"Unless the Lord builds the house..."

Psalm 127 says that anything we do on this earth is in vain, unless God is the foundation for it. Life's work is senseless without Him. That is why we are to dedicate our home and our children to the Lord.

This past Sunday, with the help of Brother Johnny Fain, we committed to raise Luke in a Christian environment and in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, in the fellowship of Christ's church. We promised to share Christ with him, with the hope that he will one day trust Christ as his Lord and Savior.


The gown he wore was made by my mom, the first project she had ever done of this kind. It was gorgeous! Absolutely perfect. It will definitely be an heirloom.

His bib was smocked by Mitzi Chambers. (Click on the picture below to enlarge it so you can see the detail of the bib.) She is wonderful. I am so glad to have gotten to know her through Apples of Gold. Her husband, Mark, is Kyle's mentor. They were paired up in a bible study they did last month called "Real Men Matter." It was like Apples of Gold for men. I don't think they did any cooking, though...


Mitzi also was so sweet to coordinate our dedication day lunch. She made us a Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole that really was superb. (I will post the recipe for you later, when Mitzi sends it to me;)). Debbie Fain brought us an awesome loaf of homemade bread and Paula Coleman made a yummy, gooey, chocolate cake. I need to get that cake recipe, too. I don't know if I'm ready to make homemade bread, do you think? There's no way it would be as good as Mrs. Debbie's! Denise made us a strawberry congealed salad that was a HUGE hit. (An Apples of Gold recipe. I already have that one.) She also brought the flowers for the kitchen and dining room and a big jug of sweet tea.





On Friday, Luke's Grammy, Paw Paw and Aunt Kimberly came down and kept him for the evening so we could have a date night. They kept him the next morning while we did a hunter's safety course, too.


Granmama, Grandaddy, other Aunt Kim and cousin Kate came Saturday night, just in time for the Bama game. We made a huge pot of Taco Soup (need to give you that one, too. It's another AOG recipe. So easy.) Luke and Kate had so much fun together.


Luke said he missed his Uncle Colby, Aunt Rachel and cousins Brooklyn and Madelyn. And Uncle Shane and cousins Reid and Charlie :(

Everyone stayed at our house, which worked out really well. We finished up the apartment above the garage just in time. I think it is comfortable. The hot water heater is just a little small. Sissy Kate does not like cold showers!

How many grandmoms does it take to give a bath?


They must have been doing a good job because he didn't want to get out!


On dedication day, we miraculously made it to church early enough to get Luke dressed on time. He was not too happy with the process of getting dressed and he was fussing and kicking while we were waiting to go into the sanctuary...




but once we got out there he stole the show. He had all the appropriate responses: clapped and smiled when the congregation clapped, he waved and he babbled and yawned when the preacher was talking :). Everyone said it was the cutest baby dedication ever!



It was a great weekend and we are so thankful for the time we got to spend with our families.



We had some wonderful friends there to support us, too. This is Jordan, Alicia and Ava Yates; Barry, Deborah and Canon Moss; Ed and Leslie Cox; Shay, Denise, Mary Selwyn and Adeline Nichols; and Josh, Mary and Colt Parrish. Thank you guys so much for coming! We missed Will, Tuan, Alex and Julia Blank, but they were getting ready for Alex's third birthday party!

First Baptist is such a huge blessing. We were excited to join on the day of Luke's dedication. It is a loving and friendly, Christ-centered church that has helped make being so far from home a whole lot easier.

Luke is a wonderful blessing and a gift. We will do our best to raise him in a Christian home, according to God's standards.

"Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from Him."
--Psalm 127:3