Dothan Visit and Baby Dedication

In addition to having her first birthday party last weekend, Niecy was dedicated at Debra and Lance's church in Dothan. For those unfamiliar with the term, many Protestant denominations practice infant dedication as an alternative to infant baptism. It's a little ceremony signifying the parents' commitment to raise the child in a Christian home. It was extra special to have this pastor dedicate Niecy, because in addition to being Lance's former youth pastor and now his current boss, he also married Debra and Lance!

I don't have any pictures of the actual ceremony, but Niecy behaved perfectly. By now she's used to being the center of attention in a crowd. :) After church, she toddled around in her pretty dress from Baby Gap while we took pictures. And rolled around too, because hey, why not?

the whole gang

My parents bought a baby seat for Debra's bike and a little helmet for Niecy. After installing the seat, my dad showed her the helmet and demonstrated it on her doll. She watched the whole thing carefully, and when it came time to wear the helmet, she was fine with it even though she doesn't like hats. I'm amazed by how much she seems to understand at such a young age.


This was my first trip to Dothan, so Debra and I escaped one afternoon for a couple of hours of Hermanas Only tourism. She drove me around "the circle" and through downtown (such as it is) so I could get a good idea of the area. We also stopped at the mall to visit Altar'd State, which she had been dying to show me. (I bought a dress!) Commercially, Dothan has almost everything you could want, even a McAlister's. Plus it's only an hour and a half from the beach. I officially approve.

On the drive home, my parents and I stopped at some Alabama attractions: an isolated warehouse store selling mainly jeans and shoes, and Durbin Farms, where we ate lunch. Lance's dad had rhapsodized about their homemade peach pecan ice cream, and I was not disappointed.

So that's what I've been up to. Next week should be more normal in every sense!

Little Miss Sunshine Party

Last weekend, I went to Dothan with my parents for my niece's first birthday and dedication at church! I got back Tuesday night and am still trying to catch up on life, hence the quiet here on the blog. There's a lot to talk about, but I think the birthday party deserves its own post.

 

Debra planned this Little Miss Sunshine party for months, and her work definitely paid off. It was the perfect theme for happy Niecy. :) The party was held at the church gym. Most of the congregation's kids were invited, in addition to Lance's parents and extended family, me and my parents, some relatives who live in Decatur, and my grandma, who flew in from Miami.

Because so many kids would be there, Debra planned lots of themed activities like a bean bag toss, coloring area, Play-Doh area, and sensory station (a bucket of uncooked rice with some rubber ducks in it). I was amused as kids fought for a chance to get their hands in the rice. My educator sister just nodded knowingly.

To me, the most impressive activity was a memory game with covers of the Mr. Men and Little Miss books. Debra made the cards herself!

She also printed Mr. and Little Miss nametags for everyone.

There was a wall of Niecy's monthly photos all the way through her first year. It was fun to see how much she's already changed! People loved looking at these.

When it was time for presents, all the kids wanted to sit in a circle around Niecy. It was really cute.

 

A friend made the adorable cake and Niecy's smash cake. She says she's just getting started with cakes, but this looked like a professional job to me! Debra got the cupcakes from a grocery bakery and printed out the Little Miss Sunshine toppers herself.

Like most one-year-olds, Niecy wasn't sure at first how she felt about cake, but eventually decided she liked it. Later, fueled by sugar, she took TEN steps! And "danced" with Debra and me!

It was a great time. More trip recap to come.