Nicknames

Emalee Laurena may be her given name...but my baby girl has a ton of nicknames! The first one...which she earned right off the bat...came before she was even born and even before we knew she was a girl. Our "jelly bean" would have been slightly awkward, had it turned out to be Alexander instead of Emalee! But in all fairness it was a name bestowed upon her early on and it stuck and as luck would have it I think she makes a perfect jelly bean!Shortly after finding out I was pregnant...a friend of mine, curious about details and progress with the baby, one day asked me how big my baby was. I laughed and jokingly said "oh about the size of a jelly bean" and from then on...although she grew to be bigger than one...she became our jelly bean! Another frequently used moniker for her is punky...which I will admit is a little rough around the edges...until you know how she got this one. I had taken to callin her punkin, which I think is fairly common among the diapered and toothless. I would say "punkin...punkin...punkin" and she would giggle and smile and kick her feet...just found it hilarious! One day as my husband say quietly watching this interaction between me and her he suddenly asked "punky...punky...punky?!" And I couldn't resist a chuckle as I said punkin and explained it was short for pumpkin. It is so cute to hear him cooing to her...even if he does call her punky! He also calls her monita...which in Spanish means "little monkey" and lately with her double foot and hand hold grip on her bottle...it seems highly appropriate! I call her my little monkey too! In the spirit of sweet treats, began of course with jelly bean, she has earned a bevy of other nicknames that, although adorable, are only brought out of the nickname nook these days once in a while. Some of my favorites include pop tart, sweet pea, sugar plum, and sweet tart. My husband said at one point we should name her jalapeno...which I quickly vetoed of course...but which he still calls her from time to time...our poquita jalapena...or little jalapeno!Sometimes I lovingly refer to her as my "tinky pants" or my little "tinker butt" and I am sure you can guess exactly where those come from! Of course can't forget your standard sweetheart, beautiful, honey, sugar or baby girl. And last but certainly not least is Em, which of course is the simplest and most natural out of all of them and which is a favorite among her "aunties" but especially with her favorite auntie Kaitlyn! My mom is worried that she won't ever learn her real name cause she has so many nicknames...but I assured her that I do indeed call her by her actual name quite often...so there is no cause to worry! Even though I am certain she will acquire a few more in her lifetime...no matter what...she will always be my baby girl!