8 is Great! {Andrew's Baptism}

Andrew turned 8 years old in January and decided to be baptized to become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was not without a little trepidation that he made the decision. He wanted to be baptized and believes in the Church, but the poor shy boy was really scared to have an interview with the Bishop and was also worried about being dunked under the water. For Family Home Evening, we went over all the questions that the Bishop would ask during the interview and discussed with him what covenants he would be making and what baptism symbolizes. He knew everything we talked about, so we just had to encourage him to be brave and do something that scared him.

When the night of the interview came, he was still nervous, but we encouraged (uh, bribed) him by offering to take him to get donuts after the interview. We hoped that would calm him down and help him focus on something exciting rather than what he was scared of. He went into Bishop's office and did just fine. When he came home he told me. "Mom, it was easy. I knew everything!"

The week before the baptism was pretty busy. I was babysitting Joe and Kym's kids while they were on a cruise, and I had also just started a new side job (blog writing for my brother's company) that I was working on. All things combined to make that week a bit chaotic. I had created and printed some invitations to the baptism, but completely forgot to send them out. The morning of the baptism when we were getting ready, I found them sitting on the counter. Gah! Major Mom Fail! At least all of the family members knew about it because we had been discussing it already, but I felt bad that several of Andrew's friends did not get invites. Andrew was nice about it, but I sure felt sad. Here is a copy of his baptism announcement (with sensitive information redacted):

February 4th was Andrew's baptism day! He was the only one from our ward getting baptized, so our family got to plan it all, which was pretty fun. Grandpa and Grandma C. and Ben were also on the cruise that week, so they came straight from their port of Long Beach to our house afterward. It worked out perfectly for them. They arrived the night before and left shortly after the baptism.

At 10:00, we all met in the Primary Room for the baptism. Andrew got to choose the program, and he was lucky to have so many family members there to celebrate and participate with him. Uncle Ben said the opening prayer, I led the music, Aunt Audrey played the piano, Grandma C. gave a talk on Baptism, Grandma H. gave the talk on the Holy Ghost, both Grandpas were witnesses, Jonathon baptized and confirmed him, and Uncle Aaron gave the closing prayer. He also got to choose all the songs. He chose Search, Ponder, and Pray, Gethsemane (his favorite!), and I Love to See the Temple.

The whole program was wonderful (minus a crazy 3 year old who caused a bit of trouble :) Grandma C. gave a fantastic talk on baptism. She started by telling Andrew how brave he was for doing something that frightened him. I was grateful that Mom recognized how he was feeling and acknowledged that he had done a hard thing. She gave him a Giant Kit Kat bar and talked about how it could remind him about his baptismal covenants. K= Keep His Commandments, A= Always remember Him, and T= Take His name upon you. She also gave him a little bag of smaller Kit Kats to give all of the kids that were there. Such a great way to remember what we covenant at baptism.

Then Jonathon was able to baptize Andrew. The actual baptism lasted only a minute or two, but the promises and covenants that he made will influence the rest of his life. It was a happy moment!

Grandma H. then gave an excellent talk on the Holy Ghost. She told several stories of how the Holy Ghost had blessed people's lives. She told a story about Wilford Woodruff listening to the Holy Ghost when it warned him to move his horse and wagon. A huge wind suddenly blew over a tree right where the wagon had been. She then gave him a special treasure box with a quote from Wilford Woodruff on it. I hope that when he sees that box, he will remember his special day.

Andrew was then confirmed a member of the Church and given the gift of the Holy Ghost. He was so blessed to have so many faithful priesthood members in the circle. Dad, both Grandpas, Ben, Aaron, BJ, and Joe.

Finally, Bishop Hald welcomed Andrew into the ward. He said that the example of the Kit Kat bar inspired him to try to come up with something that would remind Andrew of his special day. He then realized that Andrew's initials A. R. H. could stand for Always Remember Him. He told Andrew that every time he thought of his own name, he could Always remember His Savior, Jesus Christ. I was blown away by what a simple, yet powerful message this was for Andrew. I truly hope that Andrew can remember Christ always and try to be like Him.

After the baptism, we all went back to our house for pizza and dessert (Again... Andrew's choice!) We ordered a bunch of different pizzas and then had sugar cookies and milk. Not to sound sacrilegious, but Andrew really wanted sugar cookies shaped like a person, with white frosting clothes, that everyone could "dunk" in milk. Haha! He was so cute about it that I just didn't have the heart to tell him no. We will just say it was the innocence of an eight year old who just wanted to celebrate his baptism!

We are so grateful to be raising such a wonderful boy. Andrew truly is a sensitive soul who is trying so hard to do his best. He made such a good decision to be baptized, and I hope he remembers his special day and the important covenants he made always. Eight is Great!

 

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