"I don't know what to say, except it's Christmas and we're all in misery!"

~Ellen Griswold, Christmas Vacation

This is my family. (Minus one niece, who was napping at the time this photo was taken.) Those are my parents, front and center, AKA: Grandy & Cookie. I have two older brothers and two younger sisters. Between the five of us, we have 14 children, with Her Highness being the oldest at the rightful old age of SEVEN. You read that right. There are 14 grandchildren running around at our gatherings, ages seven and under. It gets even better... Only five of which are girls. Yes, that means NINE BOYS ages SIX and under, with Thunder leading the pack. To say our get togethers are lively, is putting it mildly. Lively, fun, LOUD, fun, tiring, fun, and a ton of work for Cookie & Grandy, but a ton of fun too. Here's just a brief recap...

A VERY MAYNARD CHRISTMAS 2010

My beautiful baby sister (who is a twin), with her precious twins. Couldn't you just eat them UP?

And of course a silly cousin pic....

We always go on several hikes/walks/bear hunts in effort to release some of the energy those NINE BOYS like to bring along. Energy is so wasted on the young...

My sister's newest trick to get our boys to smile for the camera, she would say each time, "Hey, this time I need a serious pose okay? No smiling, just a serious face for the camera please." Worked like a charm every time. Hence, the silly grin Hail has on his face. And, the pic after that is Her Highness cuddling up next to her Uncle Matt. A place she likes to be...

Every visit, many hours are spent down in Cookie's Corner. Which to us growing up was known simply as the basement. Cookie tried to make it a playroom, but it was much too dark and damp for us to stay down there for very long. Fast forward 20 years, and suddenly the basement is a tricked out playroom that Richy Rich himself would be jealous of. Sometimes I wonder if Cookie has lost her mind when it comes to these grandchildren. Other times, I'm certain she has.

In the picture below, the boys aren't in time out, nor are they praying. I think they were playing a treasure hunt game of some sort that Cookie made up. Not really sure. All I know is, when I walked down stairs, this is how they were....

Cookie served Christmas lunch to all the Grands down in Cookie's Corner this year, so they wouldn't have to wait as long for the adult meal that was being cooked and served later, by my Daddy Dearest. Chick-fil-a chicken nuggets were on the menu, along with other favorites such as cheese puffs, fruit cups, and Yoo-hoo. You can't tell from these pictures, but the lights were low, with glowing snowmen as the centerpieces, Christmas carols were blaring from the stereo, and everyone was given a jingle bell to wear. When it comes to the Grands, I no longer have any idea who my mother is...

Further proof that the lady who was once known to the five of us as "Momma,"

has completely transformed into our children's "COOKIE"...

As the grands were finishing lunch, a special visitor arrived...

He stayed a while, patiently listening to our never-ending wish lists, followed by a seemingly never-ending photo shoot...

Sweet Santa, he earned his milk and cookies that day...

After telling Santa goodbye, we put the little ones down for a nap, and the bigger ones down in Cookie's Corner to play, while the grown-ups enjoyed a feast prepared by Grandy. For as long as I can remember, my Daddy has prepared a huge traditional Christmas dinner, with all the homemade fixings you could possibly imagine. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, quiche, sweet corn casserole, just to name a few of the items on our menu...

Before cutting the turkey, it's a Maynard tradition that my Daddy stand at the head of the table and announce each dish. In typical Maynard fashion, we are super corny and "Oooh" then "Ahhh" in unison as each dish is introduced. I believe we saw that on Mickey's Christmas Carol when we were itty bitties, and it just stuck. For 20+ years we've done that. And for nearly that long, whenever the rolls are getting passed around the table, someone, usually my brother Nick, will ask, "You wanna roll, or you wanna sit there??" Never gets old. Mix that in with the constant movie quotes from Christmas Vacation and White Christmas and voila! You've got

A Very Maynard Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all of you, from all TWENTY-SIX of us Maynards!