A California couple famous for their silly Christmas cards have released their 2017 edition – and it has a hilarious sun-soaked twist.
Mike and Laura Bergeron have been trying to outdo themselves year after year with their creative Christmas cards for more than a decade, starting with just the two of them goofing around before incorporating their growing brood in the years that follow.
Mike has been posting the progress of the tradition on Reddit using the handle berjon1, and has finally debuted their latest effort, Gingers in Paradise, featuring the whole family at the beach looking like they had spent just a little too much time in the sun.
‘Gingers in paradise’: Mike and Laura Bergeron of California have gone viral for yet another funny Christmas card
Strike a pose! Mike and Laura Bergeron pose for an awkward Christmas card every year – and have done so for the past 14 years
Strutting: Back in 2015 the family went high-fashion with this card, dubbed ‘Les Modèles’
Each of the family members boast frizzy red hair and painful looking sunburns as they grin for the camera. Below the image, the card reads that the well-wishes come from ‘Ruby, Red, Scarlet and Rose.’
‘We went in a slightly different direction this year, which required stepping out of the JCP Portrait Studio and using a photographer (big thanks to Marco Montenegro) at the local beach,’ Mike wrote on the Reddit post.
‘This our nod to the ever-so-popular holiday card theme that says “Look at us soaking up the sun’s rays in a beautiful tropical paradise while you’re freezing your nuts off…don’t you wish you were us?” Merry Xmas everyone.’
Mike shared the new card along with a run-down of all the other family cards over the years, including 2016’s ‘Cussin Jerry’ card featuring the family dressed up like Joe Dirt-style redneck stereotypes.
Swapping it out: In 2014, the whole family cross-dressed, while in 2013 they went for a dance-inspired theme
Creepy: In 2012 the couple welcomed their second child in time for family card, and celebrated the milestone with some rather gothic ensembles
That’s quite a brow! All three members of the family appeared with monobrows in the 2011 offering, while both Laura and Mike appear to have worn wigs for the occasion
Many of the photos appear to have been modeled off real vintage Christmas cards, with the couple donning bald caps and or wigs to great cheesy 70s and 80s-style photos.
In some, Laura’s hair is teased sky-high, while in others, Mike is sporting a cringe-worthy comb-over. In several, both of them are sporting matching sweaters.
In 2004, the couple took on the trailer trash stereotype, with Mike in a mullet wig and a T-shirt reading ‘Who farted’, and Laura sporting a crop top over a fake baby bump with a beer in hand.
On his Reddit post, Mike explained that, in this case, the costume was actually a little bit too convincing as far as some people were concerned.
A throwback: Over the years, the parents have brought in their children to the tradition
Chill out: In the 2008 card, the couple donned the traditional ensembles worn by the Hare Krishna monks – and even paid homage to the religious sect in their Christmas greeting
Tough love: Things took a turn for the rugged in the 2009 card, which was inspired by Latin culture, and used a Spanish language greeting in place of the traditional ‘Merry Christmas’
One for the album? Perhaps taking inspiration from their high school years, a youthful-looking Laura donned some headgear in the 2006 photo, while Mike was totally cross-eyed
‘[The JC Penney sales lady said to me}: “I hope you’ll be coming back to JC Penney for your baby pictures.” I explained to her that [Laura] wasn’t really pregnant, and if she was, I wouldn’t let her drink or smoke.
‘She just stared at me blankly and confused. I said, “And I don’t really have a mullet, as you can see. We do joke cards for Christmas.”
‘She continued to stare at me in confusion, but the kid on the other register stopped what he was doing, came over and looked at the card and said, “Dude, that is awesome!”‘
Year after year: In the fifth installment, the couple took on Grant Wood’s iconic painting American Gothic , with they donned matching festive sweaters for the 2005 card
Three’s a crowd? For the 2004 offering, the couple faked a pregnancy to inject additional humor into the image, with the ‘mom-to-be’ pictured swigging alcohol and smoking
The original: This card is their first effort, which was taken during the holidays in 2003
In another, the couple are morphed using a bit of Photoshop assistance into the couple from Grant Wood’s famous American Gothic painting – albeit with a bit of Christmas lighting added to the farmhouse in the background.
Things get even more silly once the years move on with their growing family. One card, from 2013, features the family sporting glittering leotards and disco-era hairstyles above a caption telling loved ones: ‘May your holiday sparkle’.
Face swapping, painted-on unibrows and fully-balded heads – for a ‘Merry Krishmas’ – are all covered in the hilarious Christmas card canon.
This year’s post sharing the series of cards has already been viewed more than 400,000 times.