It WAS the Most Wonderful Time of Our Year!

I'm sitting here tonight feeling all sad that the 2010 holiday season has come to an end. It's been such a good one for us--full of everything great about Christmas and lots of fun memories.

We enjoyed the annual Phillips Family Christmas Party at the bowling alley in Helper/Price. We were crazy enough to drive four hours each way in a blizzard to attend the event. Luckily, we all survived--both the drive and the party! :)

Garrett and Abby got all spiffed up in their Christmas best for church the next day. Unfortunately, neither of them was feeling very photogenic that morning.

We celebrated Sweet Gracie's 3rd birthday at Chuck-E-Cheese. Garrett was totally in the zone and just wanted to dance the whole time.

Our best Christmas present came a few days early and Mal Pal came home from Virginia for an early Christmas. She had to work Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, so we had Christmas morning a few days early. We missed Matt the Missionary and Mike the Surgeon like crazy, but we understand the importance of saving souls and saving lives, so we did our best to have a good time without them. The grandkids LOVED it and Garrett now thinks that every morning we should open presents and have a big party. I'm kind of inclined to agree. :)

Greg's brother Brian had the BRILLIANT idea to send all of the ladies to the spa for pedicures (or "pedophiles" if you're Aunt Diane). MERRY CHRISTMAS TO US!!!

We enjoyed celebrating Christmas Eve at Greg's grandparents. (I was too busy eating and chatting to take any pictures.) We came home to our house that night and Brian, Cathy, and Annabelle joined us for a sleepover. It was so much fun! Jan and Eric came up the next morning and we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas day.

I thought multiple times throughout the day about how grateful I was for the opportunity to celebrate Christmas with my very own Scrooge (aka Greg.) I thought about the night in July when I frantically signed papers authorizing the doctor to perform emergency surgery on him. They told me it was our only option and he wouldn't make it through a life flight trip to a bigger hospital in Salt Lake. I felt so helpless as I watched him being wheeled away from me and I wasn't sure what the future would hold for us. I felt a strange feeling of peace during all of it and I knew we would ultimately be okay, but just didn't know what "okay" meant. I can't even express how grateful I am for the real meaning of Christmas: the birth of a Savior who lived and died for us so we can feel peace during our darkest times and find hope for a bright future. Those were some rough days and we are very glad to kiss them good-bye and celebrate good things--like the joy of kids at Christmastime!

Garrett is nestled all snug in his (or our) bed...

Garrett loved his truck and horse trailer--"just like daddy's"--and had so much fun pushing it all around the room. He has been so much fun this Christmas and I have loved sharing in his joy. The Santa part of Christmas really is for kids and Garrett made it so fun for us this year.

We turned the kitchen over to Ruben and he cooked us a delightful Peruvian breakfast. It was actually really good and honestly much better than I was anticipating. Apparently they don't have Teflon in Peru because my lovely pans didn't fare so well after he took a fork to them. AAAHHH!!! It was Christmas and I was feeling extra generous, so we didn't kick him out. :)

Ruben was THRILLED when he found this bag of Maca at the Latino market. According to him, this stuff is good for university students who need help with their studies and "old men who need help with the ladies." He was dead serious when he said it and it was all I could do not to spit my drink across the room. Needless to say, we had some good laughs and I still crack up every time I think about it. I'm laughing right now just typing this.

TMI: Greg and Brian tried the stuff and said it tasted like "dirt mixed with SH*%." Apparently they didn't drink enough because we all went to bed exhausted Christmas night and nothing magical came from Ruben's special potion. :)

Santa brought Abby this darling little doll and stroller. She is so cute when she plays with it and it just melts my little heart to watch her push it around. Oh how we love this little girl!

We headed down to my parents' house Christmas evening and enjoyed a lovely evening with my fam. Our kiddos were spoiled (again) and we had a wonderful meal and lots of fun.

The funniest part of Christmas next to Ruben's miracle Maca: Gracie's leotard. I picked up this little beauty during the summer off the Wal-Mart clearance rack and have been saving it for Christmas. It was worth the wait because it was a HUGE HIT with little Grace. She immediately stripped down (in front of everybody) and danced/modeled around the room. We were laughing our guts out. So cute/funny!

Poor Sher was one sick cookie and had been barfing her guts out, but she still looked better than any of us and was such a great sport.

We had to be in SLC the day after Christmas at 9 AM for Greg's cousin's mission farewell. ARGH! Miraculously, we pulled it off and brought Ruben along so we could visit Temple Square that evening. Of course, it was beautiful and Ruben loved it and wanted a picture of practically everything. He even found a lovely sister missionary from Peru to hit on/visit with. He is going back to Peru in February and she is going home in March. Hmmm....

Garrett was AWOL with Grandma during this lovely family pic.

Garrett wasn't quite ready to give up on Christmas and made this lovely mess while I was in the shower and he was supposed to be watching a movie. I asked him what was going on and he said, "The presents are going down the chimney with old St. Nick." Apparently hand-me-down bar stools make really good chimneys for Santa and his little redheaded elves to send presents down. Good to know, huh?

And last, but certainly not least, we celebrated New Year's Eve at my Aunt Paula's annual party. Good times all around!

And that's a wrap! BRING ON 2011!!!

P.S. This blog post was a true labor of love. It only took me about 2.5 hours to do and it probably took you just as long to read it. You deserve a prize if you made it this far.