Simply Sara

One of the greatest joys in my life is getting to pray with Lucas. Since the day we found out we were expecting, Matt and I have prayed over Lucas. During the pregnancy we asked God to give us a healthy and happy child, and He did. The early weeks of his life, we prayed everyday that God would watch over our tiny baby and guide us through the challenges of first time parenthood, loss of sleep and post-partum. We prayed through every sniffle, cry, and struggle. God proved his faithfulness over and over, giving us countless times to rejoice in His consistency and favor. Over the last couple weeks, we have seen a change in Lucas's behavior during prayer time. Instead of squirming and being loud, Lucas now quietly holds our hands as we seek the Saviour. As a mom, my heart is overjoyed that my baby is now beginning to understand the holiness of our God. I want so much for Lucas to understand the power and awesomeness of prayer. I hope that as he watches us struggle and fail countless ti...

The Christmas season has been so much fun this year! We started partying on the 21st at a Christmas drop-in hosted by my in-laws. Kathryn and I spent the first part of the week baking sweet treats to give away. Matt returned home in time to attend his family parties at which Lucas was the center of attention, naturally. As his bedtime came and went each night, Lucas would hit his second wind, entertaining us all, until he finally crashed around 11:00 pm. Christmas eve, Lucas received so many fun gifts and toys, although he did seem to enjoy the tissue paper and boxes more than anything. We let him sleep in Christmas morning since he hadn't shut his bright eyes the night before until midnight! I made sausage biscuits and a cheese omelet as a special, heart-clogging treat. We decided to give Lucas two gifts this year - a flashlight and a fisher price ball popper - and a few small items in his stocking. At noon, we packed up the car, went to Mimi and Poppy's for lunch, then drov...

Today is December 23, two days before Christmas, but Lucas decided it was time to open presents! Thankfully the present he pulled out happened to be one for him! Doesn't he look like such a big boy in this particular picture? I can totally imagine him as a 5 year old, ripping through presents on Christmas morning (or before!). Matt got home late last night! :) We are braving the crowds this afternoon to pick up a couple last minute gifts. Tonight is the first of 3 family Christmas celebrations! All of the good food will be a true test of my self control! Here's to not gaining any holiday pounds! Much love!  

Christmas MEME 1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Both - but not at the same time! 2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Santa leaves unwrapped presents on the couch, Mom and Dad wrap presents 3. Colored Light on Tree/House or White? White. 4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope. 5. When do you put your decorations up? This year we decorated about a week into December 6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Mushroom Rice Casserole 7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? My sisters and I would wake up at a predetermined time in the middle of the night, meet downstairs and look at the goodies Santa left us 8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't actually remember when I found out. I just sort of did. 9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Never as a child, but occasionally as we got older. 10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? Our Christmas tree is full of ornaments from Matt's childhood and special ornaments we've been...

I'm playing catch up again.... Is this becoming a habit?? So Lucas is 15 months old now! :) Wow! We went to his check-up a couple weeks back and were excited to hear that he is moving up the charts in weight and height. His head size has remained in the same percentile (75%) with his body in the 35-45%. Personally, I don't see a big head when I look at him, but I guess he has really big brains! ha Our doctor gave us great tips for handling the temper tantrums and meltdowns that seem to pop up every so often. He even had a plan for a picky eater -- let him go to bed hungry! I must confess, Lucas's current pickyness does frustrate me. I just want him to eat his veggies! I'm super excited that Christmas is coming, but I'm sad at the same time because I don't want it to be over! I told Matt the other night that I want to leave our tree up a little longer than normal. The warm lights and pops of color brighten my mood everytime I look at it. Kathryn is in town this ...

A few days ago, I was feeling adventurous, so I gave Lucas a cup of applesauce and a spoon. As you can see, Lucas quickly learned that the food reached his mouth much faster by his fingers and not the spoon.  

Oatmeal is just the right consistency to stick to a spoon! 12/5/06 

I think he's finally getting the spoon figured out! 12/5/06