<p>No, I am not going to be a grandmother any time soon but I was curious what your children call each of their grandparents. Or, if you are a grandparent, what do your grandchildren call you? Who selected the name, the grandchild, adult parent or the grandparent? Do all the grandchildren use the same name for the grandparent?</p>
<p>My children call my parents Bub (short for Bubbie, a Jewish grandmother) and Pa. My brother’s children call them Grandma and Grandpa.</p>
<p>My in laws are called Grandma and Lulu (a nickname that everyone calls him) by all of their grandchildren.</p>
<p>What are your favorite grandmother and grandfather names? What would you like to be called when the time comes?</p>
<p>Grandma and Grampajack
Grandma and Grampabert
Granny and Grandpop</p>
<p>Except for “granny,” which was by request, the kids sort of settled into these names on their own. I don’t know how my mother and WashMom’s mother ended up just “grandma” while the grandfathers were specific, but that’s how it happened.</p>
<p>My kids call both Grandmas just that “Grandma”. They call my dad PopPop… and my FIL, before he passed away was Grandpa. When they write to my parents, they abbreviate GMA & PP. </p>
<p>However… I called my mom’s mom “Grandma” … and my Dad’s mom “Gram” . My younger sister called her “Granny”. Don’t know why. For some reason, my kids called her Granny, too.</p>
<p>As for my grandfathers… My dad’s dad was “Popsie” – don’t laugh. I inherited it from older cousins… but it makes sense since my dad & his sister called him “Pops”. I suppose, as not to make my mom’s dad feel left out, he became “PoppaSam”.</p>
<p>On my side, all the grandchildren say Grandma and Grandpa (or gramma and grampa). On my H’s side, his brother’s kids say Grandma and Poppa - everyone else uses Grandpa. We were the first to have grandchildren, and for the most part, I think everyone else just adopted what we used. And we didn’t put that much thought into it. I think my mom really wanted us to use the Swedish names, but that is too confusing (since it changes, depending upon if it’s father’s parents or mother’s parents.) </p>
<p>In Germany, the familiar term is Oma and Opa (long O sound) – I kinda like that, and might suggest it for us when (and IF!) the time comes.</p>
<p>binx: That is really pretty. It came up on a House episode.</p>
<p>Me: Nannie and Pop-up
Gramma Mary and Grampa Abie</p>
<p>Kids: Nannie (my nannie became Greatnannie but Pop-up stayed Pop-up)
Gramma and Grampa</p>
<p>Kids kids: (Not yet)
I’d like to be called by my first name, though hard to say. Could morph into Lulu like above. But kids may have other ideas and not approve.</p>
<p>D calls my parents Grammie and Poppa and H’s parents Nana and Poppa. I called mine VaVoa and VaVoo (Portuguese) and to tell you the truth, I don’t know what husband called his grandparents other than his maternal Grandma Rubin, as the others had already passed away when we met. I do recall hearing H talking about his Bubbie, which I think was his great-grandmother (they are Jewish).</p>
<p>My in-laws were Grandpa and Grandma Sally to my kids, they were MiMi and Grandpa to the other grandkids. </p>
<p>My parents were MiMi and PaPa to my kids, and MiMi and Grandpa to the other grandkids. </p>
<p>I only had one grandparent and all the grandkids called her Grandma or Grandma Millen (her last name). I have no idea why we called her by her last name - the oldest grandkids started it.</p>
<p>Mine can call me anything they want, as long as I have some!</p>
<p>My 1-year-old grand-daughter isn’t really talking yet. She says maaa (for my DIL) and daaa (which seems to be all-purpose for both my S and the dog). We don’t live near my S and his family. When I saw my GD last, I referred to myself as Nana <first name=“”>. I just thought that would be convenient and not conflict with whatever my DIL’s mother wants to be called. That’s how I sign cards and packages to GD. My H hasn’t really settled on a “grandparent” name for himself.</first></p>
<p>My children called both sets of grandparents Grandma and Grandpa <last name=“”>.</last></p>
<p>My kids’ grandparents on my side are: MomMom and PopPop (though my dad has now passed away). </p>
<p>My kids’ grandparents on my husband’s side are: Grandma and Grandpa. </p>
<p>All grandchildren on each side call these grandparents the same thing. </p>
<p>I don’t quite recall how it started but maybe it did on my side when I had kids and I had called one of my own grandfathers PoP Pop and maybe we just kept that idea and my mom wanted then to be Mom Mom. My grandmothers were Nana and Nanny and so that never was kept. Then, we likely all decided that the other set of grandparents shouldn’t have the same name and they became Grandma and Grandpa and likely picked that themselves. My husband never knew his grandparents as they were not living when he was born.</p>
<p>As for my own grandchildren, I haven’t even begun to think about that yet! My kids are currently 19 and 21 and I think we have a while.</p>
<p>I called my mom’s mom “Grandma,” dad’s mom “Babcia” dad’s dad "Dziadzia,"and great-grandma was “Busia.” </p>
<p>My kids called their grandparents “Grandma and Grandpa Last Name” and
“Grandma and Grandpa Last Name.” My in-laws both died, so now we’re down to just Grandma and Grandpa.</p>
<p>We live far away and rarely see grandparents. My little ones can’t remember which ones have died. The main attraction at my mom’s house is a big gumball machine with a bowl of pennies next to it (she has 23 grandchildren).
Yesterday, my 5yo asked me–“Mom! --The grandma with the gumball machine–is she dead?!” She was happy to hear that “Gumball Grandma” is still alive. . .</p>
<p>When the time comes, just call me “Grandma.”</p>
<p>We asked our parents what they wanted to be called, and got several surprises.</p>
<p>On my side, we made them first-time grandparents, and on H’s side, our first was their 9th grandchild of an eventual l8.</p>
<p>On my side, my good-ol’ mom wanted “grandma” but my normally informal Dad said, “He can call me Grandfather.” </p>
<p>I said, “What? Do you think this is the Swiss Family Robinson? It’ll be years before he can do 3 syllables.” </p>
<p>My Dad said, “I’ll wait.”</p>
<p>Then at age 2, S produced “Grand-fah-doo” which stuck forever.</p>
<p>My inlaws surprised us also. While my nieces and nephews had been calling them, “grandma and grandpa” they secretly longed to be called “Bubbe and Zayde” (Yiddish). So we began that from our household, and then it spread to the grandchildren younger than ours from other BIL’s.</p>
<p>From this, I learned: ask them what they want! But you’ll have to do whatever they say ;)</p>