Letter from Aunt Lauren

I have mentioned before that my sister, Lauren (the one right behind me in the line of kids), lives in Dallas. We do not get to see each other often enough. We certainly try to support and love on one another from afar. :).

Lauren sent a very sweet card for Douglass Charles' baptism and I wanted to record the words she specifically wrote to him. Lauren is truly a writer and always has been. I have people comment about my writing skills from time to time, but she is a natural and puts my humble pen to shame. Here is what she wrote to my sweet boy:

Dear Douglass Charles,
You are a very blessed child. Your parents have just publicly committed to raising you in the Lord. They know that you are fearfully and wonderfully made and that before you were born, God chose you to be their child and to be a part of our family. Someday you may roll your eyes at the ourfit your Momma put you in or wonder why she cries when she looks at pictures of you in it. But when that happens, though you don't have to understand it, remember that it is a sign of how much your parents love you and how God has a plan for your life. Also remember that you have friends and family praying for you to come to know the love of Christ on your own, for that love is the basis of our love for you. I will continue to pray that God will bless the rest of your life as He has so richly blessed the beginning.

I love you,
Aunt Lauren

Every time I read this it brings tears to my eyes. Just knowing that we have friends and family - even if they are not near - that care so about our children means so much. Thanks, Aunt Lauren, for your sweet words, for your support, your love, and most importantly your specific prayers for my children. We love you!

Big Boy Birthday!

The birthday boy


Us with the kids and Doug's grandparents


Doug and his sister, Meg, who is pregnant with her first child. We are SO excited!


Charlotte enjoying in the birthday fun

Finally, a few pictures from the birthday celebration. We were thrilled to have so many friends and family here to celebrate. Both of our parents were able to come, Doug's grandparents and aunt, his two sisters, my youngest sister, and my brother and his family as well as a few friends. We had a wonderful time and the weather cooperated so the kids were able to just run around and play.

I do have to mention here that as far as the first cake goes, my children are both the same. I was so sure that Douglass Charles would tear into his cake, but he, too, was very cautious. He started out by poking holes in it, licking off the icing, and doing it all over again. This went on for a while. So I gave him a spork and he just poked holes in it with that. Finally after quite a bit of time he finally started ripping into it. Doug's aunt even mentioned that my children were very boring when it comes to birthday cake. Sorry, Mimi!

I also want to list here a discussion Doug and I had about the cake prior to the party. I was just going to give Douglass Charles a cupcake because that is what I was making for everyone. Doug is the second born in his family. He very quickly spoke up for his second born and stated that he had to have a little cake just like his big sister had. I thought this was very cute and considerate of Douglass Charles' daddy - looking out for the kind of cake he should have for his first birthday.

I have one more post on the whole event - a sweet letter that my sister, Lauren, sent for Douglass Charles's special day. So check back later this week for her sweet words.

Heirlooms

As a traditional and very nostalgic person, heirlooms are particularly precious to me. Special events like baptisms, significant birthdays, and weddings seem to bring out these family items that are designated for that particular person for that specific event in time.

Douglass Charles' baptism did not go without the same nostalgic signifigance. He was given a new heirloom and a very old one.

The new was crafted by me. We had an heirloom baptismal gown that he could have worn, but we had to wait to baptize him because we were not yet members of our church. So... I decided to make him this long jon. I smocked the top piece with one of Ellen McCarn's patterns. They are very small, but across the bottom there are small crosses smocked into the piece. I was pleased with the result and he looked quite handsome.

The second, and older heirloom, was a pocket watch given by Doug's grandfather. We were fortunate to have them present at the baptism and Douglass Charles is not only the name sake of his father, but of his great-grandfather as well. "Charles" is a family name that has been passed down through four generations now. The pocket watch began with Doug's great-grandfather who bore the name "Charles." Poppy (also a Charles), Doug's grandfather gave it to Doug with the intention of Doug passing it on to Douglass Charles. We just hope he will choose to use the name if and when he has his own son.

These items touch my heart and I hope they will one day touch the heart of my children and their children. The beautiful thing about heirlooms is they serve as symbols of a family's heritage - I pray ours is one worth remembering!

Baptism

The baptism


The family with our pastor, Frank.

Well, one week later and I finally am getting a few of these pictures uploaded. Sorry for the delay. I have stolen these off facebook from various families that were able to come. When I tried earlier in the week facebook wasn't cooperating. Anyway...

Doug and I recently joined Hope Methodist Church. We have been attending there since May of last year and really love it there. It isn't your typical Methodist church - it is very contemporary and and casual. The preaching is also not only good, but convicting. I have said before that our pastor, Frank Bernant, just has a way of explaining things in a way that makes sense.

Neither Doug, nor myself, grew up Methodist, and while we are still learning about the denomination our main concern was that the Word was being preached. I did grow up Presbyterian, so infant baptism was something I was taught and grew up practicing. Ironically, I was baptized in the Methodist church. While I am not hear to debate the issues of infant baptism, it is something Doug and I have chosen for our family and feel that it has biblical merit.

Our day started out hectic. We opted to baptized Douglass Charles at the early service. Our family normally attends the late service at 11:00. We felt the early service would work best with all the festivities later in the day. So we met with the pastor, set the whole thing up, and we were told to be there fifteen minutes early.

So... with all the craziness with all the family here we managed to get off at 8:45 to get to the church fifteen minutes early and knew that our families wouldn't be far behind us.

We got to the church at about ten after nine and the place was packed, there were no greeters outside, no one rushing in the doors. It was eerily weird. We walked in to find Doug's grandparents, aunt and sisters who had all traveled over from Alpharetta. And, you guessed it, the service had already started. I was so embarassed.

The staff quickly kicked into gear and told us we were up next after the current song that was being sung. That is when I knew our parents were going to miss it and they did. As we walked off the stage our parents walked in. I felt horrible.

So what happened. I thought the service started at 9:30 and it began at 9:00. Because we never discussed the time the being there fifteen minutes early part was easily miscommunicated because it was assumed that we knew the correct time of the early service - as I should have known since we have attended there for almost a year.

People say we will laugh about it later, but I still shed a few tears and felt horrible for all those that made such an effort to be there for us. The fact is, our little guy was still baptized. It was still special and some of our loved ones were still there to witness that special moment.

Stay tuned for how little Douglass Charles made up for his mommy's oh so horrible blunder. :)

Recipes

So I am having trouble downloading pictures from the weekend. Hoping the download will happen soon and I can share the story. Just trying to keep you checking back, right? :)

I thought I would share these great recipes from the weekend. Seriously, this picture makes my mouth water. I am freezing the second French Loaf I bought last weekend and this recipe will be made again so that I can enjoy it for myself. But it is seriously easy. Here you are:
French Toast Casserole by Paula Deen
1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows
Maple syrup
Directions
Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.


Praline Topping:
1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.

Breakfast Casserole:
1 lb Jimmy Dean hot sausage
1 1/2 cups cooked grits
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
7 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
salt & pepper to taste

Brown & drain sausage
Crumble in bottom of 9” x 13” greased casserole
Cook grits (stiff better than runny)
Add butter & cheese to cooked grits
Beat eggs, milk, salt & Pepper together
Add to slightly cooled grits mixture
Pour over sausage in casserole dish
Bake at 350 degrees for one hour

I promise, next time you have guests coming into town, both of these will not disappoint. Enjoy!

Party Preparations

There is always much to do when a party is being planned and since we were celebrating both birthday and baptism I was challenged to decide what direction I should go in.

I have SO much family and am so thankful that I do. They are always so sweet to make the trek, since none live remotely close by. It is crazy to think that there were four siblings (along with spouses, children, or significant others who were unable to come). My guest list was 30 and I honestly wondered what the heck I was thinking.

So I decided on a brunch - thus the invitation. If you know me I am simple. Just fyi to all of you out there, my parties will most always be simple. It is just the way I do things.

This invitation wound up being electronic, but I did create the whole thing in Illustrator - which I have been trying to learn.

I also decided - after talking with my sister about her baptism brunch and a good friend about hers - to go with two different casseroles, some fruit, cream cheese and crackers with pepper jelly, banana bread, and simple cupcakes for dessert. The casseroles I chose were a breakfast ensemble of grits, cheese, eggs and sausage. It is my mother's recipe and quite delicious. The second was one I have never made before, but saw Paula Deen make on her show several years back. It was a French Toast Casserole bake with a praline topping. I didn't even wind up getting any so I am assuming it passed the test.

Of course the cupcakes were a big hit and I made a little cake for Douglass Charles. We had vanilla for the little bitty ones and devil's food with chocolate buttercream for all the chocolate lovers present. Okay, my mouth is now watering.

Can't wait to share more photos as well as the outfit I made for my little man's special day.

So... stay tuned! :)

Stock Up and Save!

We had such a wonderful weekend with family and friends and celebrating my son's first birthday and baptism. I can't wait to share, but I must as I wait for pictures (playing hostess makes for no time behind the camera). So hopefully my stories from the weekend can be shared very soon.

I am so excited about the promotion I am running this month. You have through the 15th to stock up and save. If you haven't ordered yet, but wanted to, now is the time. This is how it works, if you order one set up notecards you get six extra for FREE! If you order a set of calling cards, you get an extra 10 for FREE! If you order mailing labels you get an extra sheet of 12 for FREE! How awesome is that? This only applies to notecards, labels, and calling cards (sorry no existing orders, custom orders, or invitations or bagtags are included. The notecards must include one set of names. You cannot split the names amongst the order). So stock up and save. You have until the 15th of this month to get your stash so hurry! :)