This Nov. 3, 2016, photo provided by Brad Williams shows the computer programmer holding his 1-year-old son Lucas Royce Williams next to a wrapped cheesesteak sandwich to compare his son's size, at their home in the Philadelphia suburb of Glenside, Pa. In a Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018, blog post, Brad Williams outlined the "Cheesesteak for Scale" system he devised to measure his son's growth each month following the boy's birth in October 2015, according to Philly.com. (April Williams via AP) This Nov. 3, 2016, photo provided by Brad Williams shows the computer programmer holding his 1-year-old son Lucas Royce Williams next to a wrapped cheesesteak sandwich to compare his son's size, at their home in the Philadelphia suburb of Glenside, Pa. In a Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018, blog post, Brad Williams outlined the "Cheesesteak for Scale" system he devised to measure his son's growth each month following the boy's birth in October 2015, according to Philly.com. (April Williams via AP)

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Philadelphia father put the city’s signature sandwich to use in a whole new way: measuring his baby’s size in cheesesteaks.

Philly.com reports Thursday that computer programmer Brad Williams used a foolproof system he calls “Cheesesteak for Scale” to measure the growth of his son during the child’s first year in 2015.

It started when he noticed his 2-week-old, Lucas Royce, was about the same size as a cheesesteak he’d brought home. So Williams snapped a picture of the sandwich next to his newborn and the tradition was born.

Every month for the next year Williams and his wife would buy a cheesesteak to track their growing boy .

He says babies and cheesesteaks are quite similar. He says they are warm and cuddly when wrapped up “but once you unwrap them, expect a huge mess.”

___

Information from: Philly.com, http://www.philly.com/