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The language of parenting

January 4, 2013 17 Comments
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Before children, I (think) I spoke like an intelligent human being.  Then, I was pregnant.  During this time, I found my words getting so jumbled that I had convinced myself I had suffered a stroke or something equally traumatic.  My doctor convinced me I’d be back to normal as soon as I got some sleep…3 years and 20 months later, I am still waiting for that sleep to come.

In the meantime, it seems as if our family has developed our own language that only we understand.  Has your family done this?  Do you remember when these unique words developed? Do you use them years after your child has moved to the more traditional terminology/pronunciation?

I thought I would share with you a few of our family gems and their definitions.

naughty lemon – a lemon timer that we use for time outs.

lookin’ book – a book that is not meant to be read cover to cover or one that can be read through visual inferencing by the boys themselves.

ex: This 144 page book of Disney Pixar Cars Characters

macky cheese – mac and cheese

dippa/dip dip – condiments.  My first son would say “dip dip” while my second son would yell “Dippa! Dippa!” in a way that reminded us of Speedy Gonzales in the old cartoons.

special dippa – whipped cream.  One day recently my older son said to me, “Bapa [one of his grandfathers] calls special dippa, “whipped cream.”  Isn’t that silly?”

ov-ill – Olive, our dog.  We still call her ov-ill three years later.

jeu – juice

pack-pack – As in, “Get your pack-pack (backpack) and get in the car.  We are late for school.”

die-po – diaper

die-po divin’ – Used in the context of, “Mah! He’s die-po divin’!” (You get the picture).

chee – When a camera is pointed at you, say “chee!” (cheese).

Doc Ick Stuffins – Doc McStuffins, the toddler toy doctor extraordinaire found on Disney Jr.

fesser – professor (Mommy and Daddy’s real job.  What Buddy wants to be when he grows up.)

ham and sam – the Cat in the Hat

white broccoli – cauilflower

popcorn – Pirate’s Booty

jack – jacket

flippers – flip-flops

prizey – a small gift item or special snack

summer shoes – Keens

soccer shoes – sneakers

toodie-toodie – nude

Does your family use any of these words or have any special words of their own?  I’d love to hear about them!

 

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Filed Under: parenting Tagged With: language, mommy brain, parenting, toddler

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jeannette says

    January 4, 2013 at 9:14 am

    Absolutely! Hannah is teaching me a wealth of words. She says ‘jack’ just like your little guys. I love all the clothing lingo. But my favorite is the nickname for her sister Audrey: Ra Ra.

  2. Heather M says

    January 4, 2013 at 9:17 am

    Love it when kids (or me) randomly use it in public and get strange looks. We don’t have as many as the kids get bigger but pack pack is still in use. My oldest use to call french fries – “signs”. Guess we went to McDonalds too much and he saw the picture on a sign. Took us 2 months to figure out THAT “language”.

  3. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 10:15 am

    Ra Ra! How cute! Like a cheerleader for her sis.

  4. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 10:16 am

    Signs. That’s a fun one!

  5. Rachee says

    January 4, 2013 at 10:37 am

    I always thought I would talk directly to my kid. Yup; I’ve got my own language too! She is twelve so I try to tone it down but I still demand huggabugs.

  6. Gina B says

    January 4, 2013 at 10:56 am

    My favorite was Amelia’s choice: appysappy was applesauce, so I used to sing “appysappy makes me happy!” Ah, the good ‘ol baby days 🙂 You have some really good ones!

  7. Tomika B says

    January 4, 2013 at 11:16 am

    I absolutely love the language. You should create a dictionary. It will prove to be a great memory for the kids.

  8. Stacy Uncorked says

    January 4, 2013 at 11:32 am

    “Kid Speak” is the best! We still utilize some of them that Princess Nagger used to do – like ‘baby snoot’ for bathing suit. Little Dude constantly calls his backpack a ‘pack back’, and napkin is ‘mackin’. 🙂

  9. Stephanie says

    January 4, 2013 at 12:58 pm

    Too cute! My husband and I always say that it will be sad day when the kids stop using their made up words for things.

  10. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 1:03 pm

    Our bathing suit is a “baby suit!” Haha!

  11. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 1:03 pm

    Great idea…I try to stick it in their baby books when I remember…

  12. Kelly Raudenbush says

    January 4, 2013 at 5:07 pm

    What a funny post! Great idea! Toodie definitely means something else in our house!

  13. sherry says

    January 4, 2013 at 7:18 pm

    We only ever used nicknames for the kids and dogs. My son was not under my care during the day, when he was little (daycare kid) so I always used the full words so he could express to me properly if something was amiss.

  14. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 9:21 pm

    That makes sense, Sherry, and is an important safety reminder for all of us who have kids in the care of others.

  15. diaperedknights says

    January 4, 2013 at 9:22 pm

    Lol, I can imagine!

  16. Shell says

    January 18, 2013 at 10:33 am

    These are so cute!

    Lack of sleep is making me draw a blank about some of ours… even though I know we have them. Not that it’s all that weird, but we say “butty-butt” thanks to my youngest. I think I will be sad when my boys get too old for that and roll their eyes at the term!

  17. diaperedknights says

    January 18, 2013 at 10:51 am

    butty-butt – I love that!

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Heather Schugar is an educator, author, and mom-of-all-trades. She holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, and her work has has been featured in national outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, Real Simple magazine, and Men’s Fitness.

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