Hyrum's Baptism

Hyrum turned 8 in July, which is a big deal! Turning eight years old means that he could be baptized. Hyrum was excited because he has seen his brothers and cousins be baptized before him, but we wanted to make sure that he knew what baptism was and why it is so important. We spent a few weeks before the big day going over baptism and what he could expect. We talked about covenants and what promises he would be making with Heavenly Father. He learned them using the Kit Kat candy bar method.

K= Keep the Commandments A= Always Remember Him T= Take His name upon you

It is a fun, easy way to remember what you covenant. If we keep our covenants, Heavenly Father will give us the Holy Ghost to be with us always. He will also forgive our sins, and we can live with Him forever. Hyrum did such a good job learning these important things. When it came time for his interview with Bishop Skeen, he was ready and did a great job. 

We invited all of our family and some special friends to his baptism. Because of COVID, we kept it to a smaller group, but it was all of the most important people in Hyrum's life. For the invitation, I took Hyrum to the Provo City Center Temple to take some pictures. It was a beautiful day, and the pictures turned out so cute. I had a hard time choosing a favorite to put on the invitation. 

Due to COVID, each child had a separate baptism time to keep groups from interacting too much. That meant that Hyrum got his own special program, which was really neat. He got to choose the entire program. He really wanted both of his grandmas to give talks, but we weren't sure how that would work with Grandma Hill on a mission in Washington. Luckily, we got permission to have her and other family members participate via Zoom. It was so special for her and Grandpa to be able to be there for him. She gave a wonderful talk on baptism and encouraged him to always stay close to the gospel. Grandma Christensen also gave a fantastic talk on the Holy Ghost. She told several stories from her life that were representative of how the Holy Ghost works. She spoke of a time on their mission when they watched baby turtles hatch. The turtles followed the light in order to get safely to the ocean. She compared the light to the Holy Ghost and encouraged all the kids to follow the Holy Ghost in order to stay on the covenant path. At the end, she gave all the kids little flashlights. It was very memorable. It was a great program, and I hope Hyrum remembers it always. 

Jonathon baptized Hyrum, and Christian and Andrew got to be the witnesses. This was especially unique because the requirements for witnesses recently changed, and this was the first time that younger kids could serve in that capacity. After the baptism, Jonathon was able to confirm Hyrum a member of the Church and give him the gift of the Holy Ghost. All of the uncles were unable to attend for various reasons, so it was just Jonathon, Grandpa Christensen, and Jared Olson in the circle, but it was still so special. He was blessed to be able to help others with his happiness and enthusiasm. I loved that so much because it is true! 

After the baptism was over, we had a luncheon with the people that were able to attend. It was a fun chance to chat and enjoy each other's company. We are so proud of Hyrum and the good boy he is. I hope that he will always remember his baptism day and the important promises he made.