I have two boys. My oldest will be 19 in June and my youngest just turned 11. It's near impossible to imagine they were ever smaller than they are now but alas, I have pictures to prove we walked those wobbly toddler years and giggled around crawling as babies before that. Each boy wore a handmade gown {they've called it a dress} for their Baptisms.
When I was growing up, we went to a Baptist church. There was always something going on there from Sunday School to weeknight Choir to Sunday potlucks to Youth Group events. Church was a part of my childhood as much as my school and I loved it. As for Baptism, babies were dedicated infront of the congregation by their parents and when you decided to be dunked {as my high school Methodist friend called it} in the Baptism Pool, it was up to you to set the date.
I came to Faith very early and have thankfully always known in the deepest of my core that God loves me, that Jesus is who He said he was, and that my foundation is all the more secure trusting in Him. However, I was not going to walk down the long pews to be Baptized as a child because it was a large church, everyone would see, right?
So I went about my adulthood and managed perfectly fine, yet always in the back of my mind, I wished I had made that long walk and be dunked in the Holy Water. The time just wasn't right until it was.
I went to a Methodist college and long story short, have been a Methodist for about fifteen years now. Oh, did I mention I was Baptized by a Presbyterian Minister? Yes - well, if life isn't going to follow a straight path then why should a search for a church home do the same? Yes, my husband and I attended a Presbyterian church for a few years when our first son was little. I ran a playgroup there which was such fun and fostered many lasting friendships. Ben was baptized when he was two months old by the sweetest Scottish Presbyterian Santa Claus-looking-Minister ever. Not only was Ben baptized, but I was as well which made it all the more treasured.
By the time Zack was born, we were deeply rooted in a Methodist church which was to be the church he was baptized around the same baby-age time as his older brother. For both occasions, the boys wore a handsewn gown that I had made in 1999 for the celebration. I'm no sewist so are you ready for my mad sewing skills at how I made it happen?
I took a yard of beautiful Zweigart evenweave linen and laid it on the bed. Then I placed one of Ben's onesies ontop and cut out the shape for neck and arms. Brilliant. Well, it worked! Then I did another piece of linen the same so I had two pieces and I sewed them up. The back at the neck was a challenge and I haven't a clue why I made such a large opening for the head to fit. Ha! Once the two pieces of linen were sewn together, by hand mind you because I didn't have a machine at the time, then I added lace trim to the cuffs. Also sewed wide lace to the bottom. The blue buttons and blue ribbon was such a sweet touch. Before it was complete, I knew I wanted one of my favorite quotes to grace the bottom . . .
Babies are bits of stardust
Blown from the hand of God
I charted out the verse and stitched it in DMC cotton floss to match the buttons and ribbon. I was so excited over this little heirloom dress and each boy looked precious in it.
Zack, June 2007
Ben, August 1999
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