Does anyone else finding it exhausting to deal with extended family when your kids are so different from the other grandchildren/cousins etc.? Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings have just worn me out. If I open my mouth about my teenage children's interests or pursuits, they all look at me as though I am crazy or showing off or worse. If I ask my nephew and niece about what they are studying in college (one is apparently majoring in fraternity and the other, despite acing calculus in high school, is now majoring in "family and consumer science" and working on a MRS), my in-laws get defensive. Even close friends' bright children are planning to attend state universities. I have yet to meet anyone who can understand why my children would want to attend a college out of state.
