Dedicated

A long, long time ago (well, okay, about a year ago, but it feels like a lifetime!), when Little B was a 100 days old, we had a Baek-Il party for him. We didn't have rice cakes, nor did we make offerings to any pagan goddesses as per tradition. Mainly, it was a gathering of friends to celebrate Little B, as well as a small attempt to pay homage in some way to my Korean heritage.

Nich prayed a prayer of dedication over B that day, that we would commit to raising him in a way that brings glory to the Lord.

We planned to dedicate Little B at our church as well, but the child dedications kept being postponed ... until this past Sunday. Because we felt we had already made the commitment when we decided to have children and again at B's Baek-Il, this step of doing it before our congregation was really just a public profession of our commitment. Nich and I both have served and do serve as leaders in various ministries in our church, and as such, we felt that it was important to be an example in this way.

Word to the wise: If you're going to stand on stage with a child, do it while they're too little to wriggle out of your arms or wait until they are old enough to understand obedience. Otherwise, this is what you'll have to deal with:

We specifically asked Justin (who is the youth pastor at our church) to dedicate B, because he and his family are good friends of ours and B is familiar with "Uncle Justin." We thought this might limit the acrobatics. Maybe it did. Who knows what he would have been like if one of the other pastors had tried to hold him?

All that squirming must have tuckered him out, because he conked out on the ride home.

In other news, Little B suffered his second major injury this week by tripping on the vacuum cord and bonking his head on the corner of the entrance to the kitchen. He got a scrape and a bump, but he's none the worse for it.

This mama, however, took a moment to have a pathetic cry after the alarmist phone nurse at our pediatrician's office kept trying to convince me that I "had" to take B in to the Urgent Care to get his forehead stitched. B has been a challenge as of late, as he is testing boundaries and learning independence ... all while desperately needing me to be close by (or holding him) frequently. He has also dropped his afternoon nap. He is also cutting some more bottom teeth. By the time dinnertime rolls around, both Little B and I have strung out nerves, and we are READY for "Da-doo" to come home.

A friend once told me that what gets her through the tough days with her children is to remind herself that "this too shall pass." I am repeating that to myself often these days. After all, part of dedicating myself to parenting Little B in a godly way is to love, love, love him through these not-so-fun stretches.* Until then, I look back at these moments, and my heart melts all over again.

Five days old. Photo Credit: Collignon Photography

*Getting out of the house, phone calls with good friends who don't judge, flowers, good books, and brown paper packages tied up with string also help a great deal.