Baby Bump

VIEWPOINT

By RALPH HARDIN

Evening Times Editor

My daughter-in-law is a little over three months pregnant with our first grandchild (a boy, if the tests were accurate) and the other day in our family group chat, she shared a picture of herself wearing what I guess is a maternity dress, and it was the first time she really “looked” pregnant, if that’s politically correct to say.

We all, of course, already knew she had a bun in the oven or whatever the cool phrase is that people use these days, but somehow, seeing the bulge that contains my grandson really hammered home that we’re six months away from adding a whole new generation to our family.

This fact is also reinforced by all the Amazon packages that have been arriving filled with onesies and blankies and other little baby-related items. The one thing we won’t be as grandparents, if my wife has anything to say about it, is unprepared.

I’m sure many of you out there reading this have already experienced the joy of grandparenting, but like I say, this is our first, and I’m sure we will completely and utterly spoil it (Him? Do we say “him” yet?) and I will do so completel unapologetically.

See VIEWPOINT, page A15 VIEWPOINT

From page A4

I consider myself to be a pretty good Dad, so I’m sure those skills will translate. I’m actually pretty interested to se how my son does at being a father. I guess it’s something you just figure out how to do. I haven’t given him any sort of “Dad Talk” or whatever, and my own Dad certainly didn’t give me one. I guess I’m just hoping I did enough “Dad by Example” stuff and if he has any questions he surely knows he can just ask.

In the meantime, I’m looking forward to watching that baby bump get bigger and bigger. It feels like an eternity waiting but August is definitely not all that far away.

Now all I have to do is fugure out if I want to be a Grandpa, a Pop-Pop or a Pappaw…ooh, maybe Pops!