Baby Fat Cheeks

Fatou, my host sister Mariama Kesso's baby, is adorable. People are always saying that she's "cheeks only" because her chubby little face is basically 80% cheeks. During the elections when things were really slow in village I spent a lot of time playing with Fatou while Kesso braided hair for women in the neighborhood. Last year Kesso went in to Kedougou for a week-long training on fancy braiding techniques and new styles and designs, so her hair-styling skills are very much in demand. 

Here's Fatou and I posing, Mariama Kesso, in a fancy, heavily embroidered pink outfit, trying to get Fatou to pose, me wearing the blue complet that Kesso gave me, Fatou smiling, and Fatou with her brother Mamadou, refusing to smile.