The great uterus watch of 2007 is in full swing, and the bellies of Katie Holmes, Nicole Richie and Christina Aguilera have all been under intense stork scrutiny in recent days. Here's the latest on the reproductive rumblings:

Let's start with Holmes, whose recent declaration that she "definitely" wants to give 14-month-old daughter Suri a sibling quickly segued into tabloid reports that she was "glowing with happiness" in anticipation of silently bringing forth another spawn of Tom Cruise. Fueling speculation: the ill-fitting striped Chanel minidress she wore to David Beckham's soccer match in Madrid on June 17, which appeared to pooch out a bit in front. But the now matronly-coiffed actress put the kibosh on the baby talk when she showed off a bulge-free mid-section this week during a family getaway to the South of France, where she and Tom attended the wedding of Australian billionaire James Packer. Paparazzi were conveniently on hand to capture Katie as she self-consciously frolicked in the surf with a blasé if bewitching Suri while wearing a revealing "Dynasty"-inspired belted one-piece swimsuit (her practical footwear of choice to navigate the rocky seashore: vertiginous Christian Louboutins). Dismisses Cruise's rep to the London Daily Mail, "They are not expecting a second child."

The curious appearance of an apparent bit of bloat on Nicole Richie's typically underfed belly has stoked speculation that she may be eating (or not -- your call) for two. The starlet, who is due in court next month on a DUI charge, has so far remained mum on the knocked-up nattering, as has her potential baby daddy and possible fiancé, Good Charlotte front man Joel Madden. But Chicago Sun-Times columnist Bill Zwecker is pooh-poohing the Pampers talk, saying that after a "long chat" Tuesday with a "close" Richie source, he's "confident" she's neither expecting nor engaged. Time, as they say, will tell.

As for Aguilera, chatter that she and husband Jordan Bratman are awaiting the pitter-patter of little feet got a boost Wednesday night when she hit the stage in Tokyo styling white Urkel-inspired pants that seemed to show some suspicious belly swelling. A "well-placed" source tells the New York Post the great expectations gab is "definitely true," with another tattling, "She has to be three months now, because she's announcing it [to friends]." Meanwhile, are the nesting instincts of the pocket-size chanteuse kicking in? Us Weekly says Christina, 26, and Jordan, 30, have made an undisclosed offer on the six-bedroom, seven-bath Beverly Hills home where the Osbourne family filmed their MTV series (and let their many un-housetrained pets run wild). Says an insider, "They wanted a place to start a family."

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