Baby Dedication

Something very important that we had done while in Alabama was a baby dedication for Emma. We have dedicated all of our kids to the Lord, asking that He and those close to us help in raising them to know Him. We have a church here and we could have done the dedication there, but we really wanted to do it with family members. Another bonus was that the pastor who married us, and who dedicated Logan, was living in Alabama at the time and was available to perform the ceremony. (He left that week to live in China for a year or more. He and his wife were missionaries in Africa years ago and are now working in missions again in China.) It was great timing for us. We had a short ceremony at my mom's home and then shared some refreshments with the pastor and the family members that were there. Hopefully we can get a picture up soon. Emma was perfect. She didn't cry or spit up on him....she saved that for just after he gave her back to me! ;)

We had a superb time at the condo in Gulf Shores. The kids and we had been looking forward to getting to the beach for several weeks. There was also a pool at the condo so it was very easy to go out onto the shore for a while then mosey back to the pool for some easier swimming. We enjoyed being there with family. Our nephew Charlie is growing so fast, and he's such a cutie! I think all the kids had fun playing together and the adults had their own fun in the evenings. We played a card game called Hand and Foot a couple of nights. This is the same game Karl and I played with his parents while we were at their house. It's pretty fun. We also played a game that Jason and Kristen brought called Settlers of Catan. This was also very fun but I am not very good at it. Karl is very much a 'strategy' guy so it was right up his alley. In any case, it was nice to be surrounded by family and enjoy being together with a little friendly competition!

It took Karl and Hailey about 2 hours in the sun to revive their tans.....the boys a day or two longer. Me, well, sadly I'm still pretty white! Apparently I'm allergic to the sun....I break out in what I would call hives if I try to sunbathe. My legs, arms, and face are slightly darker so I'll settle for that bit of color. Too much sun's not good for your skin anyway, right?