Growing like a weed...

Genevieve is two months old today!  The past couple of weeks have been busy.  Last week Aunt Dawn and Uncle Scott came up for the whole week so we spent a lot of time with them.  On Saturday we met up at Aunt Siobhan's house for a visit with her and Sean.  Here are some pictures from that day:

As you can see, Sean adores his little cousin.  He loves holding her (for about a minute before he pushes her away), and he loves to help her put her pacifier in.  I have such wonderful memories with my cousins growing up, and I hope Sean and Genevieve can have the same experience.

Auntie Dawn brought a bunch of new clothes for Genevieve, because she doesn't have enough already!  We loved the things she got.  Here's an outfit that she wore to church last Sunday.

After church on Sunday, we came home and Mike took a nap because he had worked a double on Friday and was going to be working another double that night into Monday so he could have two days off that week.  Genevieve took a nap, too.

On Monday and Tuesday Auntie Dawn and Grammie came out to visit and spend time with Genevieve.  Auntie Dawn lives in Virginia, so she doesn't get to see her adorable niece and nephew a whole lot.  She wanted to spend as much time as possible with Genevieve this week.

Mike had the day off on Wednesday, so we went out to Malden and spent the day at Mike's parent's house.  We hung out and played games.  Then, we went to the mall and did a little shopping.  At one point Genevieve was finding her carseat toys to be very entertaining.  She was trying to hit them and when they moved, she laughed.  She's getting more and more interactive!  Mike also had the day off on Thursday, so Auntie Dawn, Uncle Scott, and Grammie came out to our house again.  I had free hands all week!

Of course, Thursday was also St. Patrick's Day.  Auntie Siobhan had given Genevieve a very cute outfit to celebrate.  Auntie Siobhan is VERY Irish and proud of it - so she likes to spread that pride as much as possible.

After they left, Mike, Genevieve and I went for a walk, because it was so beautiful outside.  This was Genevieve's first time going for a walk outside in her stroller!

On Friday, we were anxiously awaiting the arrival of Grandma and Pop-Pop, who were coming up for Genevieve's dedication.  It was another beautiful day, but too windy to go for a walk.  Instead, I put her in a cute, spring-y outfit and took some pictures!

Grandma and Pop-Pop finally arrived around 4:30 that afternoon.  They were shocked to see how big she had gotten!  My Dad hadn't seen her since the day after she was born, less than 24 hours old.  My mom last saw her when she was one week old.  A lot of changes took place since then!  They loved being able to hold her again.  On Saturday we all went out to lunch and Mike fed Genevieve her first bottle.  It was strange for me to be on the other side, watching her eat.  She took the bottle well.  I wasn't worried, though, because she will suck on anything that goes into her mouth!

Then came the big day.  Sunday was the day that we would dedicate our precious, little blessing to the Lord.  For those of you who don't know what a dedication is, it is similar to a christening or baptism, but without the water.  We declare before our friends and family that we will commit to raising Genevieve in a Christ-centered home, teaching her about God and His word.  Mike and I wrote our own commitments and read them, then Pastor Patrick asked the congregation and our family to help us keep these commitments.  Then he prayed for her.

It was a wonderful celebration.  All of Mike's family was able to be there.  This was the first time they had all been together since our wedding!  After the service, we had a potluck lunch.  When all of that was over and cleaned up, the Brown family headed to Sears for some family portraits.  Let me tell you, taking photos with twelve people, an infant and a toddler included, is not an easy task, especially when the toddler has not taken a good nap that day.  Nevertheless, we got some good pictures...

It was a long, long day and we were all exhausted come Sunday night.  However, I look back on the day thinking how blessed we are to have such incredible friends and family to spend these special days with.  I hope Genevieve grows up realizing the same, that she is so blessed to be surrounded by people who love and care about her so much.

To celebrate Genevieve's two month birthday, here is a video to celebrate how much she is growing!