I am finally coming to the end of our Christmas recap.  But no Christmas is complete without a good ole Coon family Christmas!  Christmas with my mom's side of the family never disappoints.  Full of laughs and lots of fun!  Adding kids to the mix doesn't hurt either.

Selah Grace and Millie Janalee taking over Hughes's toys

Russ soothing a 2 month old Smith!  So tiny.

I laughed out loud when I realized Uncle Howard arrived with his camo Santa hat and no one even said anything or thought it anything other than normal.  I didn't even realize it until halfway though the afternoon.  Just a typical day for our family.

Uncle Howard, Selah Grace, and Mama

Always a roll on the floor kind of laughter when it comes time to open gifts.  We pretty much all look for just the perfect gifts for our crazy crew.  Makes for a super fun and FUNNY Christmas!

Always excited for a "pwesent"

Trying to understand that Selah Grace got gifts too...not just Millie Janalee. Ha!

Stud Baby

Yep.  Redneck plunger.

Smith's bulldog pants.  He was so enthused. Ha!

Perfect fit for Hughes!

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  I love being around family who are who they are.  No apologies.  No best behavior.  No filters either.  Ha!  I know they will do anything they can for me when I need it and vice versa.  Always so thankful for family that really is family!  And lots of fun too!

Hugs from Millie Janalee

Jack playing with the girls

Buck - the human airplane flyer.

There's just something to be said for a day full of smiles.  Genuine smiles and laughter.  It does a body good.  It does a family good!

It's even more fun watching these second cousins grow up just as we all did years ago.  We attempted to reenact some photo opps like Nonnie used to do.  I would call it semi-successful.  Bottom line.  We got the picture.  Ha!

"Hey Pawpaw!"

Not sure about the big rocking chair.

Same chair all us grandkids had our pictures taken in.

I'm pretty sure Nonnie and Pops would be proud.  They raised us right.  And we are trying to keep it going.

Russ's Family Christmas

A few days after Christmas, we were able to celebrate with Russ's side of the family.  We missed our traditional Christmas Eve celebration, but Russ and I also enjoyed a less rushed Christmas.  Usually, we are rushing around getting ready for the Christmas Eve service shortly after we open gifts.  So it was nice to relax and spend the day visiting with the family.

Millie Janalee and Granmomma looking through photo albums

As always, there is never a shortage of help with our babies!  Everyone waiting their turn for the baby while the younger "older cousins" play tea party and who knows what else with the toddler.

Julie and Smith

Me, Grace, Jenny, and Smith

Seth loves his sweet baby cousin too!

Leah entertaining Millie Janalee...or vice versa.  Hehe!

We enjoyed spending time visiting while the kids played.  Then it was time for lunch.  Olivia was in town from college, so she enjoyed a little nap too.  I'm not sure how she did that with all the littles running around.

Russ's dad and Olivia

Clay and Roan

Jimmy and Russ - brothers

After eating, everyone began to gather in the sunroom for gifts.  The kids always enjoy passing the gift around.  Millie Janalee basically just got them all mixed back up, but she had a blast doing so.

Learning the ropes

Jenny, me, Millie Janalee, and Leah

Roan helping to corral a sleepy Millie Janalee

The hubs and me

Because there are so many of us (10 grandkids), the children open gifts first while the adults man the clean up and keep up with who gave who what gifts.  In an attempt to thank the correct family member.  That doesn't always go as planned, but we get an A for effort!

The gift of the night! Handmade Anna and Elsa dolls from Julie!

Loving her Madeline book from Aunt Roan!

The older girls are so sweet to help Millie Janalee in the midst of their own excitement over new gifts.  And there is excitement!  The girls are always so animated and fun to watch as they open their gifts.  Always grateful for anything they receive.

Julie helping Millie Janalee

And the adults are sitting back watching the chaos.  Some more tired than others...

Roan and Jimmy

Russ catching all the action

Finally, we move all the little people out of the sunroom with all their gifts.  They spent the rest of the day and night playing with their new gifts.  And we opened the adult gifts!  And of course, I don't have any pictures of adults.  Ha!  I'm slipping as my family grows.  I do, however, have this one random picture of Russ opening a gift card of some kind.  He looks happy.

Smith wasn't  really sure what he had gotten himself into.  But I think he'll grow to love it!  In fact, he will probably be the most active one next year.  For sure!

Smith and Aunt Jenny

So thankful for close family and fun memories!

He Came!

I will eventually catch up to our current life.  If it wasn't so important to me to document everything, this would not be a problem.  But I am determined to continue printing our blog into book form for our children to look back on one day.

So we pick up where we left off...

Christmas Eve is always a late night for our family.  Like if we finish before midnight we are doing great!  Last year, Millie Janalee missed the book reading because she needed her sleep and her daddy was pretty adamant about it.  Ha!  This year, she made it!  Smith did too, but he slept through it of course.  We left milk and cookies out for jolly old St. Nick!

And HE CAME!

Santa found us in Mississippi!

Smith's first Christmas

Poor Kristin, Lee, and Hughes had to wait on the rest of the family...including all my late sleepers to take Hughes downstairs for his first Christmas.  I think he was close to his morning nap before we all woke up.  Haha!

Hughes's first Christmas

While Susu fed Smith his morning bottle, we got to experience Millie Janalee's first "real" Santa experience.  This was the first year she was old enough to kinda know what was going on.  Santa even left her a letter next to his cookie crumbs.  And we knew he also stopped by St. Louis because he left us a book about his travels there!  So exciting that he knew we weren't there, and he found us at Susu and PawPaw's house!

Reading Santa's letter

Checking out all her princess things

We learned that Millie Janalee does Santa just like her mama!  It's early in the morning and everyone is looking at you.  We have to think about things and take our time.  No pressuring from the peanut gallery, please.  I love her!

This spyglass and sword are used in her daily marches around our home singing the Jake and the Neverland Pirates theme song!

She loves paint!  Now she has her very own easel!

Now she can skate on actual skates and not on books like she had been doing!

After Smith took his bottle, he was ready to see what Santa brought him.  Millie Janalee helped us see what was in his little stocking.

Smith's first Bully!

The Giving Tree - the book I gave his birthmother in the hospital.

And, finally, the grown-ups got to make our way into the den to see what Santa brought us!  Ummm, YES we still believe!  You know, when you stop believing...Santa stops coming.  And that's the truth. As for me and my house...we believe!

Russ looking through his goodies.

Dustin's redneck plunger

Even Pawpaw had a stocking!

And the babies even had a little extra something from Santa in the grown up room!

Sweet babies on Christmas morning

Dustin likes toys too.

We spent the rest of the day in our pajamas.  We relaxed, napped, played, and watched Millie Janalee play with her toys.

Coloring with Mama

Showing Daddy how to draw circles.

Button art

Thanks to this from Susu and her little laptop, Millie Janalee knows all her letters and sounds!  Smarty pants!

Oh, and Russ played with Pawpaw's new toy too!  This rower is now on Russ's list for next year.  Ha!  Good thing we will no longer be in our little townhouse by then!

It was a Merry Christmas indeed!