Ever Felt Embarrassed By Your Family? Take Heart, These Photos Will Make You Feel A Lot Better

Our families can be, and we hope usually are, the foundation on which we build our lives. Family is the source of our strength and our greatest joy. On the other hand, let’s be real — family can also be the source of our greatest embarrassment and awkwardness. All of which we look back on later and laugh.

Right?

We were thinking about families recently when we were scrolling through the highly entertaining and aptly named site AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com — a site so amusing that it inspired ABC to buy the rights for a sitcom, at one point.

We collected 20 of our favorite awkward family photos for you here, divided into four categories: Birthdays, Parents, Christmas and Teens — four of the most awkward elements of family life.

Don’t be afraid to admit that you can relate to at least some of these wonderfully awkward pics. And if your awkward family also made you a little uncomfortable, take heart. You’re far from alone.

Awkward Birthday Photos

Turning the big oh-one. Always a tough time.

What every little girl dreams about for her birthday.

Having an adult shove her face into the cake.

Really, who doesn’t like corn on the cob?

The secret to longevity.

We’re not even going to try to figure out what went on at this birthday party.

Awkward Christmas Snapshots

Always the most joyous time of the year!

What a great gift! Matching PJ’s for the whole family. Well, almost the whole family.

Christmas morning. The happiest time of the year in every household.

Another great gift idea for the whole family — boxing gloves!

The family that smokes together, scowls together. Merry Christmas!

Awkward Parents (Are There Any Other Kind?)

Kid, just be glad they still love each other.

Nowhere else this one would rather be!

Okay, not even sure what to say here. Moving right along…

There’s no better way to express deep parental affection than by tattooing your new baby.

So what’s awkward about this one? We can’t figure it out…

Awkward Teenagers — Weren’t We All?

We can tell just from the picture, that is one awesome grandma!

Sorry, this is just wrong.

Weren’t we all exactly this cool in the ’80s?

Laugh all you want. This man is now has a net worth of $3.2 billion.

Stretched out on the hood of a station wagon. There is simply no way not to look cool.

There, do you feel a little less awkward about your own family now? What’s the most awkward family photo you’ve ever taken?