Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I think you'd be crashing your cousins vacation. Please don't! Pay for another vacation. This year, you aren't going for free.

Really, please don't screw up your counsins' plans!

She was planning on being there first, so really, they're crashing hers and she is doing her best to accommodate.

You can't accuse someone of crashing something that they don't know about.

OP, you've had many years of free vacations. Maybe it's time to let your cousin have a turn, and plan a vacation your whole family will enjoy.

You can't accuse OP of crashing for not psychically knowing the cousins would request the same week and her sister would forget.

I think it is nice that OP is trying to think about DH's feelings and be accommodating with everyone. You go, OP! But I'm with DH, it does not sound fun. Skip this year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I think you'd be crashing your cousins vacation. Please don't! Pay for another vacation. This year, you aren't going for free.

Really, please don't screw up your counsins' plans!

She was planning on being there first, so really, they're crashing hers and she is doing her best to accommodate.

You can't accuse someone of crashing something that they don't know about.

OP, you've had many years of free vacations. Maybe it's time to let your cousin have a turn, and plan a vacation your whole family will enjoy.

So glad the greedy cousin could chime in!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I think you'd be crashing your cousins vacation. Please don't! Pay for another vacation. This year, you aren't going for free.

Really, please don't screw up your counsins' plans!

She was planning on being there first, so really, they're crashing hers and she is doing her best to accommodate.

You can't accuse someone of crashing something that they don't know about.

OP, you've had many years of free vacations. Maybe it's time to let your cousin have a turn, and plan a vacation your whole family will enjoy.

I am from a giant family and had/have many of these family experiences. I would go for it. I would also get a hotel room nearby for you and DH to retreat to. Theoretically, your kids could sleep there too, but most likely they would end up crashing with all their cousins. Then, during the day you can hang out in the house with everyone.

I don't think a hotel room makes anyone a PITA or uptight. Even people raised in chaos usually realize how overwhelming this experience can be. It's on your DH to stop worrying what everyone thinks. As long as he shows up during the day and plays with the kids and chats with the cousins, no one will care if he disappears for a few hours during the day to be alone or if he sleeps in a different place.

Who has a basement in the outer banks?

Anonymous wrote:
11 kids (if all of them come given that, one cousin has "kids" ranging from 14-30 and the other "kids" are 9-19. My kids are 6&8
6 adults.
5 bedrooms, 3 full and 2 half baths plus 2 outdoor showers, FYI


This is almost exactly the configuration of our annual trip to OBX. It's been up to 10 adults plus 11 kids. The kids crash in the basement, the adults each get a room and a bathroom. No biggie.



^^ Except that some of the "kids" here aren't kids who will necessarily crash in a basement with real kids. When I was 30 I expected a room with a bed. Some of these "kids" are using their own vacation time from work for this. They might not be too keen on things getter more cramped.

It's a big house so get there FIRST and stake your claim on 2 bedrooms with 1 having an attached bath. That leaves 3 bedrooms for the 2 cousins and their broods. If their 30 year old "kids" show up it might only be for part of the week. But even the 30 year old counts as a kid of the cousin. Let the 2 cousins figure out how to divvy up the 3 bedrooms.

I come from a small family - one younger sibling, no local cousins. I would LOVE for my kids to have this kind of big family experience. DW is from a large family and I love that our kids get to do things with lots of cousins and be part of a big family.

Anonymous wrote:OP here: what makes me "entitled and out of touch"? Genuinely curious... what am I asking for? I am not asking anyone to change plans, nor am I expecting special treatment. I am actually quite happy to be the "more the merrier" houseguest, because that's how I grew up. He didn't, so I am trying to be both sensitive to his feelings and yet still hang out with my (large, unorganized but totally fun) family. Please enlighten me - I want this to be a fun week.

I grew up this way and I hated it.

Sounds like a ton of fun.
That house is huge for a beach house. TWO outdoor showers?
My mom has a NJ beach house, the more people, the better. Summer is spent mostly outside anyway.
Go for it OP, your kids will always remember that week.

Anonymous wrote:OP, I think you'd be crashing your cousins vacation. Please don't! Pay for another vacation. This year, you aren't going for free.

Really, please don't screw up your counsins' plans!

She was planning on being there first, so really, they're crashing hers and she is doing her best to accommodate.

Anonymous wrote:Coming from a large family, OP may actually have fun. But I wouldn't go for the sake of DH's sanity. There is no way to pitch this to someone who doesn't see this is fun at all LOL

I'd leave DH at home and take the kids to hang out with their cousins. They'll remember it for the rest of their lives.

OP, I think you'd be crashing your cousins vacation. Please don't! Pay for another vacation. This year, you aren't going for free.

Really, please don't screw up your counsins' plans!

Looks like you have good relationships with your extended family. I say go but make alternative arrangements for your DH to bail out as and when needed. I would say all the family together sounds great.
Full disclosure - I come from a family similar to yours and I say the more the merrier ?

OP, he gets what your family is like. You should just ask him what he wants to do about it.