Collin's Baptism

Wow. My oldest is 8. It's interesting to hit a milestone like this. After watching so many other families go through it, you think you have a good handle on what you'll feel and what it will entail. Nope! It was quite the learning experience for me. And quite a lot of work!! Travis was out of town on the Saturday I needed to take his pictures so I had to get everyone up and ready (cut Collin's hair) and try and beat the high sun. We pulled up to locked gates at the Gilbert Temple. I forgot it was closed for cleaning!! Bug! So we drove all the way over to the Mesa temple instead. Which was crazy crowded. I think he felt self conscious with so many onlookers. And it was SO much harder to get a natural smile out of him than I thought it would be! We walked all over the place trying different spots. 

I really love this one with the temple in the background. His posture... proudly clutching that Book of Mormon... such a handsome guy! He has wanted a suit for the longest time. I finally bought him this one a few weeks ago and he has been begging to wear it since.  

Another favorite! The freckles.. his hair... I'm a proud mama!

I had no intentions of making his invitations. I spent hours online looking for one I could buy. I guess I'm picky. I wanted it simple and clean. So I finally gave up and designed this one. 

Same story with the program. Wasted way too much time looking for one to buy, then spent 3x that time making it myself. 

The only mistake is that Bro. Oliekan ended up conducting the meeting instead of Bro. Willet.

Our stake lets you do personal baptisms so his was scheduled for 11am that day. We had to wait for the one at 10am to clear out before we could go in and get set up. 

The program was really nice. Grandma brought the 4 "Bears"  of  Baptism for her talk and his primary teacher, Sis. Lamb, gave a nice talk on the Holy Ghost. I would have liked for a special musical number to be included but that's not exactly where either of our families shine. ;) It was so fun watching his enthusiasm. He truly chose this and was thrilled about it.

I just LOVE baptisms. Watching him get in the water with Travis, my heart was completely full. You could feel the Spirit so strongly and I was felt so blessed to be his mom and to have Travis as my husband. He also gave him a beautiful blessing afterward surrounded by the biggest group of men. Including Grandpa Jess! Watching him make it up there with Austin supporting him, melted my heart. We are so very lucky.  

Afterward, everyone walked over to our house for a luncheon. We had queso dip with corn chips, Asian chopped salad, fruit and dip, sub sandwiches and bags of assorted chips with cherry limeade to drink. It was the first time we've hosted a party at this house and it all worked out nicely! Beautiful weather, yummy food and everyone we love! By the time it was over I collapsed on my bed and took a 3 hour nap, ha! 

The best part about Collin's baptism has been how seriously he's taken it. He REALLY wants to do everything right. He told me a week or two later about a situation that happened at school. When kids go to the bathroom at recess, they line their soccer/basketballs outside the bathroom until they're done. His best friend thought it would be funny to take them all and throw them across the playground. Collin said at first he laughed, then he thought to himself, "No, that's not right. I'm baptized now, I need to fix this." And he went and gathered up all the balls and put them back!! I was stunned. And so proud of him! There have been other times as well that's he's told me he's thought about his baptism and chosen to do what's right. And also times where he's gotten in trouble and I've seen real remorse and tears because he's frustrated with himself for messing up. One day he came home from school and told me he had to move down two colors because he forgot his homework and didn't follow directions. He was crushed. He tearfully told me that he WANTS to do good but it's so hard when he gets excited and wants to talk out. I appreciated his honesty and ability to describe how he was feeling. His heart is in the right place. I love this gospel and how it helps me teach my children to follow Christ.