Category Archives: Baptism

Leo Gets Baptized!

May your life be blessed with love and joy
May angels guide you from above
May your heart be kind your spirit strong to see the good and right some wrong
May the world be a better place because you came and shared some space.

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Congratulations to my precious Leo on his Baptism this past weekend on July 25, 2015!  There was a time when we thought we’d had to learn how to baptize you at the hospital right after birth because we were told that it would be too late to wait for a priest to come and do it.  There was a time when we didn’t even think you’d make it past a few hours of life, let alone make it to birth.  Fast forward to the present, at almost 7 weeks old, we are now able to have a proper and private baptism, and celebrate your Ngày Đầy Tháng and Homecoming celebration.  Thinking about the journey you’ve been through, how much you’re endured and overcome, makes me very emotional and overwhelmed with appreciation and gratefulness.  Thank you so much to Father Kiet for coming back to St. Norbert Catholic Church to baptize our baby Leo!  The baptism was bilingual (mostly Vietnamese) but also very intimate.  I am happy that we got to have a special private baptism just for our baby Leo.

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We then had a celebration at home for Leo’s Ngày Đầy Tháng and Homecoming!  Before the Baptism, our family came over to celebrate with us, and our friends came over afterwards.  Since we didn’t have a big fancy baby shower for Leo, I decided to go all out for his celebration.  I made all the decorations myself, and bought flowers from our local flower shop at Visser’s Florist.  I also made all the desserts myself minus the cake which we got from our usual bakery, Givral.  I decorated the cake though, and made panna cotta with fresh strawberries, kiwi and blueberries, mini chocolate cupcakes with swiss meringue frosting, vanilla macarons, orange blossom macarons, matcha green tea macarons, and strawberries filled with whipped cream cheese frosting.  I also had Leo’s announcements printed out for everyone to take during the party!  Special thanks to the wonderful Mieng for photographing the amazing photos of my precious Leo!!

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Special thanks to our cousin Steve for being Leo’s Godfather!  We know Leo will be in great hands and that Steve will do a wonderful job loving our Leo and guiding him through his journey with God.  Thank you so much for being there for our son and for all that you will do for him in the future!  Thank you to all of our friends and family who came to love and support our baby Leo as well.  Leo is so lucky to have all of you in his life.  We love you all!LeoAndGodFatherSteve

My little prince Leo, I am so in love with you and so proud of you.  You are so amazing in your strength and you are such an inspiration to watch.  You’re such an incredible baby and I can’t wait to watch you grow even stronger, smarter, more brave, and healthier!  I know you will grow up to be an amazing man, but until then, I will enjoy you being my precious little baby.  I love you so much my wonderful baby Leo, congratulations on your baptism and everything you’ve accomplished so far!

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Thank you Leilani and Kenny for taking pictures for me!  See more pictures from the festivities HERE.

Lily’s Baptism & 1 Month Celebration!

Our sweet baby Lily got Baptized yesterday at St. Norbert Catholic Church at 2pm and we also celebrated her Ngày Đầy Tháng!  Lily got to have her own private baptism ceremony due to my request (ask and you shall receive!) and I’m so glad it was private because it was very intimate and it really made it that much more special since our Lily.   There are 5 symbols of baptism: the cross, a white garment, oild of chrism, water, and candle.  The cross represents Christ’s crucifixion, his resurrection and salvation of us all. This reflects the ‘turning to God’ in the three promises. The white garment was given to us by the church, and it is the symbol of purity as well as a manifestation of the “new man”. White symbolizes that the stain of Original Sin is no longer upon the child whose soul is wiped clean by the sacrament of baptism. Lily is now a child of God and that heaven is opened to her.  The Oil Of Chrism was put on lily’s chest and later the top of her head, and that symbolizes the seal of the Holy Spirit.  The water reminds us that it is God who gives us life and it symbolizes cleansing and purity and water washes away our sins.  Lastly, the candle is the final symbol in baptism which Khoa got to light, and it is, like water, essential for life. Without light there could be no life on this planet and it particularly symbolizes Faith.  Lily’s saint name is Anna, inherited from her Godmother Jennifer’s saint name.) was the center of attention!  We are so happy God will protect our baby in her journey through life, and will are more happy that she has two godmothers (Jennifer and Leilani) who will love, support, and take care of her through her life as well.  Thank you Godmother Jennifer for lily’s necklace and cross, and to Godmother Leilani for Lily’s necklace and pendant as well!  The necklaces were blessed by Father Kiet Ta as well!  Lily was so wonderful during her baptism, she was asleep the ENTIRE time!  Even when Father Kiet poured water over her forehead, she still remained fast asleep.  She didn’t wake up until we got home and it was time for her lunch!!  Haha!  That’s my sweet angel!  Special thanks to my uncle for video taping Lily’s baptism, she can look back and she what an aswesome mellow baby she was during this event!  Haha!  Also, thanks Kristin for taking picture for me with my camera!!  Thank you so much to all those who made it to her special baptism!

As a Vietnamese tradition, we usually celebrate the baby’s 1 month old milestone, called a Ngày Đầy Tháng.  We only celebrate the baby’s first month and 1 year birthday, but luckily for Lily, we will adopt the Western tradition and celebrate every year of her life as well. =).  During the week before her party, I worked very hard on making a banner and decorations for her party.  I also made cake decorations for her cake, (thanks An & Linda for the ordered caked from Givral Bakery!) and I made French Vanilla cupcakes with swiss meringue buttercream, and made decorations for those as well.  I wanted to make cupcake decorations that were cute but also baby related.  So I made love birds to represent the love of her parents that create our precious angel Lily, I made a bassinet to and pacifier for the cute baby items, and the hearts that says Love and baby Lily to show her that our hearts are filled with her love and our love for her, and the pink flowers represents the pretty girl she’s already growing to be!

A couple months ago near the end of my pregnancy, Khoa bought me this cool book that has a bunch of recipes and imaged of cake Push Pops, and I’ve been waiting for an occasion (where I have time and energy) to make these!  Although right now I don’t have as much free time and energy as I use to, I still decided to try to make these.  Luckily, I was successful and made Strawberry Shortcake cake push pops!  I was going to tie a pink ribbon and add a pink rhinestone in the middle of the bow for decoration around the push pops, but I decided this was enough work!  I’ll go all out for her 1 year old birthday!

We ordered Vietnamese food from the same place as we did before for our Baby Shower.  We ordered Nem Nuong, Banh Beo, and Mi Xao, (no egg rolls this time since we decided to have a much smaller party), and my aunt made Fried Rice and my family brought cut up fruit (watermelon, honeydew, mango, pineapples, and LOTS of green grapes).  I also made personalized water bottle labels for Lily’s party as well!  Lily was showered with gifts, attention, hugs, kisses, and lots and lots of love!  Every time I finally get a chance to hold my baby, someone instantly takes her away from me so they can get their Lily fix!  It’s nice to know how much she’s loved!!

I’m so happy to have such a cute, healthy, and strong baby, I cannot be more happy and in love with our Lily.  I hope she looks back and enjoys these sweet treats, decorations, and love I put into making her day extra special!  Mommy and daddy loves you SOOOOO much Lily!!  You can enjoy all the pictures from her special day HERE!