Nicknames

When Joe and I were choosing a name for AJ, it was important to us to find one that had a nickname we liked. I love the idea of nicknames, because it is like having a second identity with the people who are closest to you. So we chose Andrew John in part because we liked the nickname AJ for a family name. Then, like half of America, we started referring to our baby as the Peanut after seeing that first ultrasound image. When he was born, the nickname stuck at first, in part because Joe used it and I thought it was so cute that a guy like Joe would call his son a peanut. It also seemed to just fit, since AJ was a tiny newborn. After it became clear that AJ was a relatively big baby, he seemed to outgrow the nickname Peanut, and others came along. So far they have included Bubba (due to his large size), Messy Marvin or Marv (due to his lack of table manners), and Squealy Dan (due to his love for testing out his voice, loudly and often). Odd nicknames seem to have a way of sticking in families, so I am curious to see if any of these are still in use 20 years from now.

The cute Lil' Peanut onesie was a gift courtesy of my Dad and Susan.