays in bed until mid-morning and then it's a case of "What shall we do today then?" by which point I'm already exhausted and counting down the hours until bedtime..........which probably won't happen because you're somewhere new, and the kids know it. Then........the mountain of WASHING that you're left to deal with when you get back, the realisation that you've massively overspent and will spend the next year trying to recoup funds. Don't get me wrong, there are some days where you have pockets of "nice time," where the kids are enjoying themselves and you think you're winning the game. But on the whole, its pretty darn stressful, and I don't enjoy it. It feels like a penance more than anything else! I'm always relieved to get back home, where the set up works. Sounds dreadful, I know, but does anyone else feel like this?