I’m a dad…

Everyone told me that there was nothing like it and that my life would never be the same. Of course I knew having a baby was a life changing event, but no one can explain that moment when see your child for the first time.

You can see it, hear its heartbeat, and feel its kicks, but you don’t know what to expect until you hear the cry of a newborn baby.

My wife (the planner) and I (the guy who hates surprises) decided early on that we wouldn’t find out what were having. Many thought we were crazy, others admired our decision. I have to admit when we went in for our first ultrasound, it was extremely difficult not to know what we were having, but as the months went on, the element of surprise helped my wife get through the final few weeks and a tough labor.

We heard all the old wives tales. The Chinese calendar pointed to us having a boy, the ring on a string trick predicted a boy as well. The baby’s lower heartbeat, the way it was positioned, and the ultrasound 3D pictures all made us believe we were having a boy.

I would love to say that everything went to plan. Our little bundle of joy was 5 days late and was positioned in such a way that my wife had horrible back labor.

It is the worst feeling in the world to watch your wife go through such pain and not be able to do anything about it. It’s funny how quickly women forget about the pain after they see their baby for the first time.

When the moment finally arrived to see our baby for the first time, we received the biggest surprise……it’s a GIRL! That’s right I have a daughter! It was the most amazing moment of my life. Our beautiful and healthy Camryn Elizabeth Holdraker was born on Saturday, April 7 at 1:33pm. (See her below, already cheering for the Red Sox!). I could go on for pages about how amazing my daughter and wife are….but I promised I wouldn’t be that guy who constantly talks about their son/daughter. So, if you want to see any of the 1,000 pictures I’ve already taken, I’ll be carrying them proudly ready to show you!

Now on to the limited sports I was able to watch this weekend in the hospital….
I love the Masters and Bubba Watson is awesome! How great was it seeing him win a major? That amazing shot from the woods and then breaking down in tears and hugging his caddy and his mother after winning The Masters. It’s one of those moments that reminds us why we love sports. Why can’t more athletes be like Bubba?

As I mentioned last week, the top high school basketball prospect in the country, 6-10 Nerlens Noel was between a few schools including Syracuse and Kentucky. Unfortunately, he chose the Wildcats. Guess that “one and done” promise was just too tempting.

The Red Sox have started the season 1-5 and I’ve already heard from Yankees fans. When will they learn that it’s a very long season? Things are already looking up…they are up 4-1 in the 7th inning on the Rays, as I am writing this column. Oh, and even if they don’t win today, I have an amazing new daughter to watch tonight……did I mention that?

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