Who should get to choose the names kids call their grandparents?

Posted in Family.
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Grandparents come with all kinds of nicknames, but one couple are finding that they’re not seeing eye-to-eye on what their kiddos should call theirs.

Not Nanny!

The pair have one child together, as well as both having kids from previous relationships.

“My eldest children call their grandmothers Nana and Grandma,” a mum explained on parenting forum Mumsnet.

She noted that her partner’s children call their grandmothers “Nanny” and revealed that during her pregnancy she’d let him know that she wasn’t keen on that pet name.

“I find the term Nanny a bit too cutesy. I know lots of people love it, it’s just not for me!”

Now that their little one has arrived, this mum says her partner is continuing to refer to his mother as “Nanny.”

This mum says she’s actually dreading hearing her child call her grandmother Nanny, now that she’s learning to talk. She asked Mumsnet users if her preference for “Grandma” over “Nanny” seems unreasonable.

Granny Chips!

Some people thought that this was a bit of a storm in a teacup, and really was not worth the battle. They noted that kids often make their own choices about this and that this mum might want to chill out a bit.

“What does it matter, really?” one forum user wrote. “All my cousins called my dad’s mum Nanny, and that’s what she called herself to me, but as soon as I was old enough to express myself I called her Granny Chips. Once that was what I’d decided, there was no dissuading me. My friend called her grandmother Grannymums. Looking back, I like that they were unique names made by the grandchildren.”

(Which reminds us a little of Prince George’s nickname for the Queen -“Gan-Gan” and Prince William’s name for her – “Gary”!)

But others noted this decision was not usually down to the parents. Traditionally grandparents should get to select the name they’ll be called by their grandchildren.

“Isn’t it usual for grandparents to choose their name?” someone asked. “I would not have appreciated being told I must be ‘nanny’ when my preference is ‘granny’, and I guess ‘nannies’ feel the same about being ‘grannies.'”

Keep it simple, Nanny

Others thought that all siblings should be using the same name for their grandparent. Which in this case is “Nanny”.

“Baby should use the same name as his/her siblings,” someone said firmly.

“I don’t think you can expect your partner’s children to use different names for a shared grandmother. It’s just not practical,” another commenter pointed out.

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