Why I Read the Birth Announcements

Ever since I was little, I loved to look at the birth announcements in the local paper. When I was in junior high and high school, this usually involved reading out the names along with my mom and offering our opinions. This tradition continued after I got married as my husband and I would check out what kinds of names people were coming up with. It was an endless source of fascination (and, admittedly, amusement) to see some of the names people would make up. Or how "kreeatyvlee" they would choose to spell them. Traditionalists at heart, my hubby and I had lots of chuckles about these...

We still read the birth announcements. Most Sunday mornings find one of the two of us calling out the news of new arrivals. But we do it for a different reason now...

Now we read the birth announcements to make sure every baby listed weighs in at over 6 lb. That's our cut-off. If the baby weighs less, I start wondering what may be the reason and I pray. There's little we like more than to see a column full of 7-, 8-, and 9-lb babes.

I know most women would prefer not to have to give birth to a 9+ pound infant. But to me, it's cause for celebration. Hooray for big babies!