Mangum Christmas Letter 2009

It's been an absolutely wonderful year. Clare joined us on Jan. 8, and we had some wonderful visits, including Babbo and Grammy (Kathleen's parents) in January, and Dede and Mimi (Adam's parents) in May. We also spent a great week in Utah at the Lee Family Reunion, including several great days in Cedar City at the Utah Shakespearean Festival.

In October we took our first family vacation (just us and the girls). We went for a week to the Wisconsin Dells, a popular vacation destination in the upper-Midwest. We hit an indoor waterpark, a cool cave, Duck boats, and had lots of quality time, though still not enough.

Clare is an absolute joy. She enjoys rolling over; doing the army crawl toward the phone, remote, or any other electronic device; making R2-D2 sounds; and eating liquefied foods. She'll be a year on Jan. 8. Although she's still petite, she's a lot bigger than her sister was at that age, and has the massive Mangum cranium. Lots of brain power in there.

Lena turned 3 in August, and is our little imaginative powerhouse. She has lots of imaginary friends most of them named Toby ("They're not real, Daddy"). She often gets lost in her imaginary world, and won't come to eat or go potty until she finishes what she's doing (like making a 'bridge' for the alligators to cross the river). She has grown a ton in the last year, and finally fits in clothes made for her age (at least in height); she's still one of the skinniest human beings on the planet. Lena is also becoming very good at her ABCs, and can even read and spell a few words (like her name and Elmo).

Kathleen stays busy chasing the two girls. When she's not teaching Lena or corralling Clare, she serves as the Relief Society secretary, makes quiet books for the girls, and attends midnight showings of New Moon. She is definitely part of Team Jacob. She's also started staying up regularly after 10pm for the first time in her life.

Adam stays busy as a brand manager on HUGGIES® Baby Wipes. He's traveled a lot this year to focus groups, and has gained 10 pounds in peanut M&M weight alone. When he's not blogging or patrolling Facebook, he can usually be found watching the Boston Red Sox, BYU Cougars, New England Patriots, and Boston Celtics (though not usually at the same time).

We were very blessed as a family in 2009, and we're grateful, especially at this time of year, for our Savior Jesus Christ and His atonement. Merry Christmas everyone!