Christened Weekend

Parents, Godparents and the BRS

The story of the past few days will have to be told mainly through photos because way too much fun was achieved to capture with mere words. I didn’t get near a computer once I left work on Friday until this morning when I returned. The intervening period was spent with the shining stars of my social world in a variety of activities ranging from a definitive celebration of the First Friday of the Week to the final repair of the large wall my son is building in his front yard. In between we took a few moments to mark the entry of the BRS into the Catholic church.

FBR in Charge at my Desk

Fun Friday Lunch

Friday dawned with the entire New Jersey contingent still in residence. They then all showed up at my office so we could go out to lunch. Wingman was still pale from his first encounter with Kelly Square. I told him his New Jersey license plates had made him vulnerable as locals took advantage of his unfamiliarity with this traffic maelstrom. My Favorite Son experienced a similar baptism under fire about a year ago. The FBR made her usual inspection of any bus in the garage and then seized firm control of the desk in my office until it was time to leave for lunch.

First Friday Crew

We reconvened later in the day at Brew City where the FBR has her own fan club due to her many appearances there. This was a fabulous way to kill time while we waited for the traffic to die down before commencing out trek north to New Hampshire, pizza was also involved. The wait achieved the necessary thinning of the I-495 herd and we all made good time up to my Favorite Son and the ABFA’s home.

Proud Dad

Daughter and ABFA Getting BRS Ready

Wife and I With our Two Granddaughters as well as Daughter

You can imagine the frenzy of activity the next morning when all three families in residence charged around trying to get ready for the 1100 baptism ceremony. This was further complicated by having to stop and watch whenever the FBR and the BRS interacted. I think once the BRS gets a little older these two are going to be fast friends. There is definitely something very special about cousins.

The Whole Christening Crew

Both Sets of Grandparents

Riggins was exiled to doggy day care, much to the consternation of the FBR and later Great Aunt. In a truly remarkable event all of us showed up at the church on time, even Great Aunt and Soxfather (an event of some note). A small group from both sides of the BRS family showed up including the aforementioned Rhode Islanders along with Keene Friend. The church was adjacent to the Phillips Exeter Academy campus which brought back a lot of memories as so many of the big swim meets of my high school career took place there (it still looks really elite).

The priest turned out to be absolutely perfect. So many times priests use these type events to lecture and pummel the assembled with massive infusions of good old Catholic guilt. This priest was all about welcoming and making everyone a part of the event. My daughter and Wingman were the godparents (no thunderbolts when they stepped onto the altar) and I was really moved seeing all four of the most important young adults in my world together again. I was also literally moving since I was in charge of the FBR while her parents were engaged in the actual baptizing. The FBR does not take lightly being excluded from the center of attention and tried to ease her way up onto the podium several times. We’ve spent enough time that she knows all my containment moves well and has apparently spent time creating counter-measures. The BRS was particularly serene during the entire ceremony, almost as if she realized she was the star of the show. She didn’t cry once during the application of various liquids to her cranium and spent the rest of the weekend smelling particularly fragrant with the baptismal oil on her head.

FBR Looking to Evade

After the ceremony we re-convened back at the ABFA/Favorite Son residence for a barbecue party. The weather could not have been more perfect especially after the heat wave endured last week. I spent the entire afternoon under a tent since my wife and the dermatologists have conspired to insure I think of the sun as veritable poison. There were several lively games of cornhole where Keene Friend turned out be something of a ringer although he disavowed any training in the area. Wingman achieved his usual, scary levels of triumph.

The Four Very Special Young Adults

Wingman and my daughter had to leave for New Jersey in the early evening since Wingman had to work on Sunday morning. They left the FBR with us, as planned, for the week. My daughter gave us a stern look and told us not to “break” the FBR while she is in our care. She and Wingman have worked hard to establish a very strict routine and she feared the laissez faire credentials of grandparents rules could impact. I just smiled.

Abuela Time

My Son and the Ringer - Keene Friend

Sunday morning has my son and I back out on his wall project. He’d been painstakingly backfilling behind the wall with gravel from a huge pile he had delivered. The work went much faster with the two of us and we restored the complete wall and backfilled it as well. He’ll have to acquire some additional bricks for the remaining partial row as well as the capstones that remain. The FBR was not going to sit back and watch us work unsupervised though. She came out several times, since she loves to throw rocks, and helped us put the gravel in place. My dermatologist woes continued as I was almost completely encased in long sleeves and a Betelgeuse level of SPF 200 lotion on any exposed skin. It seems my wife is very serious about this.

Cousins

Son and Daughter with the BRS

We timed our return to Worcester to coincide with the FBR’s scheduled nap time and she was sound asleep less than five minutes after we pulled away. So her nap schedule survived at least the first day under our care. We got back home in time to fully engage with the assembled toys and the FBR was soon splashing away despite the deflated state of her pool.

FBR Supervising Wall Work

Project Almost Complete

We assessed the pool no longer met her standards and left to buy another one and hit the Meola’s ice cream stand along with way. The FBR has become a huge fan of ice cream. There was a young lady with a beautiful singing voice entertaining the ice cream eaters and the FBR seemed entranced by her. The FBR didn’t try to get up once during our stay which is virtually unheard of. Despite this late in the day infusion of sugar she went to bed right on time and even slept until almost 8am, well beyond her usual awakening. She, like her grandparents, was probably exhausted by just too much fun over the past three days.

Ice Cream!!!