Dallin had been counting down to his 8th birthday for months now and I can hardly believe that the day has already come and gone! What a sweet and treasured day not only for Dallin, but for me as his mother as well. I think that Dallin's day would have been special no matter what, but he really did have a few extra reasons to be grateful! I don't know of any other little children who actually got to be baptized ON their birthday AND have their mom be the primary president at the same time! What a very special day to treasure for both of us! We got up early in the morning and went to the church to pick up Dallin's baptism clothes. He was so excited...When we got home, Clint had already arrived with 8 white balloons and some yummy orange rolls for us to have for breakfast. We also gave Dallin one of his presents to open before everyone came. It was a new white towel to use at his baptism, a shiny blue CTR ring, and a new primary CD. Dallin was so happy because he had asked me many times if he could get a blue CTR ring and I kept saying no, (even though I had already bought it for him and had kept it hidden;) and now he finally had it AND he could wear it while he was getting baptized! 
The time that we spent at the church for Dallin's baptism was such a happy time! We were surrounded by close family and friends who love and support us in so many ways. The spirit was abundant and I remember feeling overwhelmed with love and gratitude towards my Heavenly Father for allowing me to be the mother of such a sweet little boy, and also for blessing me with a loving husband who was able to use the priesthood to perform this sacred ordinance for our son. While we waited for Dallin to get changed into his dry clothes, I had everyone that was there take a minute to write a little note to Dallin. I was yet again overwhelmed with gratitude as later on that day I was able to go through and read the notes and words of love and encouragement to Dallin from all of his family and friends. These cards are now safely tucked inside of an album that I put together for Dallin with all of the pictures from his baptism. That way he can always look back and not only see the pictures, but also be reminded of all of the people who love him and are important in his life.
Speaking of important, here are some of the people that are the very most important to Dallin. His best friend Jeremy, Great Grandma Clements, Grandpa and Grandma Trickett, and Grandpa and Grandma Panter. Grandpa Trickett got to give the talk on baptism, Grandpa Panter and Grandpa Trickett got to be the witnesses, Grandma Panter got to say the closing prayer, and I got to give the talk on the Holy Ghost. 
After the baptism was over, we had everyone come to the house for some lunch and some birthday cake. We had a BBQ with hamburgers and hot dogs, lots of yummy salads, chips, fruits and veggies, and lots of treats everywhere! We had a really nice time visiting with all of our loved ones and celebrating this special day with Dallin. Everyone seemed so content on just spending time with one another that I didn't even get to any of the activities that I had planned. Oh well, that's OK because we had some neat things to do together later that made some of the celebration last a little longer and seem a little extra special as well.
Dallin had a lot of fun opening his presents (trying to guess who they were from!), playing with his friends and cousins, and eating the yummy cake and ice-cream. When everyone had to get ready to leave, we gave each little child a white balloon on a stick for their prize to take home. Tucked inside of the balloon was a little note and a CTR ring that they could only get by popping the balloon. That way, they had something fun yet meaningful to remember about sharing Dallin's birthday and baptism day with him!
The next day was Sunday and Dallin looked so handsome in his little suit carrying his new scriptures that he got with his name engraved on them. When he went up in sacrament meeting to get his certificate and be welcomed into the ward, he was trying so hard NOT to smile, but it just kept on slipping out! Later on that day when we were all home together, we took Dallin's 8 white balloons from his birthday and went outside. We talked with Dallin about all of the neat gifts that he had received for his birthday, and how important some of them were and how grateful he needed to be. Then, we let Dallin decide what 8 things he was the most grateful for, and then as he would say them out loud, one at a time, he would let a balloon go up into the sky. We told him it was just a fun way to "say thank you to Heavenly Father" for all that he has been given. I think the list of 8 things that Dallin said was: his family, getting baptized, the gift of the Holy Ghost, his friends, his new CTR ring, his home, Jesus, and Heavenly Father. It was really fun to see all of the kids pausing long enough to watch these white balloons disappear in the sky. It was a neat feeling too to actually watch the "thank-yous" being sent to heaven. It made me stop and count my blessings as well. How blessed we are to have the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives. I feel so lucky to have the knowledge that I do of who I am, why I am here, and where I am going. I am a daughter of God blessed with an eternal family, sent to this earth to be tested and to work together in a family, so that one day we can all return to live with our Heavenly Father eternally. If Heavenly Father gives good gifts through days like we have had today, then I have been blessed for a lifetime!
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