Christmas Eve

Oh Christmas Eve! The happiest (and saddest) day of my year. I try to just enjoy it and soak it all in, but in my heart I'm always a bit sad because I know it's almost over. Mr. Scrooge Phillips--my dearly beloved--isn't such a Christmas lover and can't wait for the whole season to be over so he can get back to his normal, boring life. (Okay, I added the "normal, boring life" part. He never really said that, but his feelings about Christmas aren't nearly as tender as mine.)

Back to the post...we started out the day in SLC with Greg's family. We were able to present Grandpa Willy with his Christmas gift. The neighbor across the street is a big Utah fan and mostly we just wanted to torture him every day of 2012. Nice, huh? (Dear Bruce, I don't know if you ever read this blog, but you know we love you. We just like to pester you.)

We got home just in time for the Maughan/Wright 81st annual Christmas Eve party. (I'm not sure if 81 is the correct number, but it sounded good at the time and the party has been a tradition since my mom was a kid, so we're in the ballpark.)

I asked Garrett if he wanted to be a Wiseman or Shepherd in the Nativity scene. He couldn't say "Wiseman" fast enough and was so thrilled to give his gifts to Baby Jesus/Ella. Chelsea decked Abby out as the most adorable angel you could possibly imagine. She reminded me a bit of Gladys Herdmann--a whole lot of spunk dressed in white and completely irresistible! (Let's just say "angelic" isn't the first word that comes to mind when describing our little spitfire's personality...)The kids are always so cute getting ready for the pageant.

Showtime! Abby was a bit of a frowny/disappearing angel, but Garrett took his role very seriously and kneeled reverently in front of the Holy Family the entire time. He doesn't exactly specialize in holding still, so it was sweet to see him so excited to be a part of something he knows is special.

Next came the program...the best one yet. Just give the kids a microphone and get yourself a Diet Coke and sugar cookie and prepare to laugh your guts out.

This was an awesome version of "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas."

Sweet Gracie got held up on "Rudolph" and repeated the same section over and over. So funny! Cute little Easton!

This act was a little less hysterical and actually quite good.

Sean doing his best "Frosty the Snowman"/Jimmy Durante imitation.

Talented brothers!

A very sweet version of "Silent Night."

Then it was time for the "12 Days of Christmas" and the gift-exchange game.

These boys would have made Grandma Ila and Aunt Venice very proud!

Here's the highlight of my evening. Garrett and Abby have been slightly obsessed with the Chipmunks Christmas album this year. We have heard Garrett sing portions of the song before, but he's never put it all together like this. He told me he was going to sing "the one where David "Sebille" gets mad at Alvin" and walked up to the microphone. Enjoy!

I hope you laughed out loud, because I still do every time I think about it. The video ends early because I had to walk up to microphone and end his performance before he yelled "Alvin" again and permanently deafened somebody. (I'm not sure if "deafened" is a word, but I'm going for it.)

Lights and Limo Ride

My mom called me earlier this month and said she had seen a really fun advertisement on TV and wanted to take our family in a limousine to look at Christmas lights in Salt Lake City. We rented a stretch Escalade limo that seated 18 people. We were able to fit our whole family, along with my SIL Chelsea's parents and little brother. We drove to Thanksgiving Point and drove through their light display and it was so much fun. The kids (and adults) absolutely loved it!

We had our driver take a group picture of us in front of the limo, but it is on my sister's camera and I haven't gotten it yet. It would drive me nuts not to have my posts in chronological order, so I had to get this one done before I can move on to Christmas and New Years.

Boise Bowl

Greg is so awesome and sent me to the Humanitarian Bowl with my parents while he stayed home with the kids. I missed my little family like crazy, but it was a quick trip and super fun!

Some of you may recognize #49...our favorite player to cheer for! (Robert Turbin is a pretty close second.)
My mom attended her first college football game in over 30 years. She has been boycotting games for several years due to unsportmanslike conduct from my dear father and his brothers at a game sometime in the 1970s. She said it has taken this long for her to get over it, but Sparky acted quite respectable, so we may see her at a few more games. You may also notice my darling sister-in-law, Sher, in the corner of the picture. It's also been several years since she attended a football game, so it was a pretty special day for all of us to have both Susie and Sher there. :)

This is a terrible picture of me, but Brett and Chelsea flew in from Connecticut just in time for the game. My mom picked them up at the Boise airport and they joined us about halfway through the first quarter. We were obviously so thrilled to see them!

Usually I have Garrett and Abby at the games with me and I do more kid-wrestling than actually watching, so it was crazy to be able to concentrate on the whole game and watch every play. I got so into it that I forgot to take pictures until after it was over. Sadly, this picture of the dejected team is the best I have.

My cousin, Tara, lives in Boise and we enjoyed visiting with her family after the game. They have a darling house and her kids are so cute! They are the exact same ages as Garrett and Abby, so it kind of made me miss my own kiddos. :(

We drowned our sorrows in heaping plates of Mexican goodness at Cafe Ole. I may drive back to Boise just to eat there again.

We got home on Sunday just in time for our ward's Christmas choir concert. Greg had the house clean and the kids looking great. I knew it was going to be tough to get pictures of them in their Christmas outfits the next Sunday, so I snapped a few after the concert. They aren't the best, but you get the idea. They looked darling! (Thanks to Grandma Susie for the nice outfits.)

Back to Boise...they have a "tee dog" trained to run on the field after the kick-offs. It's awesome.

A Night In Bethlehem

December is over--can you even believe it? We had a fabulous month and my blogging was pathetic. Here's my first attempt at catching up...it's going to be a long process.

Garrett and I loved attending a live Nativity. (Greg was working out of town and Abby was sick and stayed home with Grandma.) Garrett was mesmerized by the whole experience and I'm always grateful for a night out with my little buddy. These pictures are less than great, but they will have to do.

I bet you didn't know there was a zebra in Bethlehem, did you?

Poor Baby!

We had our first (and hopefully last) trip to Primary Children's Hospital this week. Poor Abby got a nasty case of croup and was one sick little girl. It hit fast--she was playing just fine in the afternoon and by that night she was barking (literally barking) and gasping for breath. Greg has been helping his mom remodel her kitchen, so we happened to be in Salt Lake when Abby got sick.


We took her to the hospital in the middle of the night on Thursday. She had a high fever and was quickly diagnosed with croup and given a steroid to help her breathe and some Tylenol for her fever. She barfed them right up---ARGH, so we had to try again. She was able to keep the second doses down better and then was given a breathing treatment which was absolute torture for her. The doctors monitored her breathing for the next few hours in the ER, but didn't feel comfortable sending her home, so they sent us to a room in the RTU (Rapid Treatment Unit). By late afternoon, she still hadn't improved enough to go home and the doctor told us they wanted to keep her overnight. She had a good night (as good as a child could possibly have in the hospital) and in the morning they gave us a long list of things to watch for and told us she could go home. They felt she was past the immediate danger zone and would probably heal better at home at this point. Every time a doctor or nurse walked in the room or looked at her, she would pretty much freak out, which led to more breathing trouble. Her favorite things to yell were, "Go Away!" "No want it!" and "Go home Abby!" Getting so worked up wasn't doing her any good, so they said we would be better off at home where she could heal in a comfortable environment.

She is still sick and has had us worried a few times today, but is doing much better overall. Her little voice is so raspy and weak and she is still coughing, but it is much better than it was. She is still very susceptible to sickness and our hope is to keep her from contracting a secondary illness (like bronchitis or an ear infection), so we will pretty much just be camping out at home for the next week. We want a healthy Abby for Christmas!


She wasn't very excited about getting her picture taken and pulled her blankie over her face.
Poor Abby!It had been a rough day all around--no sleep at all the previous night and we were all so tired. Of course, Miss Abby just wanted her daddy to snuggle with her. We had fun ordering from Room Service. Abby perked up a bit when she saw her noodles and cupcake.And then it was back to bed...We were watching a cartoon with a shark on it and we mentioned that Abby loves sharks (our little tomboy). One of the nurses heard and brought Abby this cute little stuffed hammerhead. She fell in love with it and it hasn't left her side since she got it.She had to stay in her room and couldn't go out to play with the toys in the play area, but they let us bring whatever we wanted into her room for her to play with. We brought her in this little car and she was thrilled! Garrett was very worried about his sister and was excited to come to the hospital and pick her up. He especially loved the Snoopy tree! What's not to love? I have to admit I was also pretty impressed.
Garrett was so sweet with Abby when she came out. As we were loading them in the car, I heard him ask her, "Are you okay, Abby? Did it hurt really bad when you were sick?" What a sweet little boy! (Most of the time...)

Mucho, mucho thanks to Brian/Cathy and Willy/Jan for taking such great care of Garrett and to everybody else for your love and concern. It only takes about 5 minutes at Primary Children's to realize how much worse it could be and how blessed we really are!

Santa Success!

No smiles, but no tears. We'll take it!Our Santa Claus visits have been serious business for the kids this year. Sitting on the Jolly Man's lap is mostly just a hoop they have to jump through in order to get the precious candy cane. Mission accomplished!

P.S. Garrett told Santa he wanted more tracks for his train, some presents under the tree, and a hot air balloon. We'll see what we can do.