Merry merry!

Over the years, the size and genetic makeup of my family has changed. I used to be the baby, my sister and cousins all older than me. My maternal grandparents and their spouses would join us for our annual Christmas Eve party, along with great aunts and uncles, and boyfriends and girlfriends of whoever happened to be single that year.

With time, my grands passed away, and the next generations have all moved up a level. My mom and uncle (who's really my double second cousin...don't ask) and my aunt have all graduated to the family elders positions, while my sister, cousins and I have claimed the middle parental status. We've got a shit ton of teenagers, and my nephew, almost twelve, is the baby.

It makes for a rowdy, fun-loving crowd, and once again, we had a stellar time at this year's Christmas Eve party. And thanks to Kristine, I've got plenty of pics.

First there is food. Food is very important.

Then we move to the den for the next phase...

After thirty five years in the same house, everyone has their customary seats. (Including Ruby the Super Pom sitting on the back of the couch.)

We played our Silly Santa game first, and then exchanged more gifts after that, so everybody went home with a treasure (eh hem), whether it be a set of butter warmers and crab cracker for Tommy (which I stole, thank you very much Silly Santa)...