"What are these called, Mommy?"

[jhamman]

Hi,

May I ask a slightly embarrassing question?
What does your DC call your breasts?

My DS is on a kick to learn all the names of body parts,
but I guess my modestly-endowed chest has not caught his
attention yet (!).

After thinking about it, I realized that there are dozens of
ways to refer to a woman's breasts in our popular culture,
but few of them are appropriate for a young child to repeat.

It seems like the choices are either a little clinical ("breasts"),
or a little frat-boy-ish ("boobies!").
Neither seem really appropriate for a young child to use when
they are talking to their daycare teacher or grandmother,
for example.

I guess my preference right now is "breasts",
but am I overlooking a sweeter, more affectionate term ("bosom"?)
that might be appropriate for a young child to use ?

Thanks!
jhamman

PS
Also, have you taught your DC a name or nickname
for a body part and then regretted it later?
(when it's repeated loudly in a check-out line, for example!).

[egoldber]

I have always taught Sarah correct anatomical names.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I always use the correct terminology for body parts, well I do call his gluteus maximus his butt. :) Breasts are breasts. Works just fine for us. :)

Beth

[JTsMom]

DS calls them num nums, but he's still nursing. I call them num nums or breasts, depending on the situation.

[o_mom]

We usually go with the anatomically correct term (penis, scrotum, vulva, etc.), but breasts around here usually go by "nummies" or "mimis" as a carryover from nursing. It is kind of a context thing, though. If they see me in the shower, I would say "breast", but they say "DS3 wants nummies!" when talking about nursing.

[katydid1971]

Same here.

[scoop22]

for some reason ds just started calling them boobies.

eta: i figured out why.. i keep saying baby since i am pregnant. he thinks i am saying something else. i will be woring on this one..

http://b3.lilypie.com/Sd3bm4.png

http://bd.lilypie.com/WtLfm4.png

[Bean606]

Good question! My son calls them "boo" because my DH always referred to them as "boob" from when I began nursing, as in "DS is cranky - he might need some boob." So, before we even realized it, DS starting saying it and now we don't know how to change it!

[Moneypenny]

I just refer to the whole area as my chest. She has never asked for anything more specific. If she did, I would say breasts.

Susan
mama to my 3-year old cutie pie

[JBaxter]

I have Breasties!!

according to Nathan little ones are boobies then they grow big and they get called breasties.

Sounded perfectly logical to me :P

[FlagstaffMomma]

That is too cute! We say boob-boob. But DD is 6 months and is nursing. I started saying that in then beginning. When she is older they will be breasts.

[hez]

We use 'breasts'. And I semi-regret teaching him 'nipples' (when he asked what he had on his chest).

We did teach him penis and so forth-- and we did get nice & embarrassed when car shopping & I asked what he was playing with (I thought his hand was in the pocket of his overalls-- I was very, very wrong).

[billysmommy]

Billy still calls them milkies. He started that when he was still nursing. He knows they are called breasts but mommy has milkies. Benjamin calls them nuh-nuh?!?!?!

We've always taught them the correct names for everything but for some reason when Billy was little he thought we were saying "menace" for penis and that name has stuck to this day :) He did think the word scrotum was hysterical and laughed so hard he fell down!!!

[tiapam]

They don't always grow big! I still have boobies. Always wanted breasties but I have gotten over it. My back probably could not handle it anyway.

DD has settled on Yum Yums. We still nurse a bit in the AM. She has even nursed her baby doll a little recently. She told her, "Only one Yum Yum".

-Pam

DD - 3 YO

[C99]

Boobs.

My niece is 8 and uses the term breast and it jars me every time she uses it (which is often, since I have been breastfeeding a child for much of the last 4.5 years).

ETA: We use the correct anatomical names for their genitalia. We use the word "bum" for bottoms.

[Roleysmom]

I thought I was the only one that had this reaction to the word breasts. I hate the word. I think it's the br sound that sounds weird to me, but it's the only body part where I don't use the correct name with DD. We say nipple, penis, vulva, the whole nine yards but breasts are boobs or boobies. I did tell her that they are really called breasts but I call them boobies or boobs.

[MarisaSF]

DD says "breasts" and "nipples." When she was nursing, she called the whole *act* "nurse," but she never asked (or didn't care) where the milk was actually coming from. She knows she and her dad have "chests" and "nipples."

I guess I always thought "booby" would be more embarrassing shouted out in public (or to a daycare teacher or grandmother).

It's interesting to hear all the perspectives. The word "breastfeeding" always sounded too clinical to me, so I prefer to use "nurse" and teach the kids that word. However the word "breast" does not seem clinical to me.

[g-mama]

My oldest calls his nipples "nibbles" because he thought that's what he heard when he once asked me. I didn't bother to correct him because it sounded less offensive and I didn't really want to hear him throwing "nipples" around!

Funny (or maybe not) story -- just recently, we were watching Dancing with the Stars. Of course, the ladies have on really revealing dresses and he (7 later this month) says to me, "You know what my favorite part is on all ladies?" to which I fearfully said, "No, what?" He points to the screen and says "THOSE!" Dh stifles his laughter and asks why. DS says in total innocence, "because I just like the way they look and feel."

Ay yi yi. Dh swears it's because mine are um...ample. All of my boys seem to become obsessed with them from birth. Dh's mom's are barely noticeable and he swears our sons are all going to be boob-men because their mama has ones that are quite noticeable.


~Kristen

Paolo 11-00
Benjamin 8-03
Marco 12-05

[marit]

You reminded me something really funny (and totally unrelated...). When DD1 was 18 months old and just began her first words, I went to TJ with her once. It was raining and when I was getting her out if her carseat I dropped my car keys into a puddle. I said "Oh ####".

For the next month she walked around saying Oh #### Oh ####, all over the place I my face was the reddest it ever got!

[Bean606]

Now THAT is funny. I have to remind my DH to be careful all the time, because we commute in heavy traffic with DS, and DH is a little prone to road rage. I can just imagine what might come out of my DS's mouth after a particularly bad ride home. . .

[AngelaS]

ROTFL!

[Rachels]

Breasts. I think that when we make up names for body parts, we give the message that the real names are wrong or shameful. We don't do this for stomachs and shoulders and ankles, and it doesn't make any sense to do it for breasts or penises either.

-Rachel
Mama to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_amethyst_36m.gif
Nursed for three years!

and Ethan James
10/19/05
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/bf.jpg

"When you know better, you do better." - Maya

[pb&j]

>Breasts. I think that when we make up names for body parts,
>we give the message that the real names are wrong or shameful.
> We don't do this for stomachs and shoulders and ankles, and
>it doesn't make any sense to do it for breasts or penises
>either.
>


I disagree. We use cute nicknames for all kinds of body parts - around our house, we've got tummies, bee bos, tootsies, dogs, and heinies. It doesn't at all imply that our stomachs, navels, toes, feet, and gluteus maximi are shameful. Sometimes it's just nice to have a nickname.

ETA: FTR, DS does know the correct anatomical names for all his parts, and when it comes up, he'll learn breasts as well. But that won't mean that he won't also know what boob means.

-Ry,
mom to Max, age 1.5
and my girl in heaven

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/37124.gif

[MarisaSF]

Good points. When I was pregnant, DD was just as likely to say, "Mommy has a baby growing in her belly" as she was to say, "Mommy has a baby growing in her uterus." She has a book that describes the uterus as "also known as a womb." It never occurred to me NOT to teach her the word "uterus," but when others heard her saying uterus they thought I was being a pushy parent or something.

There are many words -- both nicknames and formal -- for the same thing and I'm taking from your post a reminder that our kids will be exposed to people calling breasts other words. It's part of popular culture.

Off to teach DD about gazongas, boobs, and tatas. :)

ETA: Ry- I was nursing DS tonight and thought about your post. We use "nickname" words for so many things besides private parts -- eyeballs, pinky finger (and pointer, ring finger, middle finger), knee cap, belly button, underarms, funny bone :P -- you're so right. Then of course, there's words like poop and pee. (I admit, DD has no idea what "fart" means. Gosh, I can hardly type it! :P) Thanks for giving me something to ponder tonight. It would be hard for DD (or anybody) to participate in basic life without understanding what these words mean.

[lisams]

>Billy still calls them milkies. He started that when he was
>still nursing.

That is so sweet!

[SnuggleBuggles]

Yep, every bad word ds knows is 99% because he has to drive with me. :)

Beth

[SnuggleBuggles]

That cracks me up! :) Thanks for sharing that!

Beth

[michellep]

I hardly think that asking a child if their tummy aches sends the message that stomach is a shameful word. A lot of the nicknames come about because the more technical body part names are just plain hard for a toddler to pronounce. Hand is easy, but vulva? We usually try the real words--sometimes they work, sometimes they don't, sometimes the mispronunciations stick. So penis has become peanut, breasts have always been breasts (well bwests would be more accurate), and we skipped buttocks all together in favor of butt or bottom. And yes, stomach is tummy around here. Attributing these word choices to shame is a stretch.

-M

[g-mama]

Thanks, Angela and Beth. After I hit "send" I worried it might be taken the wrong way like I was raising a little pervert! It was more one of those "out of the mouths of babes" moments. :)



~Kristen

Paolo 11-00
Benjamin 8-03
Marco 12-05