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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Grandparents naming dilemma - help - sorry long post

29 replies

Hellmanswitheverything · 18/07/2012 14:55

The background
We live o/seas and only see gps on either side about twice a year, although the visits usually last about 3 weeks each time. We have 2ds and I am currently pg with dc3.

Whilst pg with ds1 dh and I told families that we wanted our dcs to call us Mummy and Papa, pil responded by saying that they wanted to be called the French version of granny and grandpa as they had just moved to France, we assumed that they meant grandmere and grandpere, a bit of a mouthful but fine.

Fast forward to birth of ds1 and they announce that the local regional version of grandparents is Mammy and Pappy, and that is what they are to be called.
At the time I was so knackered from birth and no sleep, and also worried about rocking the boat and to be frank so flabbergasted that I didn't make any objection.

DS1 is now 4, DS2 is just turning 1 and dc3 is due in Nov. DS1 got very confused by the similarity in name, ds2 has downs and is very likely to be even more confused by both the similarity in name pronouncing and listening.

I have asked DH to speak to his parents about this since the start, FIL is aware that it is a source of friction, and dh has promised repeatedly to speak to his dm about it but has chickened out each time.

The question is AIBU to ask them to change to another name which isn't one letter away from ours to avoid confusion, or do I suck it up as it has been going on so long and pretend that it doesn't boil my blood every time I hear it.
If I do ask for the name to be changed do I patiently wait for dh to do it himself and bring it up with his dm or do I wade in with totally lack of subtlety and grace and prob lose my rag?
I am aware it's only a couple of times a year that we see them - but the names are for life, I may age gracefully and become more tolerant but the signs aren't good so far.

OP posts:
takingthestairs · 18/07/2012 15:01

Maybe leave the names be if you think it will cause rows but add the surname,
so you will always be Mummy but, MIL will be MammySmith and FIL PappySmith?

It's a bit short sighted of your PIL but it's not worth the row

lacroixsweetie · 18/07/2012 15:40

I don't mean to sound flip but kids have a wonderful way of sorting these things out themselves. It's highly likely that they'll come up with their own naming conventions - with any luck something fairly unflattering Smile Your MIL is bound to get fed up by the ambiguity with two children in the house who will presumably be constantly calling out Mummy to you?
Wait until she is referred to as GrannyPig and start practising your straight face :)

kirsty75005 · 18/07/2012 15:42

Mammy and pappy aren't local regional versions, they're French for granny and grandad - grandmere and grandpere are French for "grandmother" and "grandfather". All French children say mamie and papi unless they have some particular name for their grandparents (which makes about 10 million children with the papa/papi dilemma).

Is it really that much of a problem ? I'm Mummy and my French mother in law in mamie and they sound reasonably different to me - one is said with a strong french accent (and a long accented final eee sound) and the other isn't.

littlemissbroody26 · 18/07/2012 15:47

just call them what you want to.. start calling them grandma and grandpa for example, the kids will here your version alot more often than theirs!

Primafacie · 18/07/2012 15:49

What Kirsty says.

Millions of French kids have a maman and a mamie, and a papa and a papi.

My inlaws go by the bengali equivalent, so our DCs have a daddy and a dadu (sp?). There is no confusion. I don't see this as a big problem, especially if you only see them for 3 weeks a year.

I am a firm believer that one should be allowed to choose their own names/titles. Now if your ILs insisted on being called Your Honour that would be different :o

RackandRuin · 18/07/2012 16:16

As lacroix says, there is a good chance that your dc will come up with their own names for them. And they will be so cute that ILs will refuse to answer to anything else. Get prepping them now Wink

MrsTerryPratchett · 18/07/2012 16:39

DD signs GPs by patting her head. It came about completely randomly. I second that they will just sort it out themselves. Not something to lose sleep over Smile

catus · 18/07/2012 18:12

YABU. Mamie and Papi are standart in France, by far the most commonly used names for GPs. Learn to live with it.

naturalbaby · 18/07/2012 18:20

Your ds1 is 4 and you want to change it now? I'd leave things as they are after 4yrs.

If your ds2 is struggling to understand then there are other ways of helping him understand what you are talking about - photos, surnames, place names.

WhereYouLeftIt · 18/07/2012 18:26

" pil responded by saying that they wanted to be called the French version of granny and grandpa as they had just moved to France"
Am I the only one who finds this a leetle bit pretentious? Blush

QuintessentialShadows · 18/07/2012 18:29

So, are the grandparents French or just Pretentious British snobs?

GwendolineMaryLacey · 18/07/2012 18:33

Millions of French kids have a maman and a mamie, and a papa and a papi.

Yes, but not a mummy and a mamie.

HeadfirstForRomance · 18/07/2012 18:33

Are they actually French?

If not they are pretentious fuckers and I would be teaching the children another name for them.

What did your dh call his grandparents? I'd use that.

HeadfirstForRomance · 18/07/2012 18:34

If they are French then I would grin and bear it, by the way.

kinkyfuckery · 18/07/2012 18:37

I'd leave them to it, to be honest.

If you had two friends call Tim and Tom (I actually know brothers by these names by the way ), would you find them too similar and ask them to change their names to Bert and Andrew instead, so as not to confuse your kids?

Ephiny · 18/07/2012 18:40

I think the kids will cope, surely at some point they are going to come across people with similar (or indeed identical) names and will be able to understand that they are different people.

The children will likely make up their own names when they're little anyway!

Primafacie · 18/07/2012 20:51

Our neighbours have a DD, same age as ours, same first name. So far neither seems to be suffering an identity crisis.

DD aged 3 is raised in two languages and calls me maman in French and mummy in English, again without any problems..

Mummy and mamie are no more similar than daddy and dadu (see my post above)

2rebecca · 18/07/2012 21:16

Are they french? I presume there is some reason why your husband wants to be called "papa" which just makes me think of the Nicole and papa advert. Wanting french names in that case sounds fair enough after all your husband has one.
My grandparents were grandad and nanna x and y. The surname came after the nanna and grandad bit to avoid confusion.
I actually doubt I'd remember to call grandparents mammy and pappy as it is so foreign to me and suspect I'd refer to them as grandad and granny or nanna x when talking about them as that is how I'm used to referring to grandparents.

thebody · 18/07/2012 21:24

Good god, not worth this angst for a few times a year. Your kids are your kids. Not surprised your dh doesn't want to upset his parents if he only sees them twice a year, I hope I don't get to just see my kids that little when they are all grown up.

thebody · 18/07/2012 21:27

To add I am mom, ( midlands) my dh was D ( no idea why) mil was nanna, fil was gramps, my mum is gran ( welsh) and my dad is pop ((American)

Relax and enjoy your visits to France and cherish the relationship with your in laws, wish I still had mine

MrFunnytheEasterBunny · 18/07/2012 21:27

My IL wanted to be grandma and grandad, but my son had other ideas, totally off his own back.
Kids often make up their own minds, and as much as my MiL hated nobody could convince my DS otherwise, but we don't see her now so she doesn't have to worry any more!

MrFunnytheEasterBunny · 18/07/2012 21:29

P.S. if they are not French, they are pretentious, and if it wasn't a hard word for kids to say, you could call them that instead!!!

ByTheWay1 · 18/07/2012 21:41

You think your kids will have a hard time - mine have a gran, granny, grandma,nana, nona and grandad, grandpa and grumps - there have been so many remarriages amongst my parents - and they have all stayed in touch - especially at Christmas etc.....

In laws - gran and grandad have been married 50 years!

granny and grandpa - my parents - divorced, granny married grumps, grandpa married grandma then nana then nona ... then grandpa died so I have 3 former stepmums who all think of the kids as grandkids since they never had any.... I find it hard to keep up - the kids find it a breeze....

DialsMavis · 18/07/2012 21:49

Ahhhh but surely if the GPs are pretentious, then so is the DH for insisting in Papa....Wink

tittytittyhanghang · 18/07/2012 22:06

Highly doubt the kids will be confused. My ds 1, when he was a baby/toddler used to call me my my name and my mum - mum (as he heard everyone else calling her that). But if you asked him who his mum was he would point to me, and asked who his grandma was he would point to my mum.

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