Friday, January 5, 2007

The look

Those of you who have seen my baby and know my husband would probably say that she is about 80% Daddy/20% Mommy as far as looks go. Those numbers are based directly on the comments we get from family and friends. The only variation on that is when I take her out in public by myself, and complete strangers say, "Oh, she looks just like her mommy." They only say that because they've not seen her daddy.

Sometimes, when I'm walking in the mall, I am startled when I look down in the stroller, and see Jared staring back at me. When we visited our friend Keith in Houston, he commented that he felt strange holding Eleanor because it was like he was holding Jared in a pink dress. Now, there's a pretty mental picture!

Jared is still holding out strong hope that her eyes are progressing toward brown. (Right now, they are dark blue with a greenish color in the center.) That would definitely affect the split, and it would look more like 95% Daddy/5% Mommy. I actually overheard him quizzing our friend Laura (whose baby Jordan has beautiful brown eyes) about when exactly they turned brown. I saw his face light up when she replied that it was around six months. He has even researched this topic on the Internet, and has informed me that the pigment in her eyes is not fully in until she is approximately one year old. He's a complete maniac about this!

So, as it stands right now, Eleanor looks like Jared, which is fine. If I didn't think he was good-looking, I wouldn't have married him. But sometimes, I can't help but wonder why she had to inherit so much of him. Like this face...
I've been getting this face from Jared for over nine years, and now look. He's gone and given it to my daughter. So for the next hundred years or so, I'm going to be looking at it at least twice as much. I do hope, though, that when Eleanor makes this face at her loving mommy, she is not thinking the same thing that Daddy is thinking when he does it. She shouldn't have those thoughts until she's at least 12 or so and I'm clearly ruining her life.

I think it's so great how God makes babies look like combinations of their mommies and daddies. It's amazing how He can make completely different little people out of the same ingredients just by changing up the recipe.

3 comments:

Robin said...

The expression on her face is priceless. She always looks so cute and happy, but in this one she also looks tough.

Lisa said...

I am rolling on the ground right now!! Thanks for a good morning laugh. I feel your pain about looking like daddy... I have a complete duplicate too! :)

And about the eyes, Grace had very greyish eyes and it wasn't until 6 months that they were clearly blue. I think it was just over those months they got lighter and lighter. Hope this helps!

Denise said...

This is one of the funniest posts I've seen. You are so right on. That look is 100% Jared. I empathize with you as one whose child looks just like him daddy. :)