We got back from our two-week Utah trip Thursday night and we were thrilled to have my parents come into town Friday night for his baptism the next day.
Trenton was initially not overly excited to have his baptism ON the day of his birthday (that's just when the stake baptism happened to fall), but when I told him we'd do our birthday fun on another day and that it really meant that he'd get to celebrate for TWO days instead of one... he came around. :)
The baptism was at 10am, and Trenton was joined by his friend and primary classmate, Kelsey Warner.
Friday night my mom and I ran over to Target to pick up some new church clothes for Trenton. (He tends to be sensitive to textures, so it's always hard getting him to wear buttons and collars!) ;) Thankfully, he gave his okay to the clothes we bought, and he looked so handsome Saturday morning.
Ryan and Trenton headed over to the church early to get dressed and make sure the font was filling. To my surprise, Quinn wanted to drive with them, so she did. (Most of the time, she prefers to stick with Mom.)
By the time my parents, Chase, and I got to the church, Quinn was loudly protesting the fact that she wasn't getting baptized that day. :) One of the most memorable aspects of Trenton's baptism (to me, at least) turned out to be her constant complaints (accompanied by big tears) over that little fact. :)
My friend Sami came to the rescue during the moment when Ryan was about to baptize Trenton; otherwise my mom and I would have missed it altogether. Quinn and I had stepped outside the door for a minute because she was so noisy and upset. Sami hurried my mom and I back into the room and offered Quinn a graham cracker, which appeased her for just long enough for me to see the actual baptism. :)
We didn't invite a lot of people because we were preoccupied with our Utah trip, so the people who were there meant so much to us! In attendance: Our former bishop, who was recently released but had been the one to do Trenton's baptismal interview (we thought it was so sweet that he came!), Soren Koldwyn; Trenton's primary teacher, Nora Ivie; our neighbors & good friends, Sami Halverson and kids, Bentely, Kamryn, Raegan, and Bruin; and of course, my parents.
Trenton reported a couple of times later in the day that he really enjoyed his baptism. When Ryan asked why, he said he really liked having his friends there. :) (So basically, the Halverson kids!)
During the Sacrament the next day, I reminded him that the Sacrament helps us become clean again, no matter how long ago we were baptized. He said he wanted to say a prayer in his heart, and then he asked if he could read the scriptures. :) He got through about 16 verses of 1 Nephi. :)
My one regret is that I didn't take more pictures or insist that everyone go with me to find just the right lighting around the church grounds. :) Tragically, my SLR finally bit the dust while we were in Utah, so these are all with our phones.
In the afternoon, we had a little rest time at home, took our parents to our garden plot, and ate dinner together at 5 Guys, and then came home for tres leches cake and bedtime. It was a really sweet day, and I'm so glad Trenton had such a great experience. He is a great kid!
Today, a week later, I asked Trenton to tell me what he remembered of his baptism and this is what he said:
"It was special having Dad baptize me and having my friends and grandma and grandpa there. Quinn wanted to take her clothes off and wear the white clothes like me. She really wanted to get baptized. Bruin (18 months) ran across the front of the primary room during the program. The water was on the cold side. I didn't plug my nose. Kelsey did. I felt warm. Happy."
Congrats, Trenton!
