Baby Baptism Time!

My cousin's baby got baptized last Sunday and it was a really nice ceremony and party afterwards. His dad and stepmom had the whole shindig catered at their house which has a fantastic backyard. It's one of the few parties I've been to in recent memory where I was able to relax because I knew my kids weren't going to wreck everything! Outside parties are the way to go. My cousin is three months older than I am and this is his first baby...and this baby, oh my goodness, what a baby he is. Precious, scrumptious, round and snuggly and snerfgly......oh, I had baby fever bad holding him and my own baby is not even two years old yet! 

This baby looks this pleasant all the time. I didn't hear him cry the whole day, not even during his baptism. Which, by the way, was a trifecta baptism since three little boys got baptized. This baby was obviously the cutest baby there. Look at those cheeks! Those eyes! Those pwecious wecious wips! Wanna smooch 'em wight now!!!! (I'm sorry. Babies do something to me. It's not pretty.) 

The party was also nice because my grandmother Miss Moo got to attend. And hold each of her five great-grandchildren that were present. She has two more great grandchildren, one of whom was born last week, but those two couldn't make it. She had to be contented by drowning in a sea of my children. And her own grandchildren, as you can see:

GH took this picture and he said, "Never blame me for how weird our kids are again. Ever."Fine, fine. What, am I too old to perch on my grandmother's lap? She's tough. She can take it.

Here is my beautiful cousin and her friend. My cousin and I actually look alike, even though she has dark hair, dark eyes, beautiful skin, a fantastic smile, and she is fit and trim. But other than that, we are twins. Twins, I tell you, twins! 

See? In this picture, we have my grandmother, my second daughter, and my cousin. Not me. Although I would look smashing in that coral dress she's wearing. But I'd need to let it out a leeeeetle bit. 

Here is my grandmother with her three grandchildren that were able to be there. My late grandfather called all of us cousins Monkeys, except for my second to the youngest cousin, whom he called Moshe, for a reason known only to him. 

Here's GH and the baptism boy. They are both III's, as in their names are the third. So GH wanted to have their pictures made together. Wow. Thanks for that geekery, honey. The baby is way cuter, though. 

Then I had the bright idea of taking my grandmother's picture with all of her great grandkids. All the couches were occupied by soccer fans watching the game and they could not be entreated to move. So we moved into a bedroom and I allowed the children to roam about the carefully made bed, destroying any semblance of neat housekeeping my aunt had worked so hard on. But I did get a few cute pics. I guess they're cute, but the children sure look wild. 

My grandmother is very happy because everything we ever did to her as children is now being visited upon us fourfold. She is ecstatic. Plus, also, she gets to hand all these kids back over to the parents in a few minutes. Great grandmothers are not expected to take any responsibility. 

My girls loved their sweet cousin. They begged me for a new baby all the way home. 

Gam Gam's Monkeys, version 2.0 Thank you, GG3, for flipping the camera off and MOS for looking so pruney. The baby is cute, though, isn't he? I just want to bite his widdle wegs. Nibble, nibble. Oh, sorry, I got carried away by that baby thing again. 

My cousin and his beautiful, wonderful, we-don't-deserve-someone-this-wonderful-in-the-family wife opening baptism presents. I love my cousin....he's a man's man through and through, deep voice, a beard by noon every day even though he shaves in the morning, plays golf, played rugby in college, manly, manly, man. But for love of his wife and baby he perched on her chair and said encouraging things like, "That's a nice mug. How cute. Love that bib. Wow, thanks for the picture frame. Such a nice sippy cup." Great husband and father you've turned into, Monkey. Gam Gam's proud of you.