The Status of the Water

My sister found out for sure a few days ago that she's pregnant. So she and my brother-in-law are expecting a baby Clemson tiger in February.

I think there's something in the water.

At least five couples at mine and my wife's church are in various stages of pregnancy. I found out today a coworker of mine is pregnant.

My wife and I have been married 10 years. Through those 10 years we've had alot of ups and downs financially and careerwise. We've had probably more than our share of discussions on whether or not we're ready to have children. We both want children very much.

I've always been the one that's been more hesitant about having children than my wife, for this reason or that, or whatever. But we've pretty much agreed that now we're at a stage that we are finally comfortable at to have kids and hope to put some plans and actions in motion in the very near future.

We were at a local store this past Sunday and saw some really cute baby stuff (the theme of which I won't mention just in case my sister reads this blog -- and I can't believe I just publicly wrote down the phrase "cute baby stuff") that we bought for her baby. It was the first time I really got excited buying baby stuff. Of course we've got two nephews and a neiece all under age eight on my wife's side, and have plenty of friends that have had babies, so we've done our share of baby shower, baby gift, and young child gift shopping. I enjoy buying them gifts. I adore and love my newphews and neice dearly and enjoy watching them opening their gifts. But my wife could take spoiling them to an unprecedented level given an unending supply of funds.

This past Sunday when we were purchasing the gifts for my sister's baby, that was the first time I just wanted to really truly spoil someone to no end and they aren't even here yet. It must be a blood-relative thing. I wanted to buy up everything in sight within the theme we were buying. I know that's really weird and totally out of character for most guys to say. But I can't even imagine how much those feelings are going to increase when my wife and I have our own child.

We've had the names for a son and daughter picked out for a long time. They are both a mix of family names and original names (nothing off the wall and none of this last-name as a first name business that people are finding so popular these days for some bizarre reason) - James Bradley and Ashlyn Elizabeth. But the more I think about it, the more I know that when the day comes, I think I'm really going to enjoy being a dad.