Joseph was blessed in church on Sunday August 2nd. Some of the VanDerwerken family came down for the baby blessing which was really fun. Grandma and Grandpa VanDerwerken (Seth's maternal grandparents) came down on Saturday night. We told them they were welcome to stay in our apartment, if they wanted to sleep in the same room as the crib and tend Joseph during the night. They opted to get a hotel. :) Aunt Debbie (Seth's mom's sister) and Uncle Paul and Aunt Leslie also came. We went out for dinner the night before at Texas Roadhouse, which was incredibly noisy, but Joseph slept through the whole thing--even when every employee in the whole place came and sang happy birthday to the little girl at the table next to us.
The next morning we dressed Joseph up in his little white suit. He behaved very well. Seth blessed him and in the circle were Seth, Grandpa VanDerwerken, Uncle Paul, our Bishop, and our home teacher. Joseph was quiet the whole time and it was a really nice blessing. Seth blessed him with a strong and healthy body so that he would be able to complete his mission here on this earth. He blessed him that he would have a desire to learn spiritual things. He blessed him that he would love his family and appreciate those who had gone before, and that he would remember those great men who have had his name. It was a nice blessing and everyone in the ward loved seeing Joseph in his little suit.
The next morning we dressed Joseph up in his little white suit. He behaved very well. Seth blessed him and in the circle were Seth, Grandpa VanDerwerken, Uncle Paul, our Bishop, and our home teacher. Joseph was quiet the whole time and it was a really nice blessing. Seth blessed him with a strong and healthy body so that he would be able to complete his mission here on this earth. He blessed him that he would have a desire to learn spiritual things. He blessed him that he would love his family and appreciate those who had gone before, and that he would remember those great men who have had his name. It was a nice blessing and everyone in the ward loved seeing Joseph in his little suit.
Joseph is the 8th great grandchild on the VanDerwerken line, and the first boy. Sorry if any VanDerwekens read this. Just had to gloat a little bit in true VanDerweken fashion :) This picture was taken after Joseph was tired of wearing a suit and a bowtie.
I thought it was neat to get a picture with Joseph and his great-grandparents. When he fills out his four generation pedigree chart, he'll actually have pictures of himself with most of those people. Neither Seth nor I ever met our great-grandparents, so we really liked being able to visit our grandparents in Utah and have the VanDerwerken's come down to meet Joseph.
elspeth, thanks for sharing. What beautiful pictures of Joseph. I am sure he was pleased and happy with the blessing. So are we.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth, you are such a beautiful Mom, it's fun to see you with your other side of the family.
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth! I found you on someone's blog roll (maybe the Choules?) Anyway, I'm so sad I missed the blessing. It's been a crazy summer of travel for me. Glad that you could have some family here for Joseph's special day. See you soon!
ReplyDeletecute! :)
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