Partying with the Cooley Clan (warning: pic overload)

The day after we had Christmas with Grandma, we loaded up the truck with food, gifts & prizes, a bottle of Asti, and the 5 of us, and we headed southwest, for Hilliard. It was once again time, for the 2nd Annual Cooley Christmas Party, at Pam & Tom's house.

* I'm kinda nervous...I think Brian has visions of us hosting 2010's Party!*

Anyway....it was a great time, and even better was being able to see everyone. It's a shame really, that we can only manage to get everyone together just a few times a year, but we just seem to have such busy schedules. That seems to happen when you have kids. Your time is simply not your own anymore. C'est le vie!!

This is Pam & Tom's Christmas tree. It's not quite as tall or wide as the trees they've had in the past, but it's still gorgeous! Kayla was very disappointed with the size of their tree, but then again, she is quite spoiled!! lol She was still complaining about how small the tree was compared to last year's tree, and how it just sucked. Whatever!! But I digress....

Grandma came up with a game for her grand kids to participate in; it's called "Grandma's So You Think You Can Sing" game. The goal was to have all 9 of her grand kids sing or play a Christmas song on an instrument. All but 2 of her grand kids participated. This is Emcee Grandma introducing the participants of the game. Go Grandma, it's your birthday, Go Grandma!

Ahem....sorry 'bout that!!! Let's move on, shall we?
Below is shot of Grandma, "backstage" going over her list of talented performers yet to come.
Please note her very, um...festive!! Yes, festive get up. That was another game, a Christmas memory game if you will, that everyone who was paying attention got to play. I won that game, but I don't like to brag!! LOL


Below, we have my bright & shining star, Andy singing "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" acapela. He was very nervous, but he sang beautifully. Don'tcha just love the handmade snow cone microphone?!

This is our nephew Ben. This kid is gonna be singing sensation someday!! He sang "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" acapella. Gorgeous voice...mark my words!! He'll be famous!

Next we have our niece Kayla playing the recorder and Sarah performing the song, "Jolly Old St. Nicholas." I love my daughter Sarah, I really do, but she can not carry a tune to save her life. Singing professionally is not in her future, that's for sure!!

As you can tell, she was a bit nervous, with having to perform LIVE and in front of all her aunts, uncles, & cousins, but she did very well, as did Kayla.

Next, we have Matthew, Mary, & Katie performing the extended version of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer." They had homemade stick puppets & everything!! Matthew really wasn't too keen on singing with her sister's, but it's amazing what these kids will do for their Grandma!

And what did each of the kids receive for their singing & performing efforts? Why, Grandma gave each of the participants a $10 gift card to Target!! Next year, I think I'm going to sing a Christmas song for Grandma!! Andy is proudly showing off his loot, and if you look over his shoulder, you can see Kayla is very excited about her gift card!!

This is Jerry & Patty, Brian's brother and sister in law. Back in November, they celebrated their 23rd wedding anniversary!! Jerry is doing well, and is continuing to work. We're praying that he stays well, so that they are able to celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary!!

This is Kelly. Kelly will be 18 in March, and is a senior in high school. She applied and was accepted to 3 different schools: Capital, Columbus State, and Dayton (I think it was Dayton). Her parent's, Jerry & Patty, are Capital alums, and her two older sisters, Mary & Cathy are currently attending Capital University. Mary will be graduating in May. Kelly got some scholarship money to attend Capital, because her parents are alumni members. But despite the sweatshirt that she has on, when talking to Kelly, I am not quite convinced that Capital is where she truly want to go. You see, Kelly has a passion for cooking. And she's good at it. I believe Kelly would like to attend a culinary arts school. But when talking to her, I got the distinct notion that given cut throat the culinary profession can be, she's afraid of failing. Kelly & I bonded somewhat over our love of cooking and being in the kitchen. While speaking with her about cooking school, she kind of hinted that her parents wouldn't approve. And while I would never go against her parents wishes, her fear of failure at anything she wants to do, stems from their pressuring her into doing what they want her to do. I just hope and pray that she makes the right decision for HER life, and not because it's what her parents want her to do. That would not be fair to her at all!

Love you, Kelly!!

Now, this is Tom. He is married to the hostess of this year's event. Which I guess would make him the host. Tom is about to open a gift, that Brian & his mom specially picked out for him. Tom is an extremely gracious person. He appreciates anything you give him or do for him. And he is very vocal in his giving thanks to the gift giver(s).

You see, over Thanksgiving, while we were stuffed to our gills with Grandma's awesome turkey dinner, we adults were talking about what we'd like for Christmas. Mostly to give our spouses and any other gift buyers in the room, some ideas as of what to get. Anyway, one of the things Tom said he wanted had us all perplexed. Why on Earth, would he want some of those?! Tom can afford to buy brand new of anything he could possibly want.
So imagine his surprise, when he opened these:

THRIFT STORE JEANS!!

Only they weren't exactly thrift store jeans. They were an old pair of Brian's jeans that were worn out and that had developed a couple holes around the pocket. Holes that when his mom noticed them, prompted Brian to reach behind him and rip the pocket right off, which in turn ripped the right back side of his jeans off, exposing his tight-y whitey clad right cheek!!

So, the morning of the party, Brian's mom asked me if I still had those ripped jeans of Brian's. Of course I did...I'm somewhat thrifty, so I'd put them in a container to save for a future sewing or craft project. So I got them out for her, and she & Brian lovingly wrapped them in a nice gift box, and proudly gave Tom his gift! If you look closely at the photo above, you'll see the right side of the seat of the jeans flopped over the front, just below the front pocket!! It was a riot listening to him go on and on and on about receiving a gift, and then watching his expression when he realized it was a gag gift. But in all honesty, he did ask for thrift store jeans, so he'd have something old to wear while he's tooling around in his workshop. I just wish I had it all on video!

This handsome fellow is currently in an apprenticeship program for future mall Santa's. Andy put on this Santa wig & beard, and posed for me. I think it makes him looks quite distinguished.

This pretty girl is Katie. Katie is Jerry & Patty's youngest. She's very quiet. She loves animals. Here she is holding Cooper, the newest addition to Pam & Tom's brood. Cooper is about 10 weeks old in this photo, and he love to play & chew!! He was one of 11 yellow lab puppies!!

Ain't he adorable??!

Sarah & Mary while the kids were playing the parents at a game of Cranium. Sarah is lookin' all too serious for this game!!

Here we have Cathy & Grandma. They were busy doing the dishes. I helped them finish up, during a break from being the family photographer.

Below, we have Pam, the hostess with the mostest! She makes the most delectable Oreo Truffles!! They're very easy to make, but they always taste better when someone else makes them!! This is Brian's sister, the one who got their mom the electric fire place!! They definitely have the friendly sibling competition down to a science.

Benny is posing for me...he just got braces a few months ago. Not that you can tell, as he wouldn't show them for the camera!! The little stinker!!

You remember that Santa wig & beard Andy was modeling for me in one of the photos above?? Well, I just about choked on my mimosa when I saw this hunka-hunka burnin' love walk through the door!! I have no idea what he was thinking, but I nearly peed my pants, I was laughing that hard at him!! And no, he had not been drinking or smoking anything!! LOL

Of course, he'd kill me if he knew I was sharing this with the world!!

This is Grandma & Matthew. I had tried & tried almost all night to get a picture of him. He kept running from or dodging away from the camera. That is, of course, Grandma asked him to pose for a picture!! The little turd bird!! I think I'm going to crop this shot & frame it for her.

She'd like that!

We had a great time, and Jerry & Patty hosted their own version of "The Newlywed Game." They called their version, "The Odd Couple." It was a lot of fun. And despite our differences at times, Brian & I really do seem to know each other very well!! We won the game!! ;o)

Can't wait til next year's party, unless of course Brian volunteers us to host!

Love & hugs to all!!