Ahh, the greatest time of the year. A time full of savory foods, beautifully wrapped presents, belly-aching laughter, Christmas caroling and the most undeniable part of it all... family time. If there is one thing I have learned over the past few holiday seasons, it's that no family is perfect. No matter how many times grandpa thinks he is being sly by slipping you a 5 dollar bill when you shake hands. No matter how drunk your one crazy aunt gets. Those kooks are your family and this is the one time of the year you are all forced to be in the same room together for a reason other then something like a wedding.. when your aunt gets equally as drunk and tries dancing on the tables. Never the less, everyone could use some simple tips to stay sane during this holiday season.

1. Mastering all the questions from relatives

If you're at the age where you're about to graduate high school and go off to college or you are about to graduate college and go off into the real world, you already know you will get bombarded with the same 3 questions by every relative. "How's school?", "What classes are you taking?" and my personal favorite, "What do you want to after you graduate?". It's like the trifecta of an anxiety attack waiting to happen. To prepare, I'd recommend writing a couple paragraphs answering these questions, print it off and hand it to every family member before dinner and BOOM, you just saved yourself an hour of the same conversation about 10 times which gives yourself an extra hour to stuff your face. You're welcome in advance.

2. Drink if you can

If you're of age, DRINK. Now, I'm not 21, but everyone seems a lot less on edge once they've had a few glasses of wine. Break out a board game after dinner, sit in front of the fire, throw back a few cold ones and enjoy your time with your loved ones. But don't forget to cut your aunt off before she starts singing "Let it go" and tries building Olaf out of leftover mashed potatoes.

3. Enjoy the holidays

My final tip on how to handle your family for the holiday season is to just simply attempt to enjoy your time with them. Just think about it this way, you have 363 other days of the year you get to spend binge watching Netflix and eating Chipotle. For just two days out of the year, Thanksgiving and Christmas, you are forced for a little bit of human interaction with the people you are forced to like. Just go with it! Laugh at your grandpa's bad jokes, take a shot with your crazy aunt and enjoy the greatest time of the year with the people who love you most. I promise you, you won't regret it.