I kept wondering all last week, and Saturday morning, if I could actually pull off throwing Jocelyn’s dedication at our home. John kept saying, “Well, what exactly would NOT pulling off the party look like?” Every time he reminded me of that, I realized that even if everything didn’t get done in time, the party would still happen and everything would be ok. Not wanting to bite off more than I could chew, I kept the guest list very small (very difficult to do when I have so many wonderful friends that I hated leaving out) and the food very simple. I got up crazy early that day and worked as fast as I could in between Jocelyn’s feeding and other needs and got everything ready to go with a mere ten minutes to get ready. (Oh and the first guest came ten minutes early. AHHHH!) So I threw myself into the one dress that (kind of) fit and that I could still nurse in and had to call myself ready. Oh and of course I was throwing orders around to my mom and John left and right like they were my little Cinderella mice. It all came together at the last minute. Whew!

Despite the craziness of getting ready for a party with a baby and a week of illness at my house, it was such a beautiful and intimate little celebration to welcome Jocelyn into our world. I’m not a church person right now in my life. My little family has our own way of expressing our spirituality and we pray in our own way together in our home. So even though it might seem unusual to some, having my babies dedicated in our home, by my dearest friends, feels absolutely perfect to us. My best friend, Amy, did the dedication ceremony and my dear, dear friend Cassie sang a song she wrote for her son. I’m not sure there was a dry eye in the room. I set a video camera up on my bookshelf to capture Cassie singing and I would LOVE to share that part of the ceremony with you. Her voice is beautiful and the song she wrote is just as precious as can be. (Cassie, let’s get a recording session going in the studio soon, OK? K.)

So here’s Cassie singing (grab a tissue!) and also, I left the camera running for the rest of the party, so there were some funny little clips I added just for fun at the end. Enjoy!

(See that big blank wall with the one painting on it? As soon as I get some more photos of us with Jocelyn in them, I’m hoping to make a big gallery wall with framed prints. So consider that video a “before” photo of that wall.)

Since I was not only the hostess and a food source that day, I barely got any photos. I did capture a handful of random (and I do mean random) photos from the day to paint a picture of the morning.

John and I were wiped out after the party, and are still recovering, but we are feeling oh so blessed. Jocelyn and Miles bring us so much joy, I can’t even describe it. Miles was so good at the party. He was dutifully handing out pictures of Jocelyn to all of the guests and was just as sweet as can be. (Of course, towards the end of the gathering he started to get grouchy, which was later explained by the fact the poor guy had a double ear infection the entire time.) Ever since I became pregnant with Jocelyn I have been so afraid of handling two kids and have really wondered if I would ever get the hang of it. Lately, things are really starting to fall into place and I’m just so madly in love with our new little girl and watching Miles grow alongside her. It’s a really beautiful time of my life. Thanks for letting me share some of it with you.

If you want to hear more of Cassie singing, here she is singing at Miles’ dedication three years ago. It’s a little bittersweet for me watching Miles’ dedication video. That day was one of the last family gatherings that my sister was at before she passed away later that winter. She held Miles the whole time during the ceremony. It was at the same time though, around the time of Miles’ dedication, that the baby blues lifted and I really started to feel how amazing being a mother was.

Thank you so much to Cassie and Amy, and for my family and friends for helping me to create two wonderful memories now surrounding the blessing of my babies. I’m still on a high from feeling the love from everybody.

PS The strawberry and chocolate cakes were by Bagel Station. Don’t mind having those leftovers in the house this week!