Kaylene's Baby Blessing

We had a fabulous time traveling to San Jose for Kaylene’s blessing! It was a great week filled with visits with friends and family, and most importantly, for the blessing.
 
The three of us flew in on Thursday afternoon, and made our way to my mom’s house. It was really great for the grandparents to see Kaylene again. They had so much fun all week holding and cuddling her. She was really spoiled with so many of her family members to hold and love her all the time.
 
The blessing itself took place on Saturday, February 17th at about 5:30 in the late afternoon. We had our family and a few of our closest friends gathered together at the San Felipe building for the event. The reason we chose to do it on a Saturday instead of on a Sunday during church services, was due to the fact that there were no regular church meetings that weekend, as it was their Stake Conference. We found that out too late to change our plane tickets and other obligations we had made, so we decided to do it in a small, private ceremony. In the end, what matters most to us is family, and that was who we really wanted to be there. The close friends that we have we consider as family too, and it was great that they came to support us, and to be there for Kaylene’s big event!
 

My sister Tiffany made her blessing dress. She had been working on it for weeks, and when she started, she had asked if there were any styles that I wanted for her dress. I simply told her, “Make whatever you want. Everything you make is beautiful. I love the idea of it being a surprise, and then it is even more special since her loving aunt made it for her”.
 
Tiffany flew in on Saturday morning, and met Kaylene for the first time. Everyone on Paul’s side of the family had gotten a chance to meet her already, and Tiffany and her family were the last ones to see her. It was so special for me to see my sister meeting my daughter for the first time!! I remember what it was like to see her first daughter (also my first niece) and now, she was finally seeing my child. It was a beautiful moment for me.
 

Back to the blessing. There was a small ceremony, with an opening prayer, song, and a brief explanation of what a baby blessing is, and how it is different from a baptism; explaining everything so that people who were not Mormon could see the importance and significance of the event. Paul performed the ordinance, giving her her name, and a blessing. After we took some pictures, we all had dinner at Sweet Tomatoes to stuff our faces, and just have a chance to chat.
 
It was a beautiful event, and it was something I had been thinking about for years before she was born. The event was even better than I could have ever imagined it to be! I hope that you enjoy the pictures of the whole thing, and see how beautiful she is in her blessing dress. If you have any thoughts about the blessing, feel free to post your comments too!

~ Jennifer