school songs.

in the last few weeks, emma has really started singing a lot. she has her favorite little songs she sings, most of which we have taught her.

but since she's started mother's day out, she is learning some new songs during their little "praise & worship" time. it is the sweetest thing ever! she'll just start singing, and we have to sort of "decipher" what she's saying and try to figure out what she's singing so that we can sing along! :-) because that's what she really wants...

she'll say, "mommy, sing 'hide it, no!'," which turns out to be "hide it under a bushel - no!" from "this little light of mine." but i'll have to think really hard to figure out what she's talking about.

tonight, while i was getting emma ready for bed, she was picking songs for us to sing. we sang "you are my sunshine," "the b-i-b-l-e," "Jesus loves me," and "the alphabet song."

then she said to me, "mommy sing 'ga-da fa-da'."

"ga-da fa-da?" i ask.

"yes."

hmm... for some reason i don't know this song, so i ask her to sing it for me, and this is what i got:

is that not the sweetest thing you've ever seen or heard? i love it! and i love that she's learning to sing these songs to Jesus while she's at "school."

we're so blessed. and this video makes me smile.

just in case you couldn't make it out, she's singing:

"God our Father, God our Father,

we thank You, we thank You,

for all our blessings, for all our blessings,

amen, amen."

i love it!

99 balloons.

i just saw this beautiful story on oprah.

what an amazing picture of how God is glorified in every situation.

here is baby eliot's story:

Sara & Jason in HSM3!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

next time won't you sing with me?

so, this evening i tried to get some much needed capture-time of emma kate singing "the alphabet song." we went through several "takes" on my trusty hot-pink motorola razr, and i laughed... a lot!

here are some of the best videos:

take 1: this is as far as she got the first time.

you have to listen carefully, but she starts the song: "a, b, c, d, e, f, g..." and then starts counting: "1... 2.... ... ... 3!"and then proceeds to dig around in her cute little nose. and yes, she's got great manners. and yes, my 2-year-old is telling me to "get back." (and please, excuse the annoying laughter coming from the mommy behind the camera.)

Find more videos like this on csci3002

take 2: stuck again. "WX! WX!" is what she's yelling.

Find more videos like this on csci3002

take 3: finally! this is classic. i love her ending line. :-)

(hint: she's trying to say, "now i know my abc's!)

Find more videos like this on csci3002

i know they're hard to hear, but they're oh-so-cute!

i will try to get some better video... maybe with something more hi-tech than my cell phone.

favorite things.

from polyvore.com

i am now addicted to this site! try it out... so fun. but beware - it's a huge time-consumer!

here is a little collage i made of some of my favorite things right now. i'm sure i'll be making more for you soon.

-happy wednesday-

in His hands.

jason and i are going through a very trying time right now, in every way. we are being stretched, tested and challenged individually, in our marriage, financially, as parents, with our jobs, decisions, everything. we are stressed and overwhelmed and weary.

today, as i was shopping at sam's with my mother-in-law, i pushed my sweet daughter along in the cart, and we sang to help pass the time (i.e. to keep her entertained).

as i leaned over the cart's handle, my face so close to emma's, we sang a few verses of "He's got the whole world in His hands"...quietly to each other.

it's such a simple song, with simple words, a simple melody. i've sung it a million times since i was a little girl. but in this quiet, almost intimate moment with my daughter, my heart was overwhelmed and my eyes welled with tears.

i was struck by the words to this childhood song:

"He's got Mommy & Daddy in His hands,
He's got Mommy & Daddy in His hands,
He's got Mommy & Daddy in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands."

to say it to emma made it sound like more than a simple song. it was like i was promising her. and in that promise, i was hit by the song's great truth: He's got mommy and daddy in His hands. He's got sara and jason in His hands.

why do i always doubt this?

we'll be fine.

and i pray that emma can grow up seeing faith like this in the lives of her parents: to be able to tell her that it's ok. that we're in God's hands. to be able to tell her that and really, truly believe it. that's my heart's desire.

so, yes, we'll be fine. because, after all, He's got the whole world in His hands.

vintage. love!

check out this amazing site i've stumbled upon, through the help of the blog of a friend-of-a-friend from high school.

you can choose any picture on your computer, and make it vintage... how cool is that??

the site is in japanese, i think, but it's pretty easy to figure out... i did it on the first try.

birthday fun

well, i have to say that emma's 2nd birthday party was more fun than i could have ever imagined! we had so many sweet friends and family to celebrate, with us, our sweet little emma kate. we had a bounce house, bubble machines, a cotton candy machine, and lots of little tykes-type plastic slides and playthings. it was almost like we had a carnival in our backyard!

emma had a BLAST! it was such a blessing to see her so happy and just enjoying her special day.

most of these pictures are of emma... but i only picked a few from the hundreds that we have! :-)

emma's birthday cake was amazing!

(cake & cupcakes by megan with sweet temptations bakery)

butterfly "cup-capes," as emma calls them

...again... amazing!

i can't believe this thing was in our backyard!

(thanks to "uncle cory" - my brother - for getting us this treat for emma's party!)

she would NOT leave the bounce house -

jumping is her FAVORITE thing in the world!

aunt lulu (jason's sister), our sweet friend becca mercer, my sweet friend missy's daughter brynn & emma kate -

all gettin' their jump on!

cute "i'm the birthday girl" shirt

...from the back... "just turned two!"

part of emma's entourage - aaron & ella

dylan - one of emma's favorite people

& apparent "betrothed"

mommy & daddy had friends at the party, too!

jason with becca & drew mercer

of course, my child was putting on someone else's shoes

(i think she may have an obsession...)

what's better than a big, fat ball of cotton candy?

her first bite... right before she spit it out!

i think she wasn't sure about it melting in her mouth.

crazy girl - she doesn't know what she's missing!

singing to our girl

"MY cup-cape, mommy."

(isn't this a priceless picture?)

note the pinky sticking up... so dainty!

favors for emma's friends & guests

the sea of tissue paper & bags was insane!

the best part: she was content with each individual gift.

we had to force her to open more!

(this scooter was by far her fave, though)

how do i make it go?

and... i'm done.

she was SO exhausted!

what a blessing this weekend was. thank you to all our friends & family who helped make emma's day so special for our family. we love you all!

hope you guys had as much fun as we did!

2-year stats

that's right, emma kate is 2-YEARS-OLD!

we had her 2-year check-up this morning with dr. daniel, and she had a very good visit. she measured around 90% for both weight & height at 31.5 pounds and 35.5 inches tall!

she had to be bribed to stand on that scale, though... she was not having it. i don't know what it was about the "big girl scale," but she was freaking out & clinging to jason. finally, the nurse pulled out some bubbles & a sucker, and she cooperated just long enough for us to get her weight.

i can't believe our baby girl is so big! these 2 years have just FLOWN by!

we had her party on saturday, and we had a BLAST!

i will post some pictures later.

emma doggie

emma has always been obsessed with duncan's food.

she's been eating it for as long as i can remember.

but this is new...

apparently, she thinks water tastes better drinking from duncan's bowl.

don't even begin to comment on how gross this is...

i cringe every time i look at it!

thanks to "nonna" for this picture... of course, she had to snap a picture and then call me over to look at it before she told emma to stop drinking out of duncan's bowl! :-)

baby fever

so, this post is really all about me... more of a peek inside my heart. :-)

in our circle of friends/family, there are 6 babies due within the next few months. SIX!

and, even though i am very happy for all of them, and very excited to meet their little ones, i am a bit sad for me... because i really have baby fever right now. emma's at the perfect age... i would love for our kids to be around 2-and-a-half years apart. and we're far enough away from those difficult newborn days, that i can actually imagine having another baby right now.

the thing is - it's not in "the plan" right now. i just quit my job to go to school full-time. i need to finish... i can see the light at the end of the tunnel now... i know it will be over before i know it. but it's just not the way i pictured my life being right now.

i thought at the age of 25 that i'd already be married and have a baby... so that part has come true. but i also thought i'd be done with school, and enjoying my days as a stay-at-home mommy, maybe of 2. and i wouldn't have to be worried about getting pregnant as a 25-year-old, married-for-4-years, mommy/student!

i know that i have an amazing life. i am very blessed. my husband is my best friend. our daughter is perfect. we have a beautiful house, a cute doggie, two great cars, amazing friends and family... i know all that.

i just hate feeling like we're stuck in this part of our life. like we can't move on. it's hard seeing all of our friends progress, and knowing that if we were to announce the very same news, we wouldn't get an excited reaction, but instead worried faces and questions of concern.

i think, mainly, it's just the fact that i'm having to "give up" the plans that I had made. i'm having to let go of the way i thought it would be and surrender to what God has for our family.

and right now... it's not a baby.

and i know that's best... i just want one so bad...

...sigh.

anyway, just thought i'd share. and maybe the next time you hear me whining about it, you can remind me of all the reasons i know that it's ok the way it is. :-)

kidd's kids

jason and i are trying to raise money for the annual Kidd's Kids trip coming up in november. Kidd's Kids is an organization founded by Kidd Kraddick of KISS FM's Kidd Kraddick in the Morning. Kidd's Kids is for terminally ill children and their families.

we want to raise $1,000 by THIS thursday, october 2nd... i know... it's a lot. but we think we can do it!

go here to help send these kids to disney world!

here's a little bit about the kidd's kids trip:

During this five-day trip, which takes place every November, these kids and their families enjoy all the excitement that a Walt Disney World ® / Kidd’s Kids vacation can offer. For many families with terminally ill or physically challenged children, this is a very rare opportunity to leave behind hospital and treatment centers to share laughter and fun in a magical environment.

It’s the goal of Kidd’s Kids to make this a trip of a lifetime. With that in mind, Kidd’s Kids covers all expenses including airfare to/from their local market to DFW, chartered jet to/from DFW to Orlando, hotel, park passes, all meals, transportation while in Florida, souvenirs, special private character visits and so much more!

Children selected for the Kidd’s Kids trip are between the ages of 5 and 12, suffer from a chronic or terminal illness, and/or are physically challenged or have a catastrophic impairment due to an accident/birth defect. The child must also reside in one of the Kidd Kraddick In The Morning radio show listening areas and demonstrate a financial need. Each child selected attends the trip along with their family members who reside in the same household (this includes parent(s) or legal guardian(s) and any siblings that are between 5 and 16 years of age).

http://www.yourcause.com/therainsfamily

http://www.kiddskids.com

chasing bubbles

as promised many weeks ago, here is a long overdue update from this summer:

emma's nonna & grampa (jason's parents) got her a bubble machine - what fun! she has had loads of fun with it at their house, and it's going to make a special appearance at her birthday party next weekend. (stay tuned for pictures of THAT!) :-)

here are some fun pics of emma chasing bubbles...

and then some of her just being beautiful:

i don't think she knew what to think, at first...

watching the bubbles "fly"

(her cute little braids were falling out)

sitting in the middle of bubbles... so fun!

"where bubbles go?"

taking a water break

sigh... chasing bubbles is hard work!

amused by something...

more bubbles! "ooo - wee!"

beautiful girl!

isn't it crazy how grown up she looks??

silly face

"watch, nonna!"

going down the slide on her tummy... so silly

there are more pictures of her actually chasing and running after the bubbles, but my computer isn't uploading anymore for some reason, so i'll have to add those later.

c'mon, suuka!

one of my favorite things that emma does right now is call everyone that she doesn't know, "suuka."

it's not pronounced "sucka" (like "sucker"), or even "sooka." it is a very specific "suuka"... like sugar, but with a /s/ and not a /sh/... "suuka."

whenever she is talking to or about someone, and she doesn't know their name, they are "suuka."

as in:

-- "c'mon, suuka!" - when she's beckoning a new friend to come play with her.

-- "suuka me a owie on auhm, mommy..." - when a little girl at MDO bit her on the arm over a toy.

-- "no, suuka!! dat mommy pate!" - when she was distressed over the waitress taking my plate at the end of our meal. (she really was so upset!)

it really is the cutest thing ever!

we have no idea what it means or where she got it, but it is oh so funny.

and we love it.

and we hope it is a very long time before she replaces "suuka" with actual names or pronouns! :-)

see ya lata, suukas!

"Jesus loves me..."

so, this post doesn't have any pictures to go along with it, although i do wish i had a video so you could get the full effect of perfect sweetness...

emma has recently begun singing songs for us. SO cute, especially since she can't say all of the words correctly (or, at all, for that matter - after all, she's not even 2, yet)!

among her favorites are:

"twinkle, twinkle, little star" - ("tinkle, tinkle, yih saurs...")

"the alphabet song" - ("a, b, c, d, e, b, deeeeeeee...")

"the b-i-b-l-e" - ("ab-bee, ab-bee, ab-bee... BIE-BUH!")

and debuted for me tonight, as i was rocking her to sleep:

"Jesus loves me!" - ("dee-sus yuh me, dih-sie-nooooh... foh bie-buh me soooooh!")

...and might i add... WITH sign language!!!

i'm not even kidding!

it was the sweetest little thing since buttercream icing.

i love hearing my sweet baby girl singing songs for Jesus. even though i know that she doesn't understand the fullness of who Christ is, or have a true relationship with Him yet, it still makes my heart cry to hear the name of my Savior in the precious voice of my baby. (of course, those are tears of joy from my crying heart!)

i'll try to get it on video... or at least get her to perform it for you the next time you're around. good luck with that!

but really, i think everyone should get to hear a sweet, innocent, beautiful child singing praises to our King.

i bet it makes His heart cry tears of joy, too...

what do you think? :-)

...Life's song...

...baby life is one-month-old...

a friend of the larsen family got together with other members of LakePointe Church and the MERGE community (the young adults' group that matt leads) to create a beautiful song as a gift (and fundraiser) for the larsens.

it is fittingly called "life's song."

"life's song" can be downloaded and/or heard

by clicking here.

this website is also set-up to accept donations to help ease the burden of the medical costs that the larsen family has accumulated since lauren & life's first hospitalization back in may. with the pre-term labor stay, life's birth, the transport to children's hospital, and then her stay in the NICU, the bills have stacked up... anything you can give would help. their friends are asking for $1 per download. the proceeds go directly to the larsen family.

i highly recommend that you listen to this sweet song.

get your tissues ready...i cried like a baby listening to it. it's a beautiful song, and it chronicles perfectly the journey that God has taken us on, alongside the larsens, as we lifted up their baby girl to our Savior.

i hope it blesses you as much as it did me!

www.lifes-song.com

go check out some amazing pictures

as a tribute to Life's first month at:

aroyalallegiance.blogspot.com

soon to come...

i haven't been super great at keeping up with the blog, lately, i know.

HOWEVER...

i'm in the process of uploading a bunch of pictures from our camera, and some pictures that donna has taken when emma's over there. SO, there will be some updates soon... to catch you up on some fun from this summer.

here's what you can look forward to:

1) random silliness

2) "The Wiggles: LIVE!" (yes... we took emma to a wiggles concert... don't hate... we're parents of a toddler!)

3) potty training... only tasteful pictures, i promise! but these are important moments to document!

4) chasing bubbles

5) shaking booty

6) a new tu-tu and princess shoes

7) the dallas arboretum in 109 degree weather... who gets the smartest-mom-of-the-year award? anyone?

...just to name a few...

so stay tuned... i'll keep you "posted." (hehe, i'm a dork!)

...Life at home...

"my God is mighty to save!"

and save, He has... Life Lucia Larsen, that is.

after so many scares, so many tears, so many sleepless, worry-filled nights for the larsen family, they got to go home today.

they got to go home.

as a family.

together.

life is spending her 28th night out in this world, at home, with her mommy and daddy. praise the Lord!

the nursery was ready. mommy and daddy were ready. God just had to get life ready. and boy, did He get her ready... she's such a perfect little miracle.

thank you for your continued prayers for this sweet family as they enter a new journey together, outside of the safety of their medical team and the machines and the hospital rooms.

i have had such an attachment to this story, to this family, to what God is doing for this baby girl. i feel that i am forever changed.

forever changed by a baby girl, who God used to bring life and light to those who have heard her story and have lifted their voices and shed tears to God on her behalf; to bring life and light to those who saw His perfect glory and power as He continuously restored her tiny body.

life and light... Life Lucia... how fitting.

a perfect name for a perfect little girl.

ready for school!

emma kate is starting "school," or mother's day out, in a little over a week. her first day is september 2nd, and mommy & daddy can't believe it!

she'll be in the 2-year-old class at Promiseland Preschool inside McKinney Fellowship Bible Church. she'll go tuesdays & thursdays from 9 am - 2 pm while i am in class at TWU. she'll learn letters, numbers, shapes, colors, bible stories, spanish, go to music, do art, and make many new friends!

we are so excited for her to start because we know she will love it and thrive like crazy!

but we're also a little sad that our baby girl is growing up SO fast! too fast.

my mom & dad (nana & papa) bought emma her new backpack and lunchbox - they match! - and emma has worn her backpack around the house every day since it came in the mail on saturday! she even wears it out to run errands or do shopping... and yes, we had to take it to playgroup, too! it is the cutest thing you'll EVER see (besides emma, of course), so i had to include pictures.

emma & her new backpack

(thanks nana & papa!)

with her name on it, too! AND pink & brown?

what more could a little girl ask for?

so, now emma kate is all ready for school. the question is, are mommy & daddy?

stay a baby for just a little while longer, sweet girl! :-)

the backpack & lunch-box are from a super cute company called Two Funny Girls. they are local, and do really great work. they have a really cute website, too. go check it out!

raspberry scone recipe

whitney made these scones for me while i was visiting her in norman, oklahoma a couple weekends ago. they were heavenly! i made them this morning for breakfast, since wednesdays are jason's day off. again, there were heavenly! they are so yummy, in fact, that i decided you all needed this recipe to try for yourself.

they even got jason's stamp of approval... which is definitely a feat for me to manage from my super-picky husband! :-)

i halved the recipe, since i didn't know if jason would like it or not, but if you make the whole batch, you could save some scones to eat for a quick treat with coffee in the morning.

i also used raspberry preserves, but you could use any flavor you'd like. the chunkier the better!

Raspberry Mega Scones Recipe

This particular scone recipe lends itself to endless combinations. I used raspberry jam (or preserves) here because of its color and flavor, but use whatever you have on hand - the chunkier the better. If you can't be bothered with making the glaze, just sprinkle some coarse raw sugar over the scone before baking, after brushing with a bit of cream.

Ingredients:

4 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or unbleached all-purpose flour)

3 tablespoons aluminum-free baking powder

1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt (or regular salt)

1 stick unsalted butter (4 oz), chilled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/4 cups half-and-half (or you can also use heavy cream or whole milk)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (i added a little extra vanilla)

zest of one lemon

2/3 cup raspberry preserve (or preserves of your choice)

Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

zest of one lemon

preheat oven to 375. line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.

combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. using a food processor, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles little pebbles in a beach of sandy flour (about 20 quick pulses). you can also cut the butter in using a knife and fork. pulse in the sugar. now add the half-and-half, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. pulse (or mix) until dough just comes together - don't over mix, but if the batter is too dry, add more cream a bit at a time.

turn out onto a floured piece of parchment paper or Silpat mat, divide into two equal sized pieces of dough and set aside. (if you are halving this recipe, you will only be making one mega scone, so you won't need to divide the dough.) take the first piece of dough and roll-out into (roughly) a 9x9-inch square, 1/2-inch thick. you want to keep the dough from sticking to the mat/paper if possible, so sprinkle with more flour, if needed. slather the slab of dough with the jam/preserves and fold the left side of the dough in toward the center. (to discourage the dough from breaking or falling apart, i fold it in by folding the Silpat in and then peeling the Silpat back, afterwards.) fold the other side in using the same technique (if i'm not making sense, see the photo above). slide onto prepared baking sheet. repeat with the other piece of dough. the two scones will fit on one baking sheet, but give them a few inches between each other so they don't bake into one another. brush with a bit of cream (optional), and bake for about 25 minutes or until golden where the scones touch the pan.

while the scones are baking, prepare the glaze. combine the powdered sugar, lemon juices and lemon zest in a small bowl. stir until well combined, and set aside. when the scones come out of the oven, brush them generously with the glaze and let cool. slice into pieces as big or small as you like.

enjoy! (goes great with your favorite coffee or hot tea.)

makes two mega scones.

from heidi swanson at 101cookbooks.com