Pluggers by Rick McKee for November 30, 2017

I’m not Hispanic, but if I were to marry a Hispanic, I think I’d let the kids call my spouse’s father “Abuelo” and my own father “Granddad” (“Grandpa” is too common). I’m not even Portuguese, but if my spouse were Portuguese, the kids’ grandfather will probably be “Avô”; “avó” is grandmother.

My entire neighborhood was of Polish extraction, and grandfather was an Americanized version of “Dziadek”, namely dziadzi (pronounced JAH-jee). It wasn’t until I had kids of my own that we had to decide what to call my kids’ grandparents, since the tradition had died off by then.

Papa. Not sure what the greats are gonna call me.

I went with G-Dad or G-Daddy. My mother-in-law went with GiGi (for great grandma)

Pluggers do not choose what they are called. Their oldest grandchild does!

My wife has quasi-adult kids, but neither will ever have children.

I was lucky enough to have all four of my grandparents until I was an adult. My Australia grands were Nana and Pop. The German side was Grossmutter and Grossvater. Our great grandchildren call my husband a-ge-du-da, which is Cherokee.

This was less of an issue when 4 grandparents was about all you could possibly have. Now, you have grandma, who has three exs and a current livein, grandpa who is living with him boyfriend, and an equally confusing situation on the other side.

My daughter called my husband’s parents Gramma and Grammpa Boat (because they had a boat – surprise) and my parents were just Gramma and Grampa. My mother is still alive and all the grandchildren and great grandchildren call her Gramma. Which disappointed my little sister (who has all the next gen of grandchildren) who wanted to be called Gramma. She is called Meemaw instead. I have a grandcat and am just fine with that! :o)

At his age, I don’t think I would go with Peepaw – might hit too close to home.

Baba and PapPap. Baba- Slovenian for Grandmother. Stadi-Baba- (sp?) is great-grandmomother.

I had a Grandpa and Grandma on one side, Nana and Daddy Bob (step-grandfather) on the other. My brother’s step-grandkids called him Umpa.

How about “Grandpapa”? My own grandfather was referred to as “Grampy”.

I want to be called Grampy

It’s always hard on a man when he finds out his daughter is going to present him with a grand child…..he then knows for sure she’s been having sex.

Peepum. Stock up on nastygum.

FINNYGIRL GC INSIDER LESS THAN A MINUTE AGOIt’s confusing for aunts/great-aunts, too. I have no kids, but I have 8 siblings, who all have kids, some of whom also have kids. Keeping track of what the kids call their grandparents (my siblings) is confusing. If I ask one “Where is Grandma?” and he or she calls the grandmother “Nonnie,” I get a blank stare. So I do manage at family functions to ask everybody what they are called and try to keep track until each child is old enough to understand who I mean. As for what they call ME, I ask the parents if they prefer that I be called “Aunt Josie” or “Auntie Jo,” but I tell them it’s just fine with me if they just call me “Josie” or “Jo.” (These are not my real names, just examples.) (It’s probably old-fashioned for an aunt even to worry about these things.) As for who chooses, often the child chooses by first calling grandpa Gampy or something, but also, I have friends who say "I don’t want to feel like a grandma/grandpa, so I want him/her to call me Nonnie or Peepaw (as above), etc.

Another challenge, as Dianne mentions above, is exes and currents and boyfriends and girlfriends, especially in big families. My ex’s sister had 8 kids. The oldest daughter for years went out with a guy named, let’s say, Jack, but then rather abruptly married a man we’ll call Brad. They had a baby, and when my ex’s mother first met the baby, she said ‘Oh, he looks just like Jack!" There was an embarrassed silence, then somebody said, "Let’s eat" or something, and I don’t think she ever did realize her mistake. (She did learn the right name for the baby’s father, though.)

We’re Opa and Oma, the German equivalent of grandma and grandpa.