Brooke’s Baptism

Rule #90: Sometimes in order to make lemonade, you’ve gotta make your own sugar first.

Our sweet Brookie was baptized this past Sunday surrounded by wonderful friends and family. Now, January 20th holds a special place in our hearts for two very, very different reasons. One is this pretty girl’s baptism, and the other is the anniversary of my sweet Daddy’s death.

I knew my Dad was somewhere laughing about this little situation: Corey decided he was refusing to take any pictures without the Methodist Hymnal from the pew. You’d think it was attached to his body, and if we removed it, he’d fall to the ground – kind of like Iron Man and that funky light thingy in his chest. Instead of battling the three-year-old for the book, we opted to include it in our family picture. Corey seems pretty happy about this decision. You’re welcome for the chuckle, Daddy-O.

Brooke was a total gem. We fed her just before heading onstage for the ceremony, and I was 98% sure she’d puke all over the pastor. Thankfully, no puke on the pulpit. She was all smiles for the crowd! Remind me of this when she’s 16… it will buy her some extra Patience Points.

My mother-in-law picked up this gorgeous cake from Costco. Y’all. I’m not gonna lie. Costco’s cake game is ON POINT.

I’m getting much better in my over-30-age about accepting help from others when it comes to these big events. My mom, mother-in-law, and some wonderful friends helped put this whole shabang together. My mom made Spinach + Artichoke Dip, we had a veggie tray, Pickled Red Onions, and some fixings for our Pulled Pork.

My mom also whipped up some of Paula Deen’s Potato Salad, my Pasta Salad, and some Baked Beans. I’m excited to say that Jon Boy and I cooked and shredded FIVE whole pork butts for this occasion. I’d say we’ve got the recipe down pretty solidly now. I’m excited to share it soon!

Our day was made even more special by all the people who came to support our little family. We’ve been super lucky to make some wonderful friends at our church who actually have littles the same age as ours! Pretty crazy how God puts you in just the right spot.

And I can’t say enough about this lady. She helped me clean, cook, organize, decorate, run errands, and all the other “to-dos” and kept me company (and sane) the whole time. My Morgan is special not only because she’s willing to do all of those things on her weekend off, but also because she’s been there for these fun times and the rough ones. She’s been through all of our ups-and-downs as a family, and she hasn’t run away screaming (yet). It’s a very rare thing to find a friend who will stick with you in the down-and-dirty parts of your life and still look at you the same! Everyone needs a Morgan in their world!

Speaking of the down-and-dirty parts of life, this brings me to the “make your own sugar” kind of feeling. My Dad passed SEVEN years ago on this exact day our daughter was baptized. I can’t believe it’s already been that long.

We chose that date on purpose. I didn’t tell our pastor because sometimes it’s easier to get through these days when everyone thinks it’s just another day for you. I broke down at one point in the service (thankfully after she’d been baptized) because there was that deep-rooted realization that there are people missing. More even than the ones in this little picture. I know they’re there in spirit, but it always stings a little more at events like this. The irony is that I also felt their presence even more than usual. For that, I’m glad we made it a point though to have such a great day in our lives share the calendar with such a tough day in our lives. It actually made the day a little sweeter and a little less bitter. I’ll take that cup of lemonade any day.