July 2, 2011 Levi's Baptism Day!

I guess you might say this is a 'welcome back' to the blog post....it has been a while! I try to keep my journal current, but sharing photos is just so fun--so I'm hoping that if I find time more often, that it will get easier!

A very special event prompts this post--Levi's baptism! It turned out that his baptism fell on a date almost a month following his 8th birthday--which was difficult for him to wait...but was fun for us to share his anticipation and excitment! He glowed the whole month long!

We spent several family home evenings focused on baptism--one of which we talked about the significance of names. We took the opportunity to use an example of Levi's name...opened his baby book and read about why we chose his name ('Levi is from the scriptures, it also means 'to join'-which is applicable for the 3rd of 5 children, the Levites were given charge over temples, and 'Martin' is his Grandpa's middle name). We spent a few extra minutes sharing other cute things we had written about baby Levi. He felt special. Then we tied the discussion into baptism by pointing out that just as Levi's name is special, so is the name of Christ and when we are baptised we promise to take the name of Christ upon us. I'm not sure why I wrote about this...except just to try to remind me down the road of some of the special moments leading up to his baptism.

We were blessed to have many family members attend his baptism and share this milestone with him! Grandma and Grandpa Kovacs from Arizona were able to come, as well as Tim's sister Kirsten and her family from Logan, UT! (more to come on that later!) Grandma Conway and many of my siblings and friends were able to attend also.

The baptismal service was perfect. Beautiful music and thoughtful talks. A highlight for me was that our family was able put together a musical number with lae-night rehearsal with the Bartons (Tim's sister) and Gma and Gpa Kovacs, a Janice Kapp Perry arrangemnt of "I Love to See the Temple." The children sang the traditional music and the adults sang a verse titled 'Teach a Child.' Grandma played the piano. My favorite moments were those spent practicing around the piano at home-but the performance was good, too, I'm sure. :) The other moment that I will always treasure is the one that we shared the night before his baptism when he and his Dad and I met in our bedroom for a quiet moment away from the happy hub-bub of a house full of loved ones. There he and Tim practiced the best way to go under the water, and we gave him a picture of Jesus and a white towel towel to remind him of the Holy Ghost can provide throughout his life, as he lives to be worthy of such a gift. It was 'cream-of-life.' :)

Most memorable, however, was the fact that Levi just glowed at his baptism. His Dad and I are so proud of him! We are so proud of the faith that he has and for the goodness in his heart. We are so pleased when we hear him pray, that we can feel the faith he has in a listening Father in Heaven. Levi has a heart of gold, and a smile that warms our own hearts.

A Letter to Levi:
Levi, I am so proud of you for accepting Christ into your life, by being baptized into Heavenly Father's church, by the same priesthood authority that John the Baptist held. I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church of God, restored in its fulness through the prophet, Joseph Smith. I know that this church is led by a prophet of God today, just as in ancient days. I believe in Christ. I believe that he showed us the way and gave us divine guidelines, or commandments, that will bring us peace and comfort and even joy as we journey through life. Choosing to be baptized is the first step in that journey back to our heavenly home. We sincerely pray that you will always find joy in choosing the Lord's way. We love you, Levi. Love, Mom & Dad