Baby Dedication

Yesterday was a very big day for the Strouds. We officially dedicated Mary to the Lord in the Baby Dedication Ceremony at church in the morning. We walked in front of the congregation with the other happy families, listened to our pastor, Bro. Jimmy, encourage us as parents, and then we repeated something after him. I say "something" because I'm not sure what I said; I was a little distracted by my noisy baby. Yes, Mary was very talkative during this nice, solemn ceremony. Thankfully, she didn't actually cry, but she sure did have a lot to say. My family from Mississippi made the 3-hour drive over to help us celebrate this special occasion. (Can you find us in the first picture? I'm wearing the green shirt and Stephen's standing behind me.) A friend in our 8 a.m. Sunday School class took some pictures for us (but not these particular ones) and put together some scrapbook pages for me to help remember this big day. After the service, we all went to Pepito's Mexican Restaurant for lunch, which was wonderful! It was great to relax and visit with family over a delicious meal (one of the reasons I love Thanksgiving).

Also during the church service, Stephen was voted in to be a deacon. I am so very proud of him! Deacons are men who help the church and serve God by serving the church. They go out on visits, help with parking and the t.v. ministry, and just make themselves available to serve (at least, that's how I understand it, I'm sure I'll learn more soon). Very, very proud of my husband.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, we're leaving tomorrow afternoon to visit my family in Fulton, Mississippi. We're also going to make the trip to Sunflower, Mississippi (in the MS Delta), to introduce Mary to Stephen's side of extended family. We'll be back Saturday night in time to make it to our Fireproof class on Sunday morning (excellent marriage study!). Please pray that we'll have safe travels. Happy Thanksgiving!