This past weekend, 6 babies– 4 little nieces, 1 baby cousin, and our little granddaughter—all younger than one and a half—gathered in Dallas for a mass baby christening. My mother, ever the optimist, invited over 50 friends and relatives, hired a caterer, outfitted all the babies in tiny christening gowns and bonnets, booked 2 photographers, and called the first presbyterian church to tell them we were descending on them.

The christening went pretty well, despite the chaos. Our granddaughter Delaney spontaneously broke into laughter several times, and little cousin Buck pitched a wild fit when the minister picked him up. My mother drove off with Bonny’s purse by mistake, leaving her and the twins stranded in the church parking lot for an hour until someone realized they weren’t there. Nobody got much sleep, the decibel level was ear-splitting, everyone was on a different feeding and napping schedule, but it was fun being around all those new babies. I’ve put up a few of my favorite photos here, some that I think captured the mood of the event. The bonnets gave our group a distinctly fundamentalist mormon feel.