My girl Fats

Dear Future Finley-

Recently some of your family members have been giving me a hard time because of my favorite nickname for you: Fats. They're worried that you're going to be reading this blog at some time in the not so distant future and be horrified that we (I) were vulgar enough to call you by such a crass moniker and that you're going to be scarred forever. And I considered their requests for a short time and I concluded this: Future Finley, I love you heaps and heaps. You are truly the greatest baby on the planet. You are sweet and pleasant and adorable and when you laugh your entire face crinkles and your belly heaves and you are just the best. But baby girl, there's no way around it- you are one giant chunk of a bambino. You are all cheeks and chins, and even your neck has folds that have folds (see pic above). You are absolutely without a doubt aptly named. :) And we love it! Who wants a skinny baby? All angles and bones. I MUCH prefer your chubs and rolls. Your brother was like this too at your age, and look at him now! He's a total string bean. When I see the two of you together, I am always reminded of the nursery rhyme :"Jack Sprat could eat no fat; his wife could eat no lean". My babies the Sprats. It's too fun.

So, lady lou, I have no doubt that this period of baby fat is exactly that and you're going to grow out of it like a weed and become just as long and lean as your big brother. But if for some reason your genetics don't work that way and you remain a little (or a lot)chunky, then I promise you this: first, I won't call you Fats beyond the age of two or whenever you start to understand your own name, just so it doesn't catch on. And secondly, I promise that skinny or fat, short or tall, or any of the sizes in between, I will love you unconditionally and once you're old enough to get it, will never, ever comment on your weight. That was one of the greatest gifts my mom, your Grandma Barbara, gave to me- she never mentioned my weight (even after that summer when I worked at the french bakery OMG), only ever told me that I looked lovely, and consequently I always had a healthy body image. And this legacy I will soon pass on to you. Just know that right now, we joke around, but your father and I consider you absolutely PERFECT. And we always will.

Love,

Mama