Christmas Marathon 2010

Christmas is so much more than 1 day, its more like a week of celebrating (and that's not counting all the days of prep!).  We are so thankful to all the family we have to celebrate with and consider ourselves tremendously blessed by our families. 

Christmas #1: Ben and Lynn Christmas, December 22nd - Ben and I enjoy having our own special Christmas apart from all the bigger family Christmases.  We exchanged gifts and stockings, had a special, although healthy, Christmas dinner and topped it off with a movie.

Christmas #2: Keith Family Christmas - This is an annual Christmas celebration on Christmas Eve with my Mom's side of the family.  We eat Christmas lunch together and then we do a food gift exchange with the stealing "White Elephant" type game.  So fun!  In other years we have acted out the Christmas story and sang Christmas carols. 

 Marisela and I after the exchange - notice the cream cheese ring I got in the game!

8 year-old Bliss: Dr. Pepper, Sour Gummy worms, chocolates and a huge peppermint stick (this is my nephew Zach)

Christmas #3: Pulliam Christmas #1 - This Christmas includes the guys making Pinch-me Coffee Cake, exchanging gifts with my brother Keith and his girlfriend Marisela as well as Mom and Dad. 

 This wins my heart - Dad and Ben cooking the coffee cake

Merty was with us the whole time under the tree

Christmas #4: Kalinke/Cooper/Pulliam Christmas: This is my entire immediate family Christmas.  We eat Christmas breakfast together and exchange gifts and spend the morning just talking and playing with new Christmas toys. 

 The Ladies - Marisela, me, Mom, and Anne

 Keith and Marisela being funny

Me and my Dad - how blessed we are by him.

Christmas #5: Cooper Christmas - There are 3 Cooper Couples - Ben's parents, us, and his brother Luke and wife Cherish.  As the tradition goes, Ben's mom Pat gives the girls Christmas purses and the guys get some sort of manly gift.  Also this year, they gave us a trip to Gulf Shores in the summer!

Cherish and I with our Christmas purses! (mine was a travel bag this year...close enough to a purse)

Ben and Luke

Christmas #6: Cooper Extended Family tour of Mississippi - Christmas night, we drove to Mississippi to pick up Ben's Grandparents and then drive North with them to visit Ben's aunts and cousins.  On our drive though, we could only find one place open - Waffle House.  I had never eaten there...it was quite the experience :).  Anyways, we spent time with both Ben's grandparents and his sweet aunts and cousins.  We were spoiled and enjoyed our time so much!

Pa, Amanda, Pat, Ben, Miller, and the back of Claire's head at lunch

 Marin (Ben's 2nd cousin) and Pat (my sweet Mother-in-law)

 Another ladies pic - Mimi, Aunt Judy, Pat, me, and cousin Claire

Oh those boys - Ben, Clayton, and Miller, such sweethearts

And that ends our tour of Christmas...and lest you think this tired us out and that it was just too much, I leave you with one last picture to convey how we feel about all of our wonderful Christmases...