Naming of parts - what shall we call my dd's wotsit?

[PoppyField]

Ok I'm sure this ground has been covered in previous threads but me and DH are a bit stuck on this one. We have a 2 year old DD and need to fix on what we call her private parts. I'm all for calling it her bottom or botty - I don't feel the need to discriminate between 'front and back bottom', but DH seems to want to call front bottom something different. Obviously I know what it is like growing up as a girl so I feel I should have the casting vote - and having a 'botty' never did me any harm. Plus for some ridiculous reason, he calls her genitalia her 'wendy'. Has anyone EVER heard of this before? I don't know where he's got it from and it just makes me cringe every time I hear it, no doubt she'll pick it up very soon and then we'll be stuck with it!

So what do you think guys? Help please. I hate coy euphemisms but some are worse than others....so is it going to be botty, fanny, tush, latin terminology or what?

And how do I convince DH that 'wendy' is just the worst awful yuk euphemism ever?

Thanks all.

well we have had various versions for DD's. The DSs first called it her 'not willy' which I thought was great! Now they have settled on 'udder' not sure why but they like it and I think it is OK. We have had the whole 'proper' name discussion but they prefer udder. Or sometimes they describe the whole area as 'wee hole', 'baby hole' and 'poo hole' which at least is accurate if not latinate!!!!
I know udder is so wrong it being a mammary gland after all- but its cute!! So shoot me!

I do agree vulva is correct. I guess I am loath to use it with ds when he asks as I have visions fo him saying it at school and getting a few raised eyebrows...

Maybe I just over analyze too much.

I think at this age it's important to go with something that your child can say easily (or near enough).

I've used a number of different names since dd (2.5) was really small and she now uses the one that she found easiest to say first which really helped with potty training etc.

I'm sure as the years go on she'll change what she calls it according to what she feels comfortable with at the time.

willy and bottom for ds
vulva and bottom for dd. She occasionaly calls her vulva her front bottom too.

I think the closest, semantically, to 'willy' that I have heard would be 'twinkle'. Though this is going to lead to convulsions of glee every time anyone sings Twinkle Twinkle LIttle Star, isn;t it?

Gah! I'm still waiting for a good answer to this one! I think I am starting to err towards vulva. Never been keen (all sounds too gyncaelogical for me) but I can't bear any of the euphemisms (flower makes me shudder - who wants a garden full of vulvas for godsake?!).

DS (3) never been bothered to ask so far but pointed at my naked self the other day and asked what it was called. I panicked (first thing in the morning, brain not yet caffeine fuelled) and called it my mummy part.

Yes, I know. It needs a name.

Our dd's call it a foof or foofoo. I know vulva is accurate but they call their anus 'bottom', and if we had boys I think we would go with willy rather than penis. I can't really see why this is a problem.

Well, we went with 'tuppence' which mostly works, except when watching Mary Poppins... Round here, most people (with young children) say 'foof' which seems to work nicely and doesn't crop up in any other context. When they are older, the proper words seem appropriate but whilst they're young, I think that slight euphemisms sound better - as with 'bottom' or 'tummy'. Just sounds less formal.

I don't say to DD "wipe your anus". Does anyone really say that?

Have a 4mo DD at the moment. Maybe convo should be "DH, I suspect DD may have defectated. Please can you check her nappy and if she has be sure to wipe her anus and vulva carefully". Do people really talk like that?

Lol ImSoNotTelling, I would be very surprised if anyone does talk like that.

defectated

We obviously don't talk like that here as I can't even spell the words!

Technical, though, its not the vulva you can see, its the labia.

So might as well just use vagina. That's what I call mine.

Of course, I have a DS, so who knows what I'll tell him its called!

But then surely the child should be able to specify which bit is hurting or itchy or whatever. So they should say vagina, vulva, labia, clitoris etc etc so as to be accurate.

Perleese stop calling it a foo foo.

I sing a perfectly nice normal song with the Rainbows called little bunny foo foo (girl guiding classic) and I'm forever fearful of a child becoming catatonic with mirth as I mime bunny foo foo running through the forest, scooping up the field mice and bonking them on the head.

Vulva here, although most of the time generic bottom is used.

Little bunny foo foo

but in MY pack we bonk those darned field mice.

There's some crazy shit on you tube isn't there?

vulva means outer genitalia of a female, ie inner and outer labia.

There are loads of commonly used words to describe all sorts of body parts and bodily functions, I really don't believe it relates to a sense of shame in our own bodies, it is just the way language has developed.

Front bottom here. Not so anatomical as to offend the faint hearted, but equally, should leave few in doubt as to which area is being discussed if there's a problem. Which surely is the idea.

Penis and vulva for best, willy and twinkle for every day.

DD knows the propers words, and also knows that she can call them either name. Cue much cat-bum-face from MIL at bath time last week.

We have a lady bum and a winky in our house!

We have bitsy for the front and bottom for the back. its really important that you distinguish between the two, particularly when you are teaching them to wipe.

We chose bitsy because its not too clincial but everyone else would be able to work out what she meant.

We have a tuppence or a winky. Although we have also discussed with dd that their real names are penis and vulva, I just find it odd to call them that. My hang up no doubt.

Don't like foofoo cos we have friends from Togo, where fufu (sp?) is a staple food - too many carry on jokes about needing to pop out for some fufu, enjoying a bit of fufu in the evenings etc