Baptism (Bap tizem)

It was a big week for our family, especially Len. She had her baptism and with that came all the relatives that have been waiting to meet her! She had Great Grandpa Dave, Great Aunt Judy, and her cousin Liam from Pennsylvania as well as Uncle Eric from Mississippi come. Judy told us that the flight attendant asked Grandpa Dave why he was flying and he proudly stated he was going to see his Great Granddaughter. When they first saw her they commented on how beautiful she was and both took turns to hold her.

Judy, Grandpa Dave, and Liam came a few days earlier than Eric and spent those days in Lansford. We made a trip up as well to spend it with them. They had wanted to go fishing but the weather wasn't conducive to that so we went into Minot and took a stroll around the zoo before having dinner. They did get to go fishing and limited out the next day, but Matt and I had to be back in Bismarck to prepare for Len's baptism and Matt had some meetings at work.

On Friday, the family came down in time to ensure Eric was picked up from the
airport. He stayed for such a short time, we made the most of it while we could. We celebrated his birthday (which was the previous week) and Matt and I took him downtown for a few drinks. This was also a big deal to Matt and I as we left Grandma and Grandpa to babysit for a couple hours while we were out.

On Saturday, we had Eleanor's baptism. There was some special things that we specifically planned into her first big ceremony. We did it in the backyard of our
house, under the arbor where Matt and I got married. The bowl containing the holy water was a gift from Janice that I had polished up and those that attended were her parents, grandparents, great grandparents and godparents. We chose three individuals for very different reasons to be her sponsors; her aunt Alaina, her uncle Eric, and Shantelle - one of my very best friends. It was a simple ceremony, exactly what we had in mind. The officiant was a pastor that we had met with while we were pregnant. She wore the baptism gown that I did, as well as Alaina, when we were baptized. After the ceremony we took pictures and enjoyed lunch. It was a beautiful day to celebrate our daughter and the generations that came before her and those that will influence her path as she grows.

On Sunday, we switched gears a bit and made it all about the family. We went to the Superslide amusement park, the zoo to ride the train, and ended the day at Space Aliens. Liam loved it and feel asleep in the car ride home from the restaurant. When we got home, Matt and I took on Judy and Michele in a game of Pictionary. It was a close game, but Matt and I eventually pulled it off. We wouldn't have done it if we wouldn't have had successful situations like swiss army knife, hard drive, and parrot. There was a lot of laughter, for sure.

Monday was our final day before Judy, Dave, and Liam went home. We took it a bit easy but stopped in at the Heritage Center before going out to the farm. Liam took in the cows and equipment and I'm not sure what was a bigger success seeing the combine or feeding a cow.

Best meal: Len's baptism meal that Matt and I put together with the help and additions from the family. We had roast beef and ham on Grandma's buns, with salads from Michele and Alaina, coleslaw and watermelon from Mom, and for dessert - strawberry cake with chicken dinner bars from Mom and apple bars from Grandma. I loved looking at my husband help me in the chicken while wearing my apron - one of the most handsome things a girl can see.

Great Grandpa sits rocking EER in the corner of the kitchen. Activities happen around them.
G-G Dave to EER: Your Grandma is awful loud.
Michele turns around shocked.

After a failed attempt in pictionary...
Michele: See, that's the fleas on the dog.
Judy: You spent too much time on the dog, I got that part.

ALR: how bad was her blowout?
MJR: Well, it was going everywhere.
ALR: was it one of those diapers from the shower?
MJR: Yes.
ALR: Didn't it say something about a blowout?
MJR: yes, the irony was not lost on me.

All sitting on patio enjoying the evening.
Liam: Help.
Michele: Liam! You can't go through the cat door!