Birdie's Baptism

Meet one of the newest Catholics out there.  Birdie was baptized at an Arlington church a couple of weekends ago.  She was a perfect angel the whole time, barely even whimpering when the priest blessed her with oil and holy water.  She's wearing a string of pearls belonging to her great-aunt (we do not make a habit of baby jewelry and she was supervised the entire time it was worn) and a new christening gown that her aunt/godmother will be embroidering her initials and baptism date into.  We hope to share the gown with Birdie's future sibling and cousins.  

We were lucky to have so many family members and friends join us, both at the church at the party afterwards.  You can tell they really love us because her baptism was part of 8 am Mass.  To make up for it, we rewarded our loved ones with a brunch afterwards.  Birdie's godparents are amazing people and I'm not just saying that because I'm related to both of them.  Her godfather may still be young (a college student) but he's one of my most thoughtful and interesting cousins (though they are really all so interesting and funny - I love my family).  He's the third of four children but doesn't have any nieces or nephews yet so Birdie is lucky to get all of his child-focused attention for the next few years.  Bonus point: he was an altar boy so he'll actually be good at filling the "Catholic" role.  

Birdie's godmother is my sister, a woman who is already a wonderful aunt.  She learned to sew so that she could embroider a couple of bibs as a baptism gift - isn't that sweet?  I'm so glad that we're back in the States for these early years so that my sister, who is local, can really be a part of Birdie's life.  She's already our #1 babysitter!  

Several other aunts, uncles, and cousins made the trip down and were were touched and overwhelmed by their generosity and thoughtfulness.  I know others wished they could make it and we certainly missed them (my in-laws, especially) but they were with us in spirit.  This is why we had Birdie baptized.  We may not be the most observant Catholics but this religion is so ingrained in my memories and part of my shared family culture that I had to give her the easy option of joining in.