We dedicated Lainie at church on October 14. Dedicating a baby doesn't impart salvation or anything like that. It's a way for us as parents to publicly acknowledge that a) our child is a gift from Jesus, and b) we commit to bring her up to know and love Jesus. By doing it with our church family, we all acknowledge our responsibility as the body of Christ to encourage and help one another as we raise our children together. It's beautiful and meaningful...perhaps especially when you've gone through the medical ups and downs we did before Lainie's birth!
My parents and my youngest brother Obediah stayed with us for the weekend. One of my other brothers, Emery, and his wife Becky were also in the area for Emery's job, and they were able to spend most of Saturday and Sunday with us, too. The only one missing was Joe. Nevertheless, we had a great time! I don't think anyone minded the cramped quarters: Seven adults and a baby in a two-bedroom condo is a bit tight, but we took a "the more, the merrier" outlook.
:: Grandpa Duck and Lainie Rae ::
:: awwwwww! ::
:: Obie hadn't met Lainie before. ::
:: They were quite smitten with each other, I think! ::
:: Grandma and Elaina ::
:: Becky and Em--the way Emery is petting Lainie's head with one finger cracks me up! ::
Most of the photos of the dedication itself aren't very good. Two other couples dedicated their baby boys that morning, as well; remarkably {considering the size of our church}, we knew both of them!
:: happy little family ::
Most of the weekend was spent cooking, eating, and playing games. Gosh, we made HUGE quantities of food!! Sweet potato kale soup, BBQ pulled chicken, meatballs...I am not adept at cooking for more than two people, but somehow we didn't go hungry. One thing I really love about hanging out with my family {and miss about living "over here"} is playing games. We spent hours playing Apples to Apples and Scum...it was a hootenanny! Maybe I just need to be more proactive about bringing games and suggesting we play them at family get-togethers and social events "over here." Thoughts? How do you game-playing folks win over the non-game-players?
Oh, she is such a little doll! So wonderful to see all the happy family she was surrounded by on this special day!
ReplyDeletep.s. we are big game players and love to bring Settlers of Catan, Apples to Apples or Balderdash (my favourite!) to gatherings. Some friends recently introduced us to Killer Bunnies, which, if you have a wacky sense of humour (and aren't offended by crazy Killer Bunnies & other random weirdness) you might find quite entertaining!
ReplyDeleteKiller Bunnies?!! Seriously? That might be the ticket--especially for Mike! I love Balderdash! Used to be really good at it but not so much anymore. I've only played Settlers of Catan once. We enjoyed it, but I think it's a bit more involved/intense to manage very easily with a four month old who loves to do whatever we're doing and has a five-minute attention span MAX. But maybe a good date night idea...hmmm...
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