The Many Names of Cam: Baby-O

I always think it is really cute when pregnant Moms and their husbands come up with cutesy little names for their little growing nubbin.  Names like Peanut and Bean and Bug and everything else that is little and cute.  But when I got pregnant?  Nothing sounded right.  I knew other pregnant Moms with their own little Peanuts and Beans, and calling my belly that just seemed wrong.


My Mother-in-Law was insistent that my belly have a name.  One of her coworkers was an almost-grandmother as well, and she always referred to her grandchild by the belly name.  I still wasn’t going to start calling the baby in my belly something that didn’t seem natural to me, and I definitely wasn’t going to start calling my little baby Whatsit like she suggested.

Eventually, the baby became known as BabyO.  It certainly wasn’t the cutest name ever, but it did the trick.  And, it had a nice ring to it if you pronounced it Baby-o.

The name slowly started to take shape, but it didn’t really fit until I saw an Excel gum commercial one day.

Remember this one?

I sat there and watched this commercial for the first time, and I actually started to cry.  It was probably all the pregnancy hormones that were surging through my body, but I was pretty sure it was because that donut was my baby!  I loved that donut.

I wasn’t going to start calling my unborn baby donut, but when I called my little bundle BabyO, this was what I meant.  I mean, just look at how cute that little pink donut is.  Look at how cuddly that little pink donut is.  Look at how much he loves the man that he gave bad breath to!  He’s so rolly and polly and topple-over-y.  (I had no idea how much like this donut my baby actually is.)

I no longer call my baby BabyO.  And he’ll probably roll his eyes at me one day when I tell him what a cute little donut he was.  But when you’re living with a little being growing inside of you that you can’t see, you hold onto whatever tangibility you can, be it a kick, a hiccup, or a little cute round pink donut that you see on TV.

As much as I love this commercial, I’m not going to become an Excel gum chewer.  I made this decision as soon as I saw my cute little donut topple over.

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