Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

(I wrote this newsletter intending to send it to everyone. I wanted Ryan to read it first but we never got around to it, so here is our very late newsletter!)

2009 has been a great year for our family. The arrival of our first child, Sienna, in May was the highlight and watching her grow and learn has been a constant delight. She is now seven months old, just crawling, and one of the most contented babies ever (lucky us!). We were happy to move back to Utah in September. We miss our friends and ward in California, as well as the beaches and forests and awe-inspiring nature, but Utah will always be our “home” and it is wonderful to be near family again.

Ryan is working at a property management company in Park City—and is seriously considering going back to school to get his MBA. He loves being a Daddy, and has been wrapped around Sienna’s finger since the very beginning. During Ryan’s time off of work, he loves to ski, ride his bike, watch football (especially BYU!), and spend time with his family.

Tamara is happy to be a stay at home mom to Sienna. During her free time (gotta love those naps!) she loves to sew quilts and baby things, read all kinds of books, bake, take pictures of Sienna, and relax. She’s looking forward to the day when she can go back to school and learn about both culinary arts and interior design, but for now, home is the place she wants to be.

Sienna loves to play peek-a-boo (or “where’s Mommy”), jump in her jumper, take baths, and play with her toys. She is very “talkative” and loves to expirament with squeals in new octaves, tongue clicking and even words like “da-da”. She loves to eat applesauce, pears, graham crackers, and many other foods. She is learning sign language (“milk”, “eat”, and “more”) although she can’t make the signs herself yet. She loves to smile, get tickled, and play with daddy’s guitar. Just in the last few days she has begun to dance (by rocking back and forth on her hands and knees) when she hears music. We can’t get enough of this munchkin and wish she would slow down and stay our baby awhile longer.

Right now our doggies, Bruce and Sampson, are living with their foster parents (thank you Natalie and Haylee!) and getting to know their doggie cousins, Buddy, Rocky and Rambo. It is wonderful to have family so willing to help out when there is a need!

Though I can confidently say this year has been one of the happiest, thanks to Miss Sienna, we have also dealt with our fair share of challenges. Through them we have learned to rely more on the Savior, and he has brought us comfort and assurance that everything will work out. Though it is sometimes frightening not to know what the future will bring or when we will be able to get back on our feet, when we think about the Savior and reflect on the purpose of our earthly existence, our temporal concerns seem insignificant. We’re grateful to be members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and we hope that everyone will remember the Savior as they celebrate Christmas this year! Have a wonderful 2010!