Maya's Baptism

Let me just start by saying that I probably should have stayed home from work today. I was SO tired from all the traveling and excitement this weekend! Of course, that's not really a good reason to call in sick, but today was ROUGH!

Anyway, Maya is now officially a member of the Greek Orthodox Church!

We drove up to Gus' parents' house on Saturday afternoon, so we could spend the night and then not have to drive quite so much on Sunday. As always, the kids had a great time playing with their grandparents (yiayia and papou) and aunt (theia). One important activity included baking a cake for Bill, who was flying in later that night. Who WOULDN'T want to eat this, really?

Anyway, the baptism itself went well. The guest list was very small, limited to just family. In attendance were both sets of grandparents, Maria and Bill (the godparents), Nikos' godfamily (Maria, Manoli, and Panayioti-- Eraclis is at law school in NY), and our little family of four. It was very last-minute, so some people couldn't make it, but it turned out for the best. Our normally shy boy was in hog heaven, with so many of his favorite people around! It definitely helped.

I started to type out a long blurb about what a Greek Orthodox baptism looks like, but thought a link might actually be more helpful (so here you go!). What you need to know, to understand the pictures, is that she started out in a gorgeous pink floral dress and matching accessories. After the initial part of the ceremony (where Gus and I held her and tried to keep her from running away), she got stripped down and wrapped in a white blanket. Then, she got slathered in oil and dipped in the font (which was heated, by the way). That was when she got very, very mad, and wanted me to hold her... but I couldn't, because the godparents have to keep holding her from that point until the end of the ceremony. They changed her into her beautiful white baptismal outfit, complete with her crucifix, and brought her back out to finish the ceremony and take Communion. At that point, I was able to hold her again, and she calmed down relatively quickly. And when it was all said and done, we went to a great restaurant with breathtaking views of Orange County, and both kids had a blast eating chicken fingers and getting ketchup all over their nice clothes. OOPS!




Anyway, it went very well, and now it is done. Hooray! And now, off to bed for me, to try and make up for such a full weekend! :)