This weekend marked a massive milestone for Brian Dowling and Arthur Gourounlian as their daughter Blake was baptised.
It was an incredible weekend surrounded by family and friends, with the pair giving their followers a glimpse into the big day via social media.
The pair had been working towards Blake being christened on December 10th, which has a very special meaning to them.
Taking to Instagram, Brian explained they wanted to baptise Blake on his late mother’s birthday.
“Today our @gourounlian beautiful daughter Blake Maria Rose Dowling Gourounlian was Christened 10.12.22,” he wrote with a picture of the family.
“Doing it on my mum’s birthday just makes it so SPECIAL. December 10th ALWAYS.”
Arthur’s mother was also involved in the ceremony, as she sang a haunting rendition of Ave Maria in the church.
“My beautiful mama, aka Tati, who is 74 years old, sang Ave Maria before Blake’s Christening,” Arthur wrote.
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“It was also my mother-in-law Rosie’s Birthday, so this made the day extra special. She was very nervous because she said it had been over 50 years since she last sang in front of other people. The last time she sang was at the opera house In Yerevan, Armenia, where she performed for seven years.
“Needless to say, she made us cry, and was so emotional. The sound of her voice was incredibly beautiful, we will cherish this video FOREVER. My heart was beating so fast, and I was beyond proud of mama Maria.”
The couple opted for a vintage-style christening gown for baby Blake with lace details and a matching cap from Cotton Kids.
Brian then went on to share who the couple had chosen as godparents. It came as no surprise that Brian’s best pal in the world, Pippa O’Connor was on the altar with them.
Pippa looked gorgeous in an all-cream look, including cream trousers, shirt and coat. She joked: “I like to play a game called how long can you stay cream.”
Simon Jones stood as her godfather on the special day.
“And baby Blake makes 5 @gourounlian,” Brian explained.
“Yesterday was honestly such a BEAUTIFUL & MEMORABLE day. Blake is delighted she has @pipsy_pie as her Godmother & @simonjonespr as her Godfather. With these 2 guiding our BEAUTIFUL little girl, she is in SUPER SAFE hands.
“Choosing Godparents for your child can be a difficult task, but for Arthur & I, there were ONLY EVER 2 people.”
Arthur commented: “Baby Blake definitely has two INCREDIBLE humans to look after her, that’s for sure. Now I wonder who will be the first one taking B on holiday.”
Of course, Brian couldn’t mark the day without thanking his sister, Aoife, who acted as the surrogate for the couple.
“Another @effidy_dowling_ appreciation post is coming your way,” he wrote.
“Aoife, none of this would have been possible without you. Yesterday was as much your day of celebrating as it was for us. There’s not a day that goes by that @gourounlian & I aren’t grateful for everything you have done.
“All the sacrifices you made to ensure we stood the best chance at becoming parents. Your relationship with Blake is so unique. Nothing has phased you from the time you got pregnant till September 1st when Blake arrived.
“You have shown such courage especially on days when we would all receive vile messages. Sadly they are many of them. You are one strong fabulous lady. Simply thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
