Keith Smith, our Children's Pastor at Pantego Bible Church, did the ceremony. He did a wonderful job making her dedication very personal. We are so grateful we have a thoughtful and caring children's pastor to minister to our most precious blessings!
Ella received a special blessing with water from the Jordan River, the river Jesus was baptized in. It was so amazing! As soon as the blessing was said, Ella closed her eyes, became completely relaxed, and fell asleep. Although there is no "magic" in the water, we believe the Holy Spirit was moving in her.
Heirlooms! The gown she is wearing is a Christening gown my great-grandmother made. My father, his siblings, me, my siblings, some of my cousins, Nolan, and now Ella have all worn this gown. In addition, my great-grandmother made this shawl and won a prize for it. There is so much detail in it! It's a very beautiful piece!In addition, Ella wore my baby bracelet and my dad's baby ring. Shown in other pictures, she also wore a bonnet. Her Aunt Amy and Uncle Brian gave her the bonnet the day she was born. This keepsake bonnet came with a very sweet poem:
A tiny square of linen, and a dainty edge of lace,
Designed into a bonnet, to frame a baby's face.
After baby's worn it, fold and tuck away.
It will become a hanky, for baby's wedding day.
If the baby is a boy, on the day he should marry,
This will be "something old" for his joyful bride to carry.
We count ourselves blessed to have such a loving family. Shown below are Ella's parents and big brother, grandparents, Poppy, Mimi, and Papa. In addition, the Hankins, Bullard, Kling, and Yucuis families came to be a part of her dedication. Not pictured is Uncle Jim and Faye VanDam that was also present at the dedication.
During the dedication, we presented Ella with a spiritual time capsule that will be given to her later when she is at a point in her life that she understands what it means to have a personal relationship with God.Poppy gave her a beautiful heart charm with a praying angel that will soon be engraved. Her Mimi and Papa gave her her first Bible, and we gave her a book by Dr. Seuss called, Oh, The Places You'll Go.
This is the prayer we wrote for her:
Ella, you're our sweet angel. God has entrusted us to be an example and to raise you in His image. We promise to guide you to come to know a personal relationship with the Lord and to seek His will and calling for your life. May you surround yourself with Godly people that will mentor and build you up so that you will be an example for others. We pray that you always know God's grace, mercy and peace in all this life brings.
Thank you to everyone that made this a very meaningful day for us. We count on our family and friends to help us raise our children in the Truth.
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