Meet "Frankie"

Kathie Lee Gifford Is A Grandma! And Her Grandson Is Named After Her Late Husband

Kathie Lee's son Cody welcomed baby boy Frank "Frankie" Michael Gifford on Tuesday.

Cody Gifford made his mom Kathie Lee Gifford a grandma this week! Here, they pose with Cassidy Erin ...
David Livingston/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Kathie Lee Gifford is bursting with pride: she welcomed her first grandbaby on Tuesday. And the new bundle of joy is named after his late grandfather, Frank Gifford.

“My heart is bursting,” former talk show host Kathie Lee wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of her grandson and his parents — her son Cody Gifford, 32, and his wife Erika. “Frank Michael Gifford is here, confirming that our God is good and merciful and faithful. And he loves us!”

Erika added more details about the little guy, who arrived three weeks early and weighed in at 8 pounds, 8 ounces.

“Frank Michael Gifford, “Frankie,” has changed our lives forever,” she wrote. “We have not stopped bursting with so much love and gratitude for God’s most precious gift. Thank you so much to all of you for your prayers and sweet messages. He’s so SO cute and we can’t get enough of all of the snuggles from this lil’ guy. We are sincerely obsessed. 💙Frank ‘Frankie’ after C’s pops & Michael after my uncle who passed away last year at 61 whose name also means ‘gift of God.’ Two strong men — gone but never forgotten. 🤍.”

Cody, Erika and baby Frank.

Kathie Lee made an appearance on Today with Hoda & Jenna on Wednesday morning to celebrate the family’s new addition, telling Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager, “had he cooked for three more weeks, that child would have been a 12-pound turkey.”

“I was surprised Cody named him after his dad,” Kathie Lee added, “Because Cody knew what it was like to grow up in the shadow of a great man, but I guess he’s never gotten over, really, and he never will, the loss of his dad at an early age. He was his hero and still is.”

Frank Gifford died in August 2015 at the age of 84 of natural causes. Kathie Lee was married to Frank for nearly 30 years and they had two children together: Cody and Cassidy, now 28.

Kathie Lee also shared what she wants baby Frankie to call her: “Bubbalah.”

“It means ‘dearest one,’ like ‘cherished one,” she added of the nickname, clarifying, “It’s Bubbie. Not Boobie!”

Clearly, Kathie Lee is already a blessed Bubbie — telling her former co-hosts, “Is there a greater miracle in the entire world than the birth of a child? Show me, show me a bigger one, a better one, a sweeter one.”

Congrats to the whole Gifford crew.