Monday, May 18, 2009

Annabeth's Dedication Weekend

I have to interrupt my Disney reports with a weekend recap. Our weekend was filled to overflowing with activities and with friends. We are so blessed!

Friday:
I spent THREE HOURS putting together that last post about Magic Kingdom. So we were in our pajamas until Curtis came home from work.

Jackson asked me if he could hold Annabeth. He gave her tons of kisses that day. He gets more brotherly every month. He thought it was fun to try to to give her the paci. She did not have as much fun as he did.



She's just so cute. She's starting to want to hold her blanket, her burp cloth, her clothes, my hair - whatever she can get her hands on.



That evening Colin and Melissa, the 4 Joneses, and my parents all had dinner together at my mom and dad's house. We enjoyed each other so much. At about 10:00 that night, Janelle and Ella arrived at our house from DFW via Amber. Yeah! I kid you not, the first thing the kids did was run to each other and hug.

Saturday:

We woke up and had donuts and kolaches.



Cheers!



Janelle presented Annabeth with a little gift she'd made her...a tutu!

She loved herself in her tutu. As soon as I put it on her she started smiling and playing with it. Girls like to feel pretty even from the time they are babies!



Looking so prissy.



After a lazy morning (can you ever call it lazy if there are 2 preschoolers there?) we headed to the neighborhood pool. When Jackson got water in his mouth and puked a little in the pool, and when Ella did not like having water splashed on her, we realized that not much had changed. My heroic husband brought Sonic to us at the pool.







Then the kids took naps and Janelle and I got to have some tea and chill. We made a flowering tea in my glass tea pot. It was so pretty and smelled like jasmine.



The kids looked a little rough after their naps.



Ella's pool-bed-head.



Jackson's pool-bed-head.



We were going to let the kids play in the backyard on our slip n slide and in the sand box, but it started storming. So we baked cookies instead. Amy Beth had sent Annabeth some Cinderella cookie cutters and we put them to good use. They were so much fun. One day my princess and I will love doing this together.

Ready for the madness - excuse me, the FUN - to begin.



Janelle helping the kids cut out their cookies.



Jackson really wanted to roll the dough up and alternate throwing it and taking bites of it.



How cute are these? Cinderella's tiny waste gave us a run for our money. She fell apart several times.



This oven doesn't get to do a lot of baking.



Is it time yet?



Ella's pink cookies.



Sprinkles are so pretty on our hands.



Jackson's red cookies.





My horse, of course.



Can I just tell y'all how anal I was about Jackson cutting the cookies out right? And then I proceeded to break literally half of them with the spatula or while I was frosting. Seriously, I need some help! This is why we haven't done any baking since Christmas.

Curtis made us tacos for dinner. After the kids went to sleep, Janelle and I went to a movie. It ended up being awful so I will just leave it at that.

Sunday:

We all piled in the Suburban and went to church. When Ella got to her and Jackson's class, she ran in and gave the teacher, whom she'd never met, a hug. She is so sweet. We ate lunch in the car on the way home. As soon as we got there, Jackson had to go down for a nap so he would be fresh for that night. When he woke up we had to turn right back around and go to Annabeth's baby dedication service. At our church it's technically called a "parent dedication." I'm sure you get the drift.

The service was at 4:00 in the chapel. There were tons of other couples, but I didn't think to count them all. There are so many babies at our church right now that they had to have two services that night. Also, did you know that Houston is about to have a June baby boom that they are blaming on Hurricane Ike? I read that in the Chronicle.

Annabeth wore her Easter dress, which is almost too small for her now. I didn't even have to stuff her shoes this time. She looked so precious and girly. Curt asked if he could wear jeans. I showed him her dress and told him that's what he needed to match. Then he said he didn't have a tux. Well, shame on him then! I wore the same skirt I wore for Jackson's dedication 3 years ago. Curtis ended up having on the same pants as Jerrell, which was hilarious.

That brings me to the Altics. If you've been reading this blog long, you might know that Kay and I grew up together, as our parents have been BFF's since they were our age. And our hubbies grew up at the same church in Missouri. So we are all very close. Kay and I - neither one of us naturally maternal - had so hoped to get to be pregnant together when the day came. Well, the first time around it didn't work out that way and we weren't even living in Houston. But it did happen the second time and we have thanked the Lord many times for how sweet He was to us. So we were thrilled when we found out that our babies would get to be dedicated on the same night. We even planned to have a little dinner celebration with all our family members at Carabba's afterward. I don't think all of us had been together since Thanksgiving in Jackson Hole in 2007.

Here we are at Jerrell's 30th birthday party last October. Kay was a month away from having her baby and I was 5 months along.



One thing that made the dedication service extra meaningful was that during the invitation at church that morning, we saw some friends go forward with their young daughter. She had been asking questions about salvation and at the end of the service she tugged on her mommy's skirt and said, "Come with me, Mommy. I want Jesus." I cannot think about that without getting goosebumps. The point of the baby dedication service was to publicly commit to raising Annabeth in the Christian faith so that one day she will do that very thing - walk down the aisle and give her heart to Jesus. About fifteen feet to the left of where our friends were standing when their daughter made her profession of faith, our children's names are written on the floor underneath the new carpet - a symbol that we are praying for their salvation until it happens. Well, it actually says "Jackson and Baby Jones." I love that.

Here are more pictures of last night than you'd ever care to see. Many thanks to Amber and Janelle for helping us photograph and video the service. It was so special to have y'all there.

Bibby keeping these two in check before the service. They were actually VERY good. Ella sang from the hymnal.



Our turn!



The verse Gregg read over Annabeth was Luke 1:45, which says, "Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished." I asked my mom if she wanted to choose Annabeth's verse and that was what immediately came to her mind.



Pastor Gregg leading out in prayer for all of us.



Melissa, me, Annabeth, Memaw, and Mom



Me, Annabeth and Memaw



Here we are with Melanie and Laney. I can't wait for these two to play together!



Kristy, there should be a picture of you and me and Levi and Annabeth right here. Can we do a reenactment?





I learned to do "the girl thing" from watching these two.



The Jones and Altic clans.



The Moore girls



Janelle and Annabeth



Daddy-daughter pic.



Janelle and me with our kiddos.



There was a reception after the service, but we got so carried away from all our picture taking that we never made it over there.

Mom and Mary Ann, whom I've always called "Aunt B," at the restaurant.



Yia Yia and Bibby with the little guests of honor.



Melissa and her niece. Annabeth is wearing a beaded bracelet that my grandparents gave her. She was also given a silver bracelet from the Bridgwaters. Her first bling - how sweet!



I'm kicking myself for not getting a picture of all of us. With the excitement of part of the table collapsing and the drinks spilling everywhere, and the presence of 4 tired little ones, it just slipped my mind.

I'm signing off now. It's sunny and only 78 degrees. This day should not be spent inside! Adios!

58 comments:

Marla Taviano said...

Wow, girl! Love the pics. What a special time!!

Anonymous said...

What a blessing--we had Miss Kensington dedicated on Mothers Day and it was so meaningful to me. Beautiful pictures!

Erica said...

What a fun filled weekend. It was so neat to see all the special people that came to celebrate her special day. I love the verse you chose!

Tara G. said...

Rejoicing with you- thanks for sharing!

Teresa @ Grammy Girlfriend said...

Loved every picture......and every detail

Nancy Mon said...

Looks like y'all had such a fun weekend. Love reading about your vacation too. Did you make it to bunko? I had to get a sub or rather CourtneyS got a sub for me.

Rhonda said...

Looks like so much fun! Must say I was taken back to Breakaway days seeing Greg's picture. That was such a life saver for me in college:) The girls all look so beautiful and the men are handsome little things! So good all the family could be in- what a blessing.

Big Mama said...

I feel like I should something profound or insightful, but I just need a few moments to reflect on Annabeth in that tutu because, seriously, no one should be that cute.

Lauren said...

I am cracking up about the Hurricane Ike baby boom! Oh my gosh!

What a beautiful day! (And a beautiful family.)

Amy Beth @ Ministry So Fabulous! said...

Oh there are so many comments I want to make about this post, but the whole "baby boom because of Hurricane Ike" is the best thing I've read all day. I am seriously still laughing.

I'm SO glad the cookie cutters worked out!!!

Lauren said...

What a wonderful weekend! I always love all your details. Thanks for sharing about Annabeth's dedication. You all look so happy.

Bev Brandon @ The Fray said...

Wow! Sweet pictures!! Memories already. But that Luke 1:45 will be a signpost. May your precious Annabeth have eyes and ears open wide to hear the Voice of Love---her beautiful God calling her and accomplishing much over all the days of her life.

Bobbie said...

What a great weekend! It sounds like you stayed 'on the go' with all kinds of memories made. I love the verse Bibby chose for Annabeth, it will mean so much to her as she grows up. It would be neat to stencil it on the wall above/beside her bedroom door!

Jackson's eyes are even more amazing the older he gets! How do you ever correct him??

Sharon said...

The pictures are so awesome!! :-) Thanks for sharing with us.

Much love,
Sharon

Shelly said...

I'm loving the pics. It looks like y'all had a wonderful weekend and I'm so glad.

~Jodi~ said...

wow just so beautiful amanda! i love the pics of you and your sweet family! Your tender and sweet heart just shines through! someday Annabeth will get to read back over your sweet words and know how much her heart and life mattered and that you were praying for her and jackson even when she was "baby jones"
so sweet
blessings to you all
Jodi

McClure Family said...

so, so, so sweet!

CAROL LIVIN FOR GOD said...

It sounds like you all had a jam packed weekend with friends and family glad you all had fun. Our little seista looked so cute in that tutu she was just sporten that tutu in the pic's that was so cute . Looks like our little meista had a blast to . Glad you all had fun. Have a wonderful week Thanks again for sharing the pictures with us seista's .
God bless the Jones and the Moores and the Fitzpatrick and by the way Melissa looked good holding her niece she looked very content.
Love Carol Albuq.NM

Kiki said...

We were so intent on getting our children out of the fake childcare, we took a grand total of zero pictures. So, we are definitely in for a redo!

Love all your pics though!

Hayley said...

Beautiful pictures! You all look so pretty! And I love the tutu! Our baby girl was dedicated last weekend too - such a special time!

Tara said...

What a wonderful weekend, Amanda! Thank you for sharing all the pictures and details! And congratulations on Annabeth's dedication. What a special time!

Toknowhim said...

Loved the tutu on Annabeth... What an awesome weekend, and I love how your Church reads a verse over your child that you chose...

Great pictures of your special day...

Ashley said...

Love all the pictures!!!

Becca~CapturingSimpleJoys said...

the tutu pictures is just precious!

what a beautiful dedication and so wonderful that you could have family and friends to surround your family and support you!

MississippiMom said...

Okay, the funny thing about your mentioning Hurricane Ike babies is that I can't tell you how many of my friends and acaquaintainces gave birth 9 months or so after Hurricane Katrina came through here! I kid you not!

What a special blessing this weekend must have been for you! Thank you for sharing!

bethany said...

Just beautiful! You've inspired me to post an entry about Kensley's dedication (also yesterday).
Check it out :)

Moose Mama said...

Awwww. Just everywhere....awwwww.

Blessings to you.

Melana
(looking forward to seeing your mom this weekend in Wonderful Wyoming!)

Kelli said...

Just a few things..... :)

*Jackson and Ella are PRECIOUS and I think that Caroline will be getting some of those cookie cutters!*

*I desperately wanted to pour some of that tea. It looks DELIGHTFUL... will you please bless us with a post of all your fun teas, tea pots, and other tricks of the trade!*

*What a sweet, sweet day to dedicate your girl to the Lord!*

Andreea said...

I love the pics, and the verse that y'all picked for the baby! :) Thanks for sharing!

katiegfromtennessee said...

I enjoyed your recap of your weekend, Little Momma:) The photos added to it, kinda like a picture movie:) You have been blessed with some fam and friends for sure! The pics of Annabeth and her bow, the prayer picture at the dedication, and the pic with all the Moore women are my favs:)

Super blessed day to you Little Momma:)

katiegfromtennessee

JayCee said...

Thanks for sharing...rejoicing with you.

The pic of you, Annabeth, your mom and your sis is a really good one (actually, all the pics are good!)
=================================
What a blessing to have a husband who brings you Sonic for lunch and make tacos for dinner....how special is he!

fuzzytop said...

Just gorgeous...! And I love the Cinderella cookie cutters!

Adrienne

Missy said...

Such a fun weekend! Annabeth is beyond precious. I can't believe how much she is growing. So cute!!!

Emmy said...

What a beautiful and fun weekend! So special! Just precious! Thank you for sharing! Annabeth is getting SO big! Your kids are just adorable (your friends kids too!)

I love that verse, Luke 1:45, I think I will pray that over my kids!

God Bless sweet Jones family! You make me smile! Emmy : )

Danaly said...

Your family is lovely, thank you for sharing. I have kids the same age as yours and it's funny 'cause it seems we live parallel lives. We just dedicated our little princess on Mother's Day! My camera broke though so I have no pictures, just video. I'm so bummed! Happy Tuesday Amanda! - Danaly

p.s. I'm planning on attending the Siesta Memory Verse Celebration in January so I will introduce myself when/if I see you :)

Heather said...

You are so very blessed! Great pictures and what a great weekend for you and your family! Annabeth is too cute in her tutu!

Holly said...

Sydney just came in and saw Annabeth's picture and said, "There's Sydney." I said, "No, that is Annabeth." She said, "Oh...Beth? I want to get her feet! She wants her Mommy."

All the pictures were like a wonderful packaged gift. Thank you for sharing them with us. Janelle is a treasure of a friend to you, I know. I love that!

Enjoy the day, friend!

Kay Altic said...

great pics my friend...love you so much

connorcolesmom said...

Adorable
Beautiful
Joyful
Blessings!

Fran said...

It would have taken me FOREVAH to write that post and add the pix. So, thank you for the time you gave us. ;)

Your family is just beautiful Amanda and what a fabulous weekend y'all had.

Did you and Melissa talk for hours about India??? I still think about that trip and her posts all.the.time.

Big hugs,
Fran

Lindsee said...

What a sweet, fun, memorable weekend for you and your sweet family. You did a great job on the "re-cap!" Also, how fun that you got to have all of your favorite people there with you. Blessing indeed. And lastly, I especially loved the verse for her, because that was my memory verse last month!

Sylvia's Song said...

Thanks for sharing this milestone event with your precious family and extended family as well. I love all the details along with the photos. You and your family bless me richly. Thank you.

Kristi said...

Oh, what a sweet day!! I have to know, where are you getting your beautiful bowbands?? Do you make them yourself?

Yolanda said...

loved the pictures and details but the scripture for Annabeth is one that I memorised for April and it packs a punch. ;-)

Lovingly,
Yolanda

Anonymous said...

just a word about the cookies breaking: Parchment Paper. seriously. it works wonders.

and I love all the photos from the dedication. We did all our photos at a professional shoot the day before so we wouldn't have to try to herd cats on the day of. But you guys all look so great.

MITZI said...

Annabeth look just like her mommy. Such cute pictures. I have to ask, do you put eyeliner on Jackson? :)Just kidding. He has the most beautiful eyes and his eyelashes are so long and dark.

Lauren said...

I love this picture filled post. Annabeth is soooooo adorable. What a FUN weekend!!!!! :)

Steph said...

We dedicated our baby girl on Mother's Day two years ago. Such a sweet memory for our family, I know it will be for your family as well.

Sharon said...

What fun, praise God! I have to say that I just love, love, love Annabeth's tutu! Soooo super cute on her! :)

Unknown said...

Just had to write and help save you from any "blankie/lovey" disasters like we have here. If Annabeth is starting to attach to a blankie now is your chance to get a super cute one that you won't mind seeing in a year or two. My little guy (now almost 2) is attached to his one from Wal-Mart--which looked cute at the time but after about 2 washes looked like it was 5 yrs old already. I've tried in vain to switch him to a super cute bunniesbythebay one (love their stuff.) But it's a "no". Mama shouldn't of been cheap the 1st time around! But it's not too late for you... Hurry, go take away that burp cloth and stick a pretty, silky cute one in her precious hands (and buy 2 or 3 while you're at it....made the mistake of only have 1 for my oldest...thankfully he's never lost it.) And hopefully if she's almost 2 and still takes her blankie to the church nursery the thing won't look like it's never been washed even though you just pulled it out of the dryer....

Angela said...

Precious photos! I gave you a little shout-out on my blog, ha. It's hard to be humble when you have an adorable baby!

Vicki Courtney said...

My goodness, all Paige and I can do is stare at little Annabeth in her princess dedication dress. No words for this.

And for the record, you just keep on dressing her up like a little doll every single day. Paige has THANKED me for dressing her up in those years and resisting the temptation to outfit her in onesies everyday. She's 19 and I'm still dressing her up today.

A Little Water said...

Wow, what a blessed weekend! Looks like there were many great times shared. Annabeth's tutu is so cute and Jackson holding her is too sweet.

Anonymous said...

Great post! Love the pictures.

I actually had to go back and re-read the part about Jackson puking in the pool. I thought "was she referencing last year?" So funny!

Teresa said...

I'm not even sure this a noteworthy coincidence, but I wore the same skirt for both of my children's christenings too!

I've been reading your blog for a couple months and really enjoy some of the parallels of our lives. I have a son, Jack, who is about Jackson's age and a little girl now who just turned 1.

Sunni at The Flying Mum said...

Love the pictures! Looks like a special weekend!

melanie said...

i'm just now getting to catch up on blogging and i love this post. i'm so glad we got a picture together with our girls!

Kelli said...

PS - I have been looking for wipable place mats that look-ish like the ones you have? Where did you find the cute ones that Jackson and Ella were using?