What do your kids call you?

by Sandy Maple (Subscribe to Sandy Maple's posts) Nov 30th 2007 9:01AM

Categories: Just For Moms, Just For Dads, Celeb Kids, Celeb Parenting

In an interview with GMTV, Nicole Kidman admits that her children don't call her 'mommy'. Considering the fact that her children are 12 and 14, that isn't all that surprising. Usually kids move on to 'mom' when they get a bit older, right? Except she also says that sometimes they call her 'Nicole'.

I think it is a little odd when kids call their parents by their first names, but it isn't unheard of. I know a family where the children, ages 8 to 17, call their father by his first name. Mom is 'mom', but dad is 'Steve'. When I first became aware of this, I was curious about it and asked how that came to be. Nobody really knew, other than the first child started it and the others followed suit.

Last night I asked Ellie what she thought about kids calling their parents by their first names. She thought it was hysterical and couldn't imagine why a kid would do that. But even if they don't use first names, kids do call their parents all kinds of things other than 'mommy and 'daddy'. My daughter calls me 'mother' and Ellie calls me 'nana'. What do your kids call you?

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Comments (11)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Jackie 11-30-2007 @ 12:30PM

My kids call us mom and dad, but my nephew calls his mom "Lori". I think he does this to get her attention because she has three other boys and often ignores them trying to get her attention if she's in the middle of something. Calling her by her first name always works though, as it shocks her and then he's got her attention.

Anita 11-30-2007 @ 9:42AM

I don't think kids should call parents by their first names because it makes the parents seem more like friends than authority figures. Some level of respcect is missing.

That also goes for the names kids call other adults. When my kids were babies and toddlers, all their little friends called me by my first name and I did not mind but now that they are school aged, I'd like to be Mrs.

Marcia 11-30-2007 @ 9:58AM

I agree with Anita about the respect issue. I don't understand why someone would NOT want to be called 'mom' or 'dad' by their children. I'm not just some lady that lives up the street, my daughter will not call me by my first name. For aunts and uncles, that precedes their first name. It's Uncle John or Aunt Stacie not just John or Stacie. Those kinds of things are a sign of respect to me.

Do I personally care if someone else has THEIR kids call THEM by their first name? No. It's not my business eventhough I disagree with it.

Misty 11-30-2007 @ 10:45AM

I wanted my son to call us "Mama" and "Daddy", but early on he decided "Mom" and "Dad" were more comfortable to him. So that's who we are!

Susan 11-30-2007 @ 11:00AM

My son calls me Mommom. I dont know how he came up with it but it stuck, and I like it.

Jenny 11-30-2007 @ 2:59PM

My daughter calls me mom or mommy, but she feels strongly that no one else should call me mommy. When we were at the dentist and the hygienist called me "mom" she turned on her and said "her name is Jenny." Sometimes she plays that her doll is talking to me, and when the doll talks she calls me "Jenny." Apparently she doesn't want her doll calling me mom either!

sarahs 11-30-2007 @ 4:09PM

i called my folks by their first names. i'd never heard of "mom" or "dad" until i started kindergarten. there was NEVER any question about who was in charge, though. just because i called them by their first names did NOT mean they were my friends. they were first and foremost my parents. and boundaries were very clearly stated.

so obviously, the notion of calling one's parents by their first names is not wierd to me. the idea that calling them by their first names would somehow imply that there's a level of respect missing is completely and utterly false. i feel very strongly with this opinion.

i'll fight ya if you disagree! :-)

it's just wierd because it's highly uncommon. there's a lot of sentimentalism attached to 'mom' and 'dad'. but there can be just as much in their names.

after all "a rose by any other name would smell as sweet"

SKL 11-30-2007 @ 3:30PM

Mama or Mommy.

My little sister switched from Mama to "Mother" when still a tot. Nobody taught her to do this, but she always preferred longer words, so "Mother" was apparently more fun to say. Her older brothers and sisters always said "Mama" and then "Mom," which we still say.

Uly 11-30-2007 @ 10:01PM

My nieces just call me by name, and they know that when I'm in charge, I'm in charge. There's no issues there.

They call their parents Mommy and Daddy, though occasionally Daddy gets called by his first name. Nobody has a problem with that.

And every other adult is, by my insistence, Mr. or Ms. FirstName. Just not me - I don't like the word Aunt.

Sabrina 11-30-2007 @ 7:52PM

I call my mom "mom", and my DD calls me mommy. DS calls me mama, because he's a baby. I do, however, call both my biological and adoptive fathers by their first names. I didn't as a child (only called adopted dad by first name) but it starts to get confusing after a point. I prefer that my kids address adults aas "Miss Sarah" or "Mister Mike" because that is how I was raised. Every adult was Miss, Mr., Aunt, Uncle....that is the way it was, and I feel that it is respectful, so that's what I teach them to do. I feel awkward when a child calls me by my first name, but I understand a lot of people do not feel that way.

pbhj 11-30-2007 @ 8:36PM

I just assume it depends what others call you.

I call my wife "Francine" [that's not her name, I try not to use real names on the net], so occasionally "Jasper" [not his name again] calls his Mum "Francine". He's 2y5m - sometimes he does the same with me "Philip teas ready" [again not my name].

It feels weird to call my wife "Mum".

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