Great Minds Don’t Always Look Alike: When Your Baby Doesn’t Look Like You

Deep in the pockets of your mind, you had always imagined that your little girl would look your mini-me. Even if daddy bears no resemblance to you at all, there was a chance she would have your eyes or smile. Suddenly those horrifying stories of babies being switched at birth start to infiltrate your daily thoughts. Why doesn’t my baby look like me? Are we even related?

The genetic makeup of the mother and father can sometimes yield surprising results. Although you and your partner may have brown hair and brown eyes, a relative’s blue eyes or blonde hair may come through, despite the odds.

People may have mixed reactions when they see your family walking down the street together. The darker sides of humanity still unfortunately appear surrounding mixed-race children. Do you remember the Cheerio’s commercial from 2013? Thousands of hurtful comments rolled in about the ad, despite its praise from the media and progressive people. Having a child that doesn’t look like you is still not considered a social norm in 2014.

To add to the ordeal, some men become suspicious during a pregnancy; to them, there could be a chance that the child is not theirs. You may find him awake at night, running through a moment-by-moment play of the days which you likely got pregnant. When a baby does not look like his or her parents, the father may order an at-home DNA paternity test to prove their biological link. The best thing for you to do is just use the swab to test the baby and the father using a kit, so you can strengthen the bond between father and child. Give him the security of knowing that the baby is from him, despite not appearing to.

Every day, that little baby will grow up and develop more and more into her own person. When a child is born, they look to you with only love, no matter what you look like: you are mommy.