"Baby...We've got 7 weeks."

Stone, catch your breath. People have babies everyday, you're no different. And besides, what's the big deal, you're only going be responsible for this kid the rest of your life. Stop reading and listening to the news so much. The world isn't that bad, there's still a lot of good left. Everyone and everything is not evil. The economy will pick-up. Be for real, no way will you loose your job this close to Christmas, lay you off...you've got to be kidding me. These are just a few of the thoughts going threw my mind. Its like a big countdown, Seven, Six, Five, etc. , and like it or not it can't be stopped.

It's the weekend and the wife and myself have decided to get a jump start on this "Baby Thing". We decide to take a trip to a baby store and purchase a few things for our new baby. "Wow" I'm thinking, "this should be so much fun." The long awaited days of actually shopping for a child are here. Me, I'm feeling like a kid who's just walked into the world largest candy store, it's all good. As we walk inside, we are greeted by a huge display of stuffed animals. Growing up as a kid I can't really say that had a lot of stuffed animals or even played with them. But, there is one stuffed animal I can remember having.. it was a giant panda bear. Don't ask where it came from or even how it became a part of our household. I just know it existed. I guess the reason I can remember it so well was its size overwhelmed me. I had to have been six or seven years old, and this panda bear and I were about the same height. I can remember I'd often use it as a landing pad as I'd practice my WWF moves, or perfect my "Jack Youngblood" tackling techniques. As always, good things come to an end as did my giant panda bear friend. I guess it was that super-duper duplex-with a -half twist-triple-suplex-bi-lateral-rolex-anti-silex leap off the bed that literally took the life out of Mr. Panda. Can you imagine, animal stuffing all over the place.. a traumatized seven year old standing in the middle of the room crying.. man"I miss Mr. Panda." It's crazy how one can remember things from their childhood. Here I stand, in a huge toy store, starring at a display of stuffed animals and I'm wondering what childhood memories will my child have. "Focus," says my wife, "focus." "We came here to buy things for the baby, so let's head to the infant items." She's right, so off we go in search of items for the new baby. "Um sir, can you tell us where the newborn items are?" After sorting through an array of directions we finally stumble upon the correct isle. I look over at my wife, and she looks over at me and I swear it was if I was staring in a mirror, minus the mustaches of course. Both our mouths were wide open in amazement. Can you say overwhelmed. How in the world can there be so much stuff, gadgets, contraptions, gizmo's, trickets, apparatuses, devices, instruments, mechanisms, gimmicks, thingamabobs, thingamajigs, thingamacallits just for an infant. Gimme a break here, black man having a baby. Where do you start, can I get a list, parenting by the numbers, road map, something? Our child isn't even here yet and already I'm faced with a mere 50 million things I could possibly purchase for a new arrival. And of course my wife, she's no help! She's just as bewildered as I. At this point, I'm starting to feel a bit lightheaded. I'm telling myself I need air. Honey we gotta get out of here. I think I'm about to faint. Both feeling the same we quickly make a mad dash toward the front doors. Upon reaching the parking lot, we began taking over exaggerated deep breaths. Inhale, exhale, inhale,exhale. Realizing that we have now found refuge behind the lock doors of our vehicle, we began to discuss what we both had just experienced. "What just happened back there," I asked. "I don't know," was my wife's reply, "Is it going to be the way everytime we go shopping?" "I hope not" I said, but baby we've got 7 weeks, what are we going do?

After much reflection of that eventful day, me being the sit-down-analyze-it-figure-this-thing-out type of husband that I am, I've come to the conclusion that we both were having an anxiety attack... mmm, I never thought black people got those. So what I've done, is decided to take a bit simpler approach (you guys would be so proud of me). I am now purchasing things one item at a time. It started with my first purchase of diapers. Something I've never done before. A milestone of some sort. Granted I've been told that that milestone will be crossed many times to come, but it has happened and it felt great. Finally, I'm breathing, I'm confident, and I'm really starting to feel like a dad. I'm always asking others, "how will you know, where is the manual?". Their reply is "its something you'll figure out." Well, I'm starting to see exactly what they mean. I've learned that I need to take my baby steps first, so I can later help my son take his first baby steps.

Hang tight, the oven is heating up and what's cooking inside is about to done. Sorry for the delay, but thank you for the support.