Ethan's Father's Day Baptism

It was incredibly important to Jeff and me that Ethan get baptized.  We have always had a strong faith life, even if we haven't been regular worshipers.  We are so glad to have found our church home at Christ Our Shepherd in Peachtree City.

Ethan was baptized June 15, 2014 on Father's Day Weekend.  After waking up to a perfect Georgia summer day (read: hot and humid), we headed off to church for the 11AM service.

Ethan did really great during the service.  The baptism was the first thing, so he was freshly dressed, changed, and fed and therefore in a pretty good mood.

The liturgy was the traditional Lutheran commitments and readings.  From the ELCA:

Our baptism sets us out on a lifelong journey that is characterized by our relationship to God, our relationship to our faith community, our relationships in our community and the wider world. Living our baptismal covenant means living a life of growth in the faith practices of discipleship.  

We are to “...live among God’s faithful people; hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s Supper; proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed; serve all people following the example of Jesus; and strive for justice and peace in all the earth.” 

Jeff and I are completely honored and dedicated to raise Ethan with these morals, ideals, and faith, all the while giving him the tools, education, and knowledge to grow.

Amy was his family sponsor, and the (non-relative) Hartmans were our church sponsors.  

We are so grateful for these folks who will help us, help and guide him to learn about being a faithful follower of Christ.

And of course, Grandma and Grandpa were there too!!!  They have always made sure we had the opportunity to learn and be part of a church family.  They even offered up Pastor Joanne to baptize Ethan! :)

We feel so lucky that Pastor Fritz decided to come to COS.  We are so happy to be part of the congregation.

After the service, we hosted the "Six Hartmans" and my family at our home.  The kids ran around the house and played, and even went in the backyard for a bit.

We had a luncheon of chicken salad, ham salad, and turkey sandwiches, veggie plates, chips, and mixed fruit.  We topped everything off with this wonderful Raspberry Elegance cake from Publix (vanilla cake with raspberry filling and cream cheese frosting).  YUM!

The kids of course each wanted a flower, and we were happy to cut the cake accordingly - who said it had to be cut in rows anyway!

Later in the day after everyone left, we had a nice Father's Day celebration with my Dad and Jeff.  They both received their cards and gifts from me, and from Ethan.

Look at these two cool dudes - one with the Iron Horse Campground hat, and the other with an outfit that says "My Grandpa Rides a Harley"!!