Molly's Baptism

Last Sunday, March 21st, Molly was Baptized at St. Davids Church in Richmond. My whole family, including Aunt Barbara, made the trek to Cali for the event with the exception of Danny who had a work emergency at the last minute and couldn't make it and Barbara who stayed home with the twins. It was so great to have everyone in town to celebrate and even though it was short, we really enjoyed ourselves while we had the chance.

Pre-Baptism fun - Enjoying pizza and a game of cards at Nana and Pops' executive suite!

Hanging out with her soon to be Godmother Kate.

Godfather Luke looking dapper in his suit before the ceremony.

Hanging out in the church with Delaney and Darby.

Hamming it up before the ceremony.

Pooped out on her Godmother's shoulder after all the excitement.

Ema, Monica, Delaney and Dylan at the after party.

The twins curtseying for the camera.

Quinlan, Chris, Ellen and Derek enjoying some refreshments in the yard.

The "Breuer Bench" flanked by The Brights.

Maura, Molly, Tony and Joey hanging out at the picnic table.

Molly grabbed the top of the bread from the cheese dip and started to devour it even though it was as big as her head. Later, we made her put it down to take some pictures and Tami, the dog, made off with it! It was gone in a matter of seconds. Sorry Molly.

Enjoying the beautiful day with her Godparents.

The girl of the hour with her Godparents and Parents.

We wanted to get a family shot, but Darby and Delaney were already changed and in the midst of a massive game of hide and go seek so this is the best we could get.

I love this shot of Molly in her Christening gown. This gown was worn by John and all of his siblings as well as Darby and Delaney! It is a real family heirloom and is over 64 years old.

Molly was checking out some of her presents. She's still at the age where the wrappings are more interesting than what's inside.

Yucking it up with Aunt Maura. I love how you can really see those lower teeth these days.

Pops still has the magic touch.

Taking a break from running around to play some cards.

John and Derek doing, I don't know what exactly.

Molly and her Great Aunt Barbara.

A closing shot with her Godfather Luke.

Couldn't Resist

Yes, I know it's wrong to torture your child by putting on a St. Patrick's Day hat that your friends bought for their dogs, but you tell me if you could resist!

It almost looks like she's posing here but in reality she was trying to pull it off.

We got one decent shot before she really started to protest.

And she's done!

The Hat Battle

Aaah, the age old battle between baby and hat. Molly is one of many babies that is not very happy wearing a hat and whenever I put one on her, a battle to get it off is inevitable.

At first, she's pretty happy hanging in the sun and isn't really thinking about the intruder on her head.

Eventually, the realization hits her that she wants no part of this hat and starts working the velcro on the strap.

Once that task is accomplished it's on to the much harder task of using the same strap to get the hat off her head.

This can sometimes take a while and is pretty fun to watch.

Success!

Then she gets to wave the hat around a bit to savor the victory.

Like anything that makes it into her hands, it must pass the taste test.

And finally, it gets tossed to the side, only to be put back on her head by mommy and the battle begins anew.

Johnny and Laura's Backyard

We enjoyed another beautiful day by hanging out in Johnny and Laura's backyard after she gave John a haircut.

Molly is starting to stand a bit on her own but can't last more than a few seconds at a time.

Even so, she still has a lot of fun.

She was really enjoying hanging out with daddy in the sun.

Then, she discovered some flowers growing and decided to do some exploring.

She decided it was all very tasty.

Then I showed her some beautiful calla lillies.

Her little fingers always look so dainty when she first touches something.

And then...

Rolling the Ball

One of Molly's favorite games these days is rolling a ball back and forth.

She really likes this ball because it's easy to catch and apparently it tastes very good.

I loved the expression in this shot.

Mostly she looks like this when we play roll the ball.

Fun at the Park

Since it's been so nice we headed down to the park at the end of the street yesterday to have some fun. Molly really loves holding onto things and standing by herself these days.

She had a great time holding onto the steps leading up to the slide.

Then it was time for a bike ride.

Finally we spent some quality time playing in the sand. She really loved it and kept picking up handfuls and watching the grains slip through her pudgy little fingers. Very exciting stuff.

Of course Blue dog was there to share in all the fun and keep an eye on Molly.