Monday, May 2, 2016

Maggie's First Holy Communion

Yesterday was Maggie's big day!  First Holy Communion!  After cheering her brothers on in a 5k race that morning, she got to open her presents from Phil and I:



She got a new swimsuit (rash guard + bottoms), two rompers, an American Girl journal for us to fill out together, The Daring Book for Girls, a handmade pearl rosary, a watch, and Nancy Drew books.  




Then it was time to change and get ready for Mass.  We were so lucky that my sister-in-law gave us this dress (never been worn!) and it fit Maggie perfectly.  The shoes and tights were from Easter, and the veil was my wedding veil, I just cut off the long layer and left the top shorter one.  My mom gave her a miraculous medal necklace with pearls (because Margaret means pearl).  It all came together beautifully and of course Maggie was the prettiest girl at the ball church.  Not that I'm biased ;)







Maggie and her bestie, Robby, have been friends since they were bambinos.  What a special day for them both!  Our parish has all the kids wear robes so everybody looks the same, and I love it!



I couldn't help but think that we dressed her in a white gown for her Baptism, then for her First Communion, and perhaps one day I will get to see her on her wedding day in another white gown.  Having a girl is fun!

Linking up with My Sunday Best  

The kids in Maggie's class had to pick a number out of the hat to choose the reserved pew for the family, and Maggie picked number one!  We finally got to sit up front for Mass!   Since my three oldest boys were serving altar and Maggie was sitting with her class, we were able to fit Phil's parents and my parents in the pew with us and the little boys.


The whole group of 26, very girl-heavy:



Okay, so I totally cried during the Mass, but really lost it when Maggie received the Eucharist.  It was extra special because our pastor, Monsignor, was distributing the Eucharist to all the children, but when it was Maggie's turn to receive, he stepped aside and let Father Dave (pictured below) give Jesus to Maggie for the first time.   Fr. Dave is Maggie's godfather, and while I knew he was coming to the party, I didn't know he was going to con-celebrate the Mass, let alone give Maggie First Holy Communion.  Happy tears flowed.





Maggie with my parents.



Maggie with Phil's parents, who travelled all the way from Maryland for the weekend to celebrate with her.


Maggie and her namesake, Maggie :)  I would call them Big Maggie and little Maggie, but I don't think my mother likes that very much ;)


We remembered to take a photo of Maggie with us right before we all changed into comfy clothes for the party!


 It was a small family party, since some of our siblings were out of state, but it was very nice and I think everybody had a great time.


Below is our new kitchen island with a makeshift (plywood + tablecloth) counter top.  The real one is coming this week.



The kid table.


My thirteen year old nieces asked me to take their "model pose".  So cute!


Here's the First Communion Dress cake I made for Maggie.  All the men at the party thought it was supposed to be a chalice.  Men, humph.  But I guess it worked out either way.


In the weeks leading up to this day, we had so much going on.  We were remodeling the house and then frantically trying to put it back together and clean and prep for the party.  We were tired and stressed but I made sure to really savor every moment of Maggie's big day, and it couldn't have been more beautiful.  We are truly blessed with our faith and family and friends and I am so thankful.

22 comments:

  1. Blessings to your beautiful daughter on this most beautiful occasion!!!!

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  2. Oh so sweet! God Bless Maggie! And I love that your parish does robes, although I imagine that is probably not a popular among some parents! I think it's a great idea and it makes the day more about the sacrament they receive and not about their clothes, shoes, etc.

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  3. LOVE all the pics! Was so excited to see Fr. Dave there and I would have cried like a baby the whole mass! Congrats to Maggie, she looked so beautiful and seemed so happy! I miss you all!
    The kitchen looks so great too!

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  4. I would love to hear more about your 1st communion Mass. We went to our nephew's first communion on Saturday and it was just sort of "hokey". I remember that your parish is a great one and am just wondering how other 1st communions are done! Our eldest is 2 but I'm really wanting something way more reverent and holy for him!

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    1. We love our parish. Besides the normal traditional and holy Mass with excellent homily, this FHC Mass included altar boys who were siblings of the first communicants, kneelers for the first communicants to kneel on when they received (and by mouth only), and readings and the singing of the Ave Maria by the first communicants. It was beautiful :)

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    2. Sounds perfect!! We're stationed in New Jersey (hubby in the Marine Corps), but we *might have our sights set on New England when/if we get out in 3 years since I grew up not far from you in RI. Might pick your brain at some point about parishes in MA! (If you don't mind!)

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  5. She looks so gorgeous and you had me crying when hearing about her godfather giving her communion! What an absolutely perfect day!

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  6. She looks so beautiful! You have to love that dress after all the suits, and I love love love how they wear the robes-so smart. The veil idea is so neat. Can't wait to hear how you love your island.

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  7. wow. I was totally crying reading about Fr. Dave giving her communion. So special!

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  8. Congratulations to her! Sounds like a wonderful time was had by all!

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  9. She's so beautiful!!!! And I can totally see the chalice but not until you mentioned it. Men!

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  10. What a very special day for you all! How neat that they all wear white robes - takes away from the mini-prom atmosphere that First Communion dresses are turning into! I'm totally passing that on to my parish as an idea/peak into what happens elsewhere. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Right? Especially around here, the culture is very into getting the kids all dolled up as if for a wedding, this just keeps it simple.

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  11. So many sweet moments about her day! Things that make it so extraordinarily special :) Congratulations to your beautiful Maggie!

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  12. What a beautiful, special day for your Maggie. I love your fun and thoughtful gifts for her, I adore her dress and that she's wearing your veil, and I also love your dress, Mama. You look lovely as well. Blessings to the Martin family on such a joyous occasion!

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    1. The veil was a last minute addition, and I'm glad we did it! Thank you!

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  13. Oh, gosh. So very sweet. Congratulations, Maggie! I often cry when I receive the Eucharist, but I really really lost it when my girls received their FHCs. God is so good.

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  14. These pictures are so sweet and beautiful!! What a blessed day! Maggie is adorable. :)

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  15. Congratulations to Maggie! You both look beautiful :) I love the white robes - what a perfect way to unify all the kids (and eliminate the inevitable distraction of comparing everyone's dresses, because I'm pretty sure 2nd-grade-me spent much of that Mass checking out everybody else's dresses...). Thanks for linking up!

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  16. Congratulations Maggie! My son got FHC on Sunday as well. From my Facebook feed, it was a super popular day for FHC. The white robe tradition is really interesting.....I've never heard of that. I can understand why they do it....but I think if my church did that, I would have have skipped the white dress/suit and just have them wore regular clothes under the robe.

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    1. The kids were still dressed up underneath because of family photos before and after. Then they have two chances to wear their First Communion clothes again - one being at the Mother's Day Mass this weekend when the class will crown Mary at the parish, and again at the school next week when they crown Mary at the school grotto. So the kids do get to "show off" their duds, just not at FHC Mass. I think it's a perfect mix :)

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  17. AnonymousJune 14, 2021

    Our 12 year old daughter just finially made her First Holy Communion a week ago on June 6th with the 2nd graders.She wore a cute,poofy,short sleeve,knee length communion dress and matching veil with lace anklets and the white mary jane shoes.She looked gorgeous in her outfit and very pure and innocent like the little girls! The only problem that occured the entire day was that she got a rash from the required rubberpants that had to be worn under the dress.It was hot on the 6th and we had her party mostly outside,so it was mostly heat rash from the rubberpants being next to her skin.

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