Letters to Itty Bitty - How You Got Your Names

Itty Bitty,

You are actually named Lillian Virginia Trice even though we call you Itty Bitty most of the time. Your mommy and I spent a lot of time thinking about what to call you when you were born. Mommy had lots of books with names in them and she would read them to herself and read them out loud to me and we did this a lot. She would read a name and the meaning of the name and like it, so then she would read it to me and I would say something like, "I knew a kid in middle school that ate lead paint and chewed on the carpet that had the same name." This went on for a while and your mommy was getting tired of me always knowing someone that was weird or strange or downright crazy. I didn't want to always think of someone else when I thought, heard, or said your name so we continued the process.

Finally, one night we were sitting in the living room, and your mommy was reading the baby name book again when she said, "What about Lillian?" I liked it a lot and I suggested that we call you Lily for short. There it was, you had a name. In fact, you had several names at that point, a first name, a last name and a nickname. You still needed a middle name because your mommy and I both have middle names and we wanted you to have one too. We talked about it and decided to give you my grandmother's middle name as your middle name, Virginia.

My brothers, your uncles, and I called our grandmother Nanny, and Nanny and I had a special relationship. I loved being able to go to Nanny's house during the summer and spend time with her. We lived close enough to Nanny and Pop-pop that we would go see them several times a year as a family too. She always made us great food and scratched our backs and just generally loved on us. Because of all of this, you had a middle name that brings a smile to my heart every time I use your middle name.

Mommy and I knew what we were going to call you, Lillian Virginia Trice. We were ready for you when you decided to show up. We felt good about the decision that we had made for you as your parents, and it was the first major decision about your life that we made. Then you decided to grace this world with your presence on December 5, 2009, around 4 in the morning. Your mommy was happy to have given birth to you because you were hurting her a lot while you were trying to come out. I was happy that your mommy and you were both safe and healthy. When you were born I was so happy that I cried while telling your mommy that you were beautiful.

Once all the commotion settled down from your birth they moved us into the recovery room where you spent most of the next several days with your mommy and me. I was holding you and you looked so small so I started calling you "Little Bit." I still do call you that sometimes too. That name eventually reminded me of a song called "Little Bitty" by Alan Jackson, and I started singing that song to you when you were fussy.

You loved it, probably more because my voice was hoarse and lower than normal from everything involved with your birth. I would pick you up and hold you in my arms and sing to you and you knew that I loved you. As I sang to you I thought about Bitty and I liked it, so I started working it out as a name in my head and eventually I came up with Itty Bitty. Then it was over. You were my Itty Bitty and your mommy picked it up too. Most of the time we call you Itty Bitty now and even your grandparents and other people are picking up on it.

That is how you ended up having all the names you have. I love you so very much Itty Bitty.

Love always,
Daddy