Pin the Name on the Baby

Last night at our church we had Parent Dedication. Many churches have baby baptisms, and even some baby dedications, but we choose to have parent dedications. I could discuss why we don't do baby baptisms - the short answer is it is against Scripture. (If you'd like my complete exposition on it, feel free to ask) For a long time, we called it "Baby Dedication" which is accurate as we are dediating the lives of these sweet little ones to the Lord. But, our current Pastor decided to change it to Parent Dedication because it's truly the parents who will be raising each child to love the Lord. And, they surely need the prayer and support now.

We had 18 families participate last night. That represents most, but not all, of the families who have birthed or adopted since Mother's Day. My favorite part of the service is when our Pastor prays and says the phrase "each of these sweet children has a soul that will never die." Wow. Talk about the parental responsibility kicking up a notch.

By the end of 2007, we'll have seen somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 - 60 new additions to our church family through birth or adoption. Our Preschool Ministry is busting at the seams. Even as I type, one our members is having a baby right now. It's a pandemic of global proportions. And the leader of the pack is my friend, Beth, the Preschool Director. A leader in more ways than one as she is expecting her third child in April 2008.

Beth has two children, Kelsey, 11, and Brandon 8. Baby Three was an unexpected blessing. She officially made the announcement when she hit 12 weeks, although she had known for some time. For those that know her best, that was a magnificent feat. She obviously caught the baby bug and it was precious to see her with child announcing all those who have had children.

Since this is a surprise event, she isn't prepared for all the things that go along with a new baby. In fact, she admits to forgetting more than she probably ever knew to begin with. The first task at hand is to name the baby. She finds out in about a week whether it's a boy or girl, so we're all anxiously awaiting the ultrasound results. I'm hoping for twins, but she's not caught that vision yet.

Beth's husband's name is Kelly, so for the girl, they used a "K" name, and for their son they used a "B" name. So, here's a question for the masses. We need names. Girl names beginning with K and boy names beginning with B. I've been campaigning for the middle name of "Rose" for about every girl that has been born and I've yet to win. I'm the Susan Lucci of baby names.

Submit your names in the comment section and I'll be sure to pass them along to Beth. She'll be so happy. She's wanted a blog post in her honor for months. Pregnancy was a pretty good way to seal that deal.