B's Birthday Weekend

What a whirlwind weekend! I feel exhausted, but in a good way. This weekend we celebrated B's first birthday (actually on Thursday) and we had B baptized on J's ship, the might KEARSARGE. We had a lot of family and friends in to visit and celebrate with us. It was a great feeling to have all those people around us. I am so thankful that we have so many people that care about our little boy and took the time to make his 1st birthday memorable.

The party was not much more than dinner, presents, and cake. We had some BBQ and sides for everyone to enjoy. I thought about trying to do something more, but with 14 people, that seemed a bit unrealistic. So, we ordered some meat, made some salads, and pigged out. It was great. B got a ton of new toys and books. He of course enjoyed the boxes most! Actually, he was generally interested in most everything that he got. He is very into trucks right now, so we have an ever growing motor pool taking over our living room. There is nothing more fun that filling up the dump trucks with blocks and dumping them around the room. He also got bubble making supplies, which is thrilling for both him and the puppies (they LOVE trying to catch bubbles). I was most thankful for the books, we needed some new additions. If I have to read Go Dog Go anytime soon, I might scream. We went simple with the cake and did strawberry shortcakes. It was super hot on Saturday, so I wanted something lighter and B had plenty of other junk, so we went moderately healthy. My parents brought up some fresh picked strawberries from NC and the Bisquik shortcakes are awesome. It was a great party all around and everyone seemed to have a lot of fun.

Then Sunday, we had B baptized on the ship. It's an old Navy tradition for a child to be baptized in the bell. The bell is an important ceremonial and operational piece of the ship. The chaplain turns it upside down and fills it with water to then place on the childs head (like any other baptism). Following that, the child's name is engraved on the inside of the bell, forever becoming a part of that ship. When the ship is decommissioned, the oldest living person who was baptized gets the bell (B is way down on the list). Pretty neat. We were lucky that the Chaplain on J's ship is a Lutheran, so we were able to follow the ceremony that we all were baptized in with our son as well. It was a lovely ceremony and then our family got to have a tour of the ship and lunch in the Wardroom (officer's eating area). While not really anything special for J or I, our family totally loved the meal and tour.

This weekend made me really appreciate my family. Not only the love and interest they show in our son, but their willingness to help out. My grandmother made B's baptism outfit. My sisters, dad, and mother-in-law were all super helpful in getting the party together. My father-in-law did alot of the "honey do's" that J hasn't been able to get to since he has been gone. Everyone was willing to help with the baby. Everyone showed real interest in both what J and I do. It really made us feel loved. It was a really great weekend!