This past Saturday Kate, her wonderful mother (Kate said I’m not allowed to call her crazy anymore), and I went to Kristen and Eddie’s to see little Cammy. She slept a majority of the time we were there but I was able to hold her while she slept. She was so tiny and peaceful. I continued to convince myself I would be happy, almost thrilled, if the baby was a girl. I never thought I wouldn’t have a preference to what sex the baby is but I’m getting uncomfortably close to that point. Below are some more thoughts from the past few days:

• Kate is officially showing in the belly department. I was at the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal this morning when I looked into the bathroom and she was standing there drying her hair and her belly was protruding out a good 2-3 inches. For those who don’t get to see her I hope to get a current belly shot on the site in the next few days.
• In the past week I’ve learned a decent amount that should become useful upon the arrival of Baby Big Head. I learned maybe more than I need to about breast feeding on Saturday at Kristen and Eddie’s. Kristen even made me cop a feel! They were like rock solid grapefruits! Oh, and Eddie showed me how to change a newborn’s diaper. He even included some tips that Kate thought were funny.
• Being at Kristen and Eddie’s made me really excited about the summer. They’ll be down the shore pretty much all summer and we’ll be down there a lot. Our house should be primarily completed (only because no house is ever done) so I’ll probably spend 3 out of every 4 weekends down there. Our friends Brooke and Brian are also down the shore a lot so it should be a lot of fishing and relaxing during the day and hanging out and staying up with the baby at night. This is all contingent on the baby not being a crying machine like her mother was as a baby. Don’t worry Kate, there will plenty of days were you can go to the beach all day while I watch the baby.
• I want to start talking to the belly but I think it might be too soon for the baby. The other day Kate fired off a few obscenities and I said, “hey, the baby is listening” and her response led me to believe it was too soon for the baby to be hearing and recognizing voices. And input on this matter would be appreciated. Feel free to comment to this post anonymously if you’re uncomfortable saying who you are.
• 16 days until the appointment that may reveal Baby Big Head’s sex!
• I continue to find myself thinking about what it will be like this time next year. Sunday Kate and I were packing up the last of the Christmas decorations for storage when I said to Kate, “this time next year, we’ll be packing up the decorations with a seven month old around the house!” It’s probably a little geeky but I don’t care.
• It’s amazing how this whole pregnancy has me wondering how I got so old so fast. I’ll be 27 later this month but my age isn’t what I’m talking about. I’m talking about my life style. I’d actually rather sit home and watch TV with my wife versus going out to a bar. And it’s only going to get worse after the baby is born. I had 8 guys over to play cards on Saturday night (I lost as usual). I looked around the room to gauge who was where I am in life. Excluding my 16 year old brother, four out of the eight of us were married. Another one is getting married in the spring, another one has had the same girlfriend since college, and another one has had the same girlfriend for about two years. And the last one, he has only had one actual girlfriend since 1998, so he’s extremely available. And one of the married guys has a step daughter. So basically I’m pretty much par for the course for a 27 year old from my group of friends. If this is true should I not feel old? Or is it normal for anybody to question themselves and their aging process as they travel through the stages of life? I’ll welcome input from anyone who is older than I am.
  

I started talking to my baby as soon as Kym started showing. It's probably doing nothing as far as the baby recognizing my voice or anything, but it makes me feel closer to the baby.

Tim, I feel the same way. I have only said a few little things to the baby so far. I plan on kicking it up further if we're able to find out what sex the baby is. I think it will be easier to talk when you know the sex.

true. If you find out it's a boy, you can say things like, "Well baby big head boy, the phillies new GM doesn't appear to be making any good moves. We need pitchers. You'll be pitching for the Phillies someday, but for the next 20 years, you'll have to suffer like your daddy."

Tim, I took down my 2006 Phillies calender after the Franklin signing. Although I blame Wade because Gillick can't move any of the current bloated and no trade riddled contracts. Brooke, Brian said Skip had Dale on the boat when he was three weeks old. I say the baby should be ready for Tice's Shoal by mid July. Depending on when the baby is born.

Damn it!

Now I need a baby AND a boat AND a shore house to keep up with you people.

Brooke, you and Bri better plan on us being down there every weekend. He DID say he was looking forward to a summer of "more hanging out on the boat, less fishing" this summer. Or was he wasted at the time?