Day 8: 07-07-07: Baptism Day (and MORE pictures)

Looking in the font.
My grandma with K.
Baptism girl with her dad.
Baptism cousins.
Best Buds--DH's dad and Little Dan were great friends throughout the trip! They have a bond.
The Jazz shirt--see below!

Best Friend Cousins.
Grandparents with all their grandkids.
DH's parents and siblings (all together!)
Our Family...I am a little overeager in this picture...but the ones I look best in someone else looks crazy.
The In-Laws (all the spouses of the siblings).

Saturday, July 7th (07-07-07) was a wonderful day. In the morning, it was like a scene from Home Alone: We had 24 people to get bathed/showered, clothes ironed, hair done, etc...before the baptism. It was a little crazy. We got to the church and the unique thing was that there was a parade going on right in front of it!

The baptism itself was so spiritual. It was worth the drive, the headaches, and all the obstacles that we had to go through to be there. The talks were given by the common grandparents of the kids (DH's Mom and Dad). They were wonderful. Then, B was baptized first. CR was baptized second. Finally, K was baptized. Her foot kept leaping up and she had to be baptized three times. We'd even practiced bending her knees...but she gets so nervous with water (HATES to get her face wet)...that she'd freak out at the last second. My dad and DH's dad got to be the witnesses and that was special, too. Words cannot describe the tangible feeling of the spirit that was there. And...for me...(besides Little Dan losing it and screaming through all the confirmations)...it was a memory that will always be with me.

After the baptisms and confirmations, we went to another church for a luncheon. It was a lot of work the day before, as well as setting up and cleaning up (but it is working together that really bonds a family, I think) and it turned out so well. It was a nice time to be together. I especially enjoyed talking more with my brother's wife that I haven't been able to get to know yet really.

A funny story: DH's sister knows how we love the Utah Jazz. She found some shirts for us and gave them to us just before we left the church. K was so excited that she put on the jersey right then and there...over her baptism dress!

Right after the luncheon....crazy time again...we had to re-do the family pictures. The others hadn't turned out. So....everyone was going crazy washing clothes, ironing clothes, doing hair and make-up, etc.... We went to Temple Square and it was a gorgeous night. It wasn't hot like before and the lighting and backdrops were even better. The kids had fun running around crazy together and I think the pictures will be great!

After the pictures, we stopped for ice cream at Ben and Jerry's. DH then had to say goodbye to Z and J and their kids. It was the first sign that the wonderful trip was nearing an end. Another exhausting, yet wonderful, day had come to an end.