10 Ways To Survive The Holidays With Your Family

Oh, it's gonna get crazy. You can't do anything about that. But you can develop some simple strategies to keep you from going crazy. And if all else fails, you can always lock yourself in the guest room and pound down some Ruffles® Chips.

1. Expect the expected: It's gonna get bonkers.

nmatv.tumblr.com

Prepare for the worst and allow yourself to be pleasantly surprised when things don't quite suck as much as you expected.

2. Keep your phone handy and live-tweet the whole event.

gifbay.com

You will be astonished how you not only stop taking things personally, but every one-liner you bravely capture will now be a source of delight for your closest friends.

3. Sleep a lot.

tumblr.4gifs.com

Use the convenient and widely believed myth of tryptophan — the magical sleeping potion in turkey — to justify frequent naps.

4. Go online and discover that your family is actually pretty good, by comparison.

threadbombing.com

Think you're having a stressful holiday? Guess what, your family is not the worst. It's probably not even in the top 100 worst. Nothing makes you feel better about your family than going online and reading hilarious accounts of those who have it much, much worse.

5. Sit at the kids' table.

totemo-kawaii-ne.tumblr.com

Your cousin's kids will bring you back to your golden years by recounting, moment-by-moment and plot-point-by-plot-point, whatever beloved kids' movie they've recently watched 1,000 times. If that's not an easily accessible form of escape, what is?

6. Whenever politics comes up, excuse yourself to walk the dog or play with the kids.

noodlesonmyback.tumblr.com

Your cousins will be so mad you beat them to it.

7. Make your own family bingo cards.

BuzzFeed

This requires an accomplice. Make your own cards and silently / secretly mark them off when something inevitable happens. Nothing puts the brakes on Aunt Colleen's rant about "kids these days and their Tweeters" than someone yelling BINGO.

8. Bring a board game and get everyone to play.

ithinkmymomsgonecrazy.org

"But BuzzFeed! That's crazy! Family board games mean family arguments!" Damn right it does, but consider this: At least there's a chance everyone will argue themselves into exhaustion over the game, instead of why you aren't married yet.

9. Or prepare a dance party.

Via cheezburger.com

Take the initiative to compose a playlist that'll get everyone in the house united... in singing along to the same words at least. Plus, your great uncle is dying to relive his days at the disco, anyway. He'll just never admit it.

10. Get to know your pets better.

forgifs.com

What's better than talking to your family? Sometimes, it's not having to talk to them at all. Use this time to show everyone your elevated interest in animals, and teach your family pup some new tricks to the delight of those around you.

Worst-case scenario? It's a nightmare. But every nightmare is better with Ruffles® Chips.