She was baptized with a handful of other children in our stake. Our stake does a good job of doing the "group" baptism thing (I was previously leary of this idea). They have the moms (or dads) come up and say a few things about their child in front of the congregation. These are my thoughts on Anne Elyse and what I shared:
Anne Elyse was born May 25, 2004 in Rochester, New York. Of my four children, her labor and delivery
was easy for me - everything went as planned, it was quick (so quick that the
nurse ended up delivering her, because the doctor didn't make it in time!) and compared
to her brother’s labor, it was a night and day experience. And from that day on, she has been blessing
me, our family, and others around her by helping to make things easier and
definitely more pleasant for us.
She has a big, bright, and beautiful smile that lights up
her face.
She is a good and kind friend to those around her. Her school teacher has even told me that
sometimes kids will fight over who gets to be Anne Elyse’s partner at school –
because everybody likes her so much.
She is a good big sister to her little sister Tori. She
comforts her when she’s upset, she helps her, she plays with her, and you can
tell that she loves her little sister very much. When I was pregnant with Tori, and before we
knew if she was going to be a boy or a girl, Anne Elyse was really, really
wanting a sister (because she already had two brothers), so when she found out
Tori was going to be a girl, she was really excited. She is grateful to have a sister, and they
have a special bond. I will often find
them sleeping together when I go to check on them before I go to bed – either
Anne Elyse will be in Tori’s crib or Tori will be in bed with Anne Elyse.
In preparation for her baptism today, we have had several
talks about why we get baptized and what it represents. Several times she has
said to me that she wants to be baptized because Jesus was baptized, so I know
that she knows that it’s important to follow His example. She understands that today she will be washed
clean from all that she’s ever done wrong, and that this is a time for her to
show her commitment to following Jesus’s example. Most importantly, we've talked about how she
might feel today – that she will (hopefully) feel some very special feelings
today, and that she should pay attention to how she feels when she comes out of
the water or when she receives the gift of the Holy Ghost. I know that the Holy Ghost will testify to
her that she is following Jesus’s example and doing the right thing today by
making this choice to be baptized.
*Disclaimer on the pictures...I had just gotten my first speedlight (a fancy flash), and I didn't have a chance to really mess around with it ahead of time. I didn't know what I was doing, and it shows. So, I'm kind of disappointed with how they turned out. Oh, well. I've since learned a few tricks (The Gary Fong lightsphere is a must)!
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