Baby Austin's Baptism

        December 8, 2012.  Feast of Our Lady of Immaculate Concepcion...  A special date which  Icel Morales choose to  have her youngest son, Austin Marcelo, christened under Catholic rites.

        Our  breezy Saturday morning started just in time when Lin Garden Restaurant opened up. My husband Leih and my good friend Lala first dropped by the reception venue to make sure everything was in-check.

       It was my first time at this Chinese Resto and it was comparably more cozy, tidy and  inviting than the usual Chinese places I've been to. The Morales family reserved a function room good for 100 persons, with nig round  tables sporting yellow-gold table runners and red covers for the chairs. It was very Chinese in color. I thought it would be a little small and constricted but it was surprisingly spacious than it looked.

balloons from Andre&Kurt's...

First we arranged were the cake, cupcakes and give-aways while my good friend Bernadette of Andre&Kurt's  started setting up the balloons. Mommy Icel didn't have a particular theme and just opted for  simple baby-friendly designs which have hues of  blue and yellow. A friend of the family had the cake delivered as a gift to baby Austin. After almost everything had been set,  Lala took charge of the reception while  I left for church to assist in the ceremony.

the giveaways...

Austin's Precious Moments Cake...

  One thing I liked about this church is the very organized and solemn ceremonies it offer compared to the usual  "group baptismals" at common parishes elsewhere. They alot 30 minutes to one family after the next which makes the ceremony more private.

Shrine of Jesus, The Way, The Truth and the Life

      Austin's christening had been very solemn. Only the closest friends and family had been invited to witness this special occasion.

     At the reception, we were all greeted with familiar faces of the Del Rosario clan and friends of the family. The mood was very relaxed and everyone  enjoyed the unbelievable bounty of chinese specialties that  were served before us... Everything was so delicious and plentiful. Food was literally overflowing. It was almost 3pm when the celebration ended. It didn't even feel like work for me.
      Below are pictures of what the guests had at Austin's christening celebration... Just looking at these makes me hungry....

It's been a pleasure becoming a part of this handsome little boy's special day. We'll see you soon, cutie pie...

Austin Marcelo Del Rosario - Morales...