One enormous bonus of our trip to Utah was that Thane was able to be baptized with his cousin, Elizabeth. We are so grateful for Elizabeth and her family allowing us to join her big day. It meant that they were both surrounded by all our family and led to extra special shared memories.
My mom, almost all of my siblings and their families, Mark's parents, and Aunt Sue were all there to witness Thane and Elizabeth making their first steps along the covenant path. Ironically, the only of my siblings not in attendance was Katie, who had to stay at Kira's with a sick kid.
Thane didn't particularly love the extra attention focused on him (or the demand to be in a boatload of pictures), but he was excited to show his love for the Savior and his commitment to follow Him.
For his part in choosing the baptismal program, Thane asked Aunt Kira to speak on the gift of the Holy Spirit. He also asked Aubree and Bryce to perform "Gethsemane" (his favorite song) as a special musical number.
I recorded Aubree and Bryce practicing before the service began.
When it came time for Thane to be baptized, after Mark finished the baptismal prayer, Thane threw himself backwards and practically baptized himself! That's typical Thane. Whatever he sets his mind to, he makes sure gets done. Thane says that he felt warm and good after he was baptized.
After the service we all went outside for a fantastic lunch. Again, in typical Thane fashion, he was very enthusiastic about the food. We all agree that Uncle Andrew makes delicious cookies.
Mark and I gave him a set of scriptures as a gift. Thane loved them and literally could not wait to start marking passages.
Later, Gigi gave him a baptism bear. Thane, Mr. Generosity himself, kept asking, "Why are people giving me so much? Why is everyone so nice?"
Aunt Sue, who had flown in just for the special day, took advantage of having all the nieces and nephews together and had a small Aunt Sue Auction.
She randomly assigned the kids numbers and they got to choose a favored item. Thane was one of the first to choose, and he grabbed a beanie baby chameleon. In the background, little Edmund broke down into sobs. That was the toy he had been hoping to claim. Thane, upon hearing his distress, immediately knelt down and told him, "Edmund, don't worry! When it's your turn to choose, take any other beanie baby and I will trade you for this chameleon." Like I said, Mr. Generosity. That was a proud parent moment. He has such a tender, giving heart.
We are so pleased with Thane's choice to show his love for Jesus Christ and his willingness to follow Him by choosing to be baptized. We are also so grateful for Colleen, Andrew, and Elizabeth for allowing us to join their special event. Finally, words can't express our love and gratitude for all who came and supported Thane and Elizabeth and for all who couldn't attend, but still bless our lives.
We planned to spend the afternoon with Grandma and Grandpa Winters. When deciding what to do, someone mentioned Temple Square. "Yes!" I thought, "What better way to spend the afternoon of a baptism day?"
We first stopped for a tour of the Beehive House. I remember touring the home many years ago, but it's interesting to see it through adult eyes. The kids were impressed with how much bigger it was inside than it seemed from outside.
Next we walked through Temple Square and across to the Conference Center for another tour. I just love the graciousness of all the hosts and the Spirit that is present in the building.
Since we had so many kids, we had an abbreviated tour, but were still able to see most of the highlights, including the impressive artwork.
Nellie especially loved the escalators, though I don't think they were intended to be a featured part of the tour.
The park-like roof is stunning and spectacular.
The boys and Nellie could not resist sticking their hands in every bit of water we passed. The tour guide was understanding, "If they don't want to stick their hands in the fountains, they're not normal."
After leaving the Conference Center, we skipped over to the Church History Museum. We went many years ago and were impressed with the children's section. This time the children's section wasn't quite as enjoyable, so we didn't stay for too long.
That gave us time to check out the Family History Center's discovery area. That was pretty fantastic! When you walk in, you grab an iPad and sign in to Family Search. Then you can move through different stations that focus on various aspects of your personal family history. Bryce had to help us with the stations that had more advanced technology. Ha!
By this time, people were getting tired, hungry, and crabby (especially no-nap Nellie). We decided to high-tail it to find a place to eat dinner, but we did take a short moment to see the Tabernacle. It's surprising how small it seems now that we have the Conference Center.
We decided to eat at Johnny Rockets. Grandpa treated us all to burgers and milkshakes. It took a frustratingly long while to get our food, but once we were eating, attitudes improved dramatically.
All in all, it was a perfectly perfect day.
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