[mommaof3]

I am "momma" to my 3 year old and 5 year old, and "mom" to my 13 year old. My oldest used to call me "mommy", and then went through a 3 year phase where he called me by my first name, "Em". My husband has always been "daddy" to the kids, and at about age 7, my oldest started shortening it to "dad". It's a little strnage for my husband, because he grew up calling his Israeli dad "abba" and his mom "ima". The grandparents (his parents) are "savta" and "sabba" instead of grandpa and grandma. My parents were grandma and grandpa (they're both dead), and the aunt and uncle (my husband's siblings) are "auntie Laura" and "uncle Jonathan".

 

[EnviroBecca]

MrBecca has always called his parents by their first names. He said a long time ago that he thinks this is the sensible thing to do and that when we have a child it should call us by our first names. I thought I agreed until I was a few months pregnant, when I suddenly realized that I really wanted to be a Mama. I guess it's because I have waited a long time for this and would like my role to be acknowledged by a special name. I told MrBecca about this, but he didn't really react. We'll have to talk about it again, I guess....

How do you all plan to get your kids to call you what you want to be called? Will you do it by having your partner call you that? I feel really funny about that, but I guess I could do it when talking to the child ("Daddy will read you a story.") without doing it when talking to MrBecca in front of the child ("Daddy, do you want some juice?"). My brother and I hit a stage when we got annoyed by our parents calling each other Mama and Daddy and started saying, "He's not YOUR Daddy!" until they began referring to each other by first names even when talking to us.

 

[mommaof3]

My husband teases me if I say something to the kids like "mama is ready to go", he says "who?", and he's quite right that it is more authentic to just say "I'm ready to go", but for me I'm just used to talking that way. I'll also say things like "we're going to have a bath now" but I don't mean that I'm bathing as well. They do learn what you want them to call you even if you don't refer to yourself as "mama" or call your husband "daddy" (that would just be weird in my book!). Our kids have always called my husband daddy, but I would never call him that, though I do say to the kids things like "go ask daddy if he's willing to read". I like being "mama", it is endearing and cozy, but I also liked it when my son called me by my first name, it was totally cool and different, and felt really authentic.

How do you all feel about your friends/family...will your child address family friends as Mrs. Smith? Or first names? Or?

 

[Patrice#1]

Mommy and dad or daddy.

 

[Nabbe]

Mamma and Pappa. Since we are from Norway, like your DH

My first kids call me Mamma and their father Baba, since he is an Arab.

 

[Eruditia]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nabbe Mamma and Pappa. Since we are from Norway, like your DH My first kids call me Mamma and their father Baba, since he is an Arab.

Aha! More Norwegians--cool. Since we'll be raising the kid with Norwegian as the language at home, it makes sense to be mamma and pappa, but I happen to have an intense aversion to the term mama in english, which carries over to mamma in Norwegian. If I could just be "mor" I'd be cool with it, but DH thinks that is hopelessly formal. He's from a part of Norway where no one says that, where as I used to live in an area where "mor" was the norm. How did you and your DH decide on mamma and pappa vs. mor and far?

 

[Nabbe]

Mor is also hopelessly formal for me, and DH as well. I dont like it at all lol. Our decicion was easy, because for me, mor and far is my grandparents. And too formal for my DH

Are you on any norwegian mother-forums as well? Just wondering!