Get Me Well Soon

The kids and I are recuperating from a whirlwind visit from my in-laws. We're napping, watching Barney DVD's, and taking it easy. While MIL and FIL are easy to get along with, and very amenable to taking things slow so the kids and I could keep up in the double stroller, we did end up walking and walking and walking. The stroller is hard to push. The stroller is harder to push when my two kids are on day 5 of not having a nap and cry every time they see anything remotely interesting (a street entertainer, a piece of colorful paper on the ground, the M-Store or anything like it.) I'm sorry to say that the kids and I didn't make a great impression on the in-laws, and by the time we met up with DH, who was out of town, I was just as crabby as the kids.
We sent them off to the airport, gladly looking forward to time alone. To having my couch be a couch again and not a bed, to putting my dishes in the dishwasher in the way I like to do it even though I KNOW that my MIL was just trying to help. To argue with my DH without the pressure of the in-laws trying to smooth over our differences. To being able to discipline my children, and re-instate the naughty spot, since it's impossible to do while they are visiting. I DO love my in-laws. They are kind, generous, loving people who have shown time and time again how much they care for me and my children. But I married their son, not them, and I need my space. I should keep this in mind when I'm tempted (and I often am) by the low cost of housing in their area, and the good schools. I'm a better person when I'm on my own. I'm a better mother when my husband is focusing on me and the kids and isn't worried about what his parents will think of our parenting techniques. It's tricky.... I do love them, and have a more active relationship with them than my own parents, but it's WORK to spend time with them, and I often end up feeling emotionally spent.
So, it's time to recover.