I wasn’t real sure what he was talking about. “Puny?” I asked.

“Yeah. Cough a little. I have a plan.”

I figured he was my dad, so I didn’t question him. I proceeded to cough, then I faked a sneeze that was pretty realistic. After that, Ed Jr. leaned over and whispered something to my mom. Then, he looked over at me and muttered,

“Keep lookin’ puny til we get out to car. Let’s go.”

With that, we all got up and left. On his way out, Ed Jr. informed usher that, “...the boy is catchin‘ cold, I gotta take him home and doctor on him.” With that, we all escaped Reverend Kraut, mosquitoes, and that damp, hot air.

We all rushed home and took cold baths. Ed Jr. finished his right after I did, and walked in kitchen. I was already there, looking for a snack. Ed Jr. walked right up to me, and said something that was pretty profound,

“Son, revivals are good, but this was just too damn long. Four straight nights of Reverend Kraut. You’re gonna find when you get older that there are lots of good things in world - preachin’, religion, good fried chicken, and more. But remember this - anything, no matter how good it is, can be bad when you get too much of it. That’s what happened tonight, I’ve had too much religion for one evening, and my system is out of balance.”

I asked, “Dad, how do you get it back in balance?”

“Son, I think visitin’ Homer Chambliss’ store tomorrow evening will do that. An hour there, and I‘ll feel like myself again.”

I came away from that understanding what Ed Jr. meant. We’re all meant to have some balance in our lives, and you can get too much of anything, even real good things. Maybe that’s why I still think about those old revivals now - lessons learned there were powerful, although you really paid a price for having learned them...

Load up on Baby Name Books . It is fun to keep them and look back at what if choices. Also a fun keepsake for your child.

Think about name. Do you want a name that's long or short? old-fashioned or modern? Mainstream or one-of-a-kind? Pay attention to what other people are naming their babies. You don't what your child to be one of 3 David's in his class!

What are initials? Colin Orson Newman, for example, would probably never monogram his towels.

Does it have a rhythm? Can you sing to it?

Have you spell-checked it? Remember that an original spelling of an old standard can look pretentious to outsiders. Also, do you really want to burden your child with correcting everyone she meets?

Have fun. After all picking out your baby's name is one of greatest joys of becoming a parent and proof positive that there really-and-truly is a baby on way.