Baptismal dresses for girls- yes or no?

[Elphaba]

I got a *new* dress when I was baptized, but it wasn't white.

That said, my DD will be wearing a white dress after her Baptism. It's not a tradition here, but it's a way I'm using my wedding dress rather than letting it sit in a closet for ages (I just couldn't part with it after the wedding. ) I used the material from my dress to have a Blessing dress made for my DD when she was a baby, and the remaining material (because I was a largish bride) will be used to make her a Baptism dress.

What a lovely way to keep reaffirming the symbolism of your wedding dress--the beginning of your family.

If I were LDS, I would definitely consider doing that.

Elphaba

[Guest]

The problem is that DD isn't really aware of the tradition because it wasn't a big thing where we lived before. But I've seen every one of the 9 or 10 little girls in her soon to be Activity Day's group wear a white dress to church. They are obviously the after baptism dress. (Parents don't generally buy rowdy, bouncy little girls pure white dresses just to wear on any old Sunday.) I doubt DD will be aware of the tradition before her baptism next month but I don't want her to feel gypped either once she gets to know these girls in the ward better and finds out she didn't get a new white dress to put on after. Then we have another little girl coming up close on her heels. For sure they will both be appraised of the tradition by the time she gets baptized in 16 months. I always feel like a bad mom when I buck these traditions. (We don't do sleepovers either and I've taken endless flack for it.)

I beg to differ just a little. I admit I'm a bit of a pushover at times. Not on everything. We have fairly tight rules on many things and we don't spoil our kids. Christmas is a very moderate affair as are their birthdays. But in this case I'm pondering the value in the white dress. It actually might be a sweet thing to do as long as the dress is simple and not like a wedding or pageant dress. It's something we've never done before because it actually hadn't occured to me to do it. We've been out of the church trendy loop living in MN for the last decade. I did have the mother of a girl who was baptized the same day as my last daughter tell me she was thinking of making a white baptism dress. I honestly thought she meant a dress to get baptized in and my thought was, who wants to wear a dress that might float up in the water. I'd rather they just get baptized in the stake jumpsuit. So I didn't even give another thought. I can't remember now if that mother actually produced the white dress or not. My now 14 yr old can't remember either.

So back to the value of this trend. I'm not such a stick in the mud that I can't look at someone else's idea and say, "That's neat. That could make the experience special for my daughter, too." And the more I think of it, perhaps getting a simple white dress might be better than buying something from the mall. (I was just there today looking and everything right now is really glitzy or makes the little girls look like a hooker. ) I almost think that would be more of a materialistic focus than just a nice white dress.

Believe me, I can buck the system just as well as the next non-conformist mom. I'm sooooo not into Hannah Montana or all the dumb Disney shows on TV. My girls aren't either. We do blaze our own trail but don't mind picking up on a few cues from others along the way. My kids are most definitely leaders. Strong and successful! Push my "Proud Mom" button and I might just start bragging. ;-)

Sorry, Carlimac. The bolded statements above doesn't jive with your last post. So, it's getting me confused.

[carlimac]

Sorry, Carlimac. The bolded statements above doesn't jive with your last post. So, it's getting me confused.

That's because you don't know me. At the point of posting the part you bolded, anticipating my dd's disappointment was on my mind. But that's not the whole me or the whole story. ( Unfortunately it's one of the inherant disadvantages of trying to communicate with total strangers on the internet.) During the lag between posts and in reading what others had to say and in unsuccessfully trying to find a decent dress for my daughter at the mall, my thoughts have changed about this tradition. Maybe it has some merit after all. Plus, I realized you were characterizing me different than I truely am. And now I know you misunderstood from the parts you bolded. I can see why you'd be confused. I do think it's entirely possible, and probably more likely than not, to feel some mommy guilt and sadness for the disappointed child while sticking to your principles. With this dress thing, I'm still trying to figure out what the principle is and if it's important. Sometimes I'm fairly dense and it takes awhile to get the big picture. So I ask others' opinions to get some perspective.

[mightynancy]

I made my daughter's dress, and she was baptized in it. This photo was taken before the baptism (her hair is wet from her bath, LOL). I don't understand why the dress would need to be white if a girl doesn't wear it for the ordinance.

She got a new party dress to wear after the baptism, and she used both dresses for church until she outgrew them.

[carlimac]

I made my daughter's dress, and she was baptized in it. This photo was taken before the baptism (her hair is wet from her bath, LOL). I don't understand why the dress would need to be white if a girl doesn't wear it for the ordinance.

She got a new party dress to wear after the baptism, and she used both dresses for church until she outgrew them.

Did you do the smocking? Precious!!

[pam]

Wow, I wish I had such talent. That is beautiful.

[applepansy]

Beautiful dress Nancy. I wish I was that talented.

I made my daughters baptism dress before the poem was popular and before everyone did white dresses. She wanted white. It wasn't an over-the-top-wedding-dress type white dress. But it was white dress appropriate for an 8yo girl. She still has it. She wore it until she rubbed holes with her fingers in the lace on the skirt. I've never figured out how she did that.

She loves her dress to this day. It reminds her of a special day in her life.

[mightynancy]

Thanks for the kind words - yes, I did all the smocking and the embroidery by hand. :) It was a labor of love for my girl, and I hope, for my someday granddaughters.

...And the talent came after many long nights of pricked fingers, unpicked seams, and colorful language.

[carlimac]

Ah oh. Do you need to be re-baptized?

[mightynancy]

Ah oh. Do you need to be re-baptized?

If I do, it's probably best to wait until I have given up sewing.

[Guest Alana]

There's nothing wrong with borrowing a good idea and there's nothing wrong with making your own traditions. A dress can be a lovely reminder of the day, but it's also just a dress and not what makes the day special and exciting. As long as you have open loving communication with your daughter, I'm sure she'll feel happy and positive about the day because she's getting baptized.