We blessed the girls at church on December 7th. It was a perfect day (with the exception of us missing Opa and LaLa-my parents- who were unable to attend.) It was a very emotional day for me. Paul and I had waited for this day for a very long time. As we were dressing the girls that morning my eyes welled with tears thinking of all the days I longed for a baby to hold & love. I thought of all the prayers we had prayed and all those who had prayed for us. I thought of my beloved grandparents who are all now in heaven and how much I wished they could be a part of this special day. I felt that they were so close to us this day.
Both of the girls dresses have a story behind them and are family heirlooms. The dress that Natalie wore was sewn by my grandmother Alice (dad's mother). Her sister made the crocheted squares that go down the front and on the bonnett. Her aunt made the tatting and trim that are on the bottom of the dress and on the bonnett. It is a beautiful dress and Natalie looked like an angel in it. My grandmother wrote a letter to me and tucked it away with the dress many years ago telling me that she hoped one day I would have a baby to wear the dress ... Grandma today was the special day you and I both wished for. The dress that Abbie Grace wore has been worn by my mother, her two sisters & all my cousins (including Andre who was christened in Germany- yes the dress was hand-carried by Aunt Tim to Germany for the special occasion!!) The coat for the dress was sewn by my grandmother Dorothy's (mom's mother) aunt Margie. Interesting side note ... she sewed design samples for Doris Day in the film "Pillow Talk." The bonnett for Abbie Grace's dress was sewn by Pauls mother. She made the bonnett to match the dress with pin-tucking and lace. My mother gave the girls beautiful satin shoes and a dear friend Mrs. Jackie gave the girls pretty socks and a burp cloth with crosses on them.
Paul asked his father Mike, Ole Christensen (recent stake president and close family friend), Bert Barilleau (close family friend and father of Megan who introduced Paul and I), and Chuck Banz (close family friend) to participate in the blessing of the girls. He had hoped to have Tristan Bernard (close family friend) also but he works offshore every other week and was out of town. Each girl was given a beautiful and unique blessing from our loving Father in Heaven. We had a small get together that evening at the church to celebrate the girls blessing. We had cake and icecream to for the occasion. I had hoped to get this beautiful cake in the shape of a Christening gown from Ambrosia (the best bakery EVER) but it didn't work out ... so I figure that means I have an even BIGGER budget for the girls first birthday cake ... and you better believe that cake is coming from Ambrosia!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was an amazing day and I hope I will never forget how special Paul and I felt to have our girls at church with us and to celebrate the richness of the Lords blessings in our lives.
