Choosing Your Grand Name - Or should the grandkids do it for you?

The moment the news broke that I was going to be a grandparent, I began contemplating my forever grandparent name.  I spent months “trying” them on. Frankly,I didn’t want to be stuck for life with a toddler’s derivative of grandma.  With my luck, I'd end up with Dodo or Blucky. 

My mom’s mom was christened her special grand name by my oldest cousin, just a one-year-old at the time and the first born to our clan.  Our grandmother would visit their apartment routinely and announce her arrival from the foyer below calling out “ooh-hoo, ooh-hoo" in her lovely, lilted voice.  Hence, our grandmother would forevermore be lovingly called Ooh-Hoo by just about everyone she knew.  

As I began my quest for the perfect grand name, I discovered that the choices were mind-boggling.  First, I considered Grand’Mere. After all, is has a classy ring to it and I do have French in my background... somewhere.  And then I tried Nana – a salute to one of the Irish grandmothers I never knew.  

While my mother-in-law has embraced it for years, Grandma just wasn’t my cup of java.  I wanted something that ..just ..fit ..me.  And then I honed in on Grammy... or should it be Grammie?  Thoughts swirled in my head about future additions to my growing grand clan.  With every beautiful baby that entered my life, I imagined sending them notes and gifts and signing my name with a heart for each placed above the “i” (as well as two hearts below the "i" for my own two precious daughters.)   I settled on Grammie. 

Unlike my over analyzation of the grand name, my husband barely gave it a thought.  When asked what he wanted to be called, his was short and sweet: “I want to be Grandpa,  just like my dad."  It didn’t take long for Grandpa to be shortened to Papa.  So there goes selecting your name ahead of time. 

At this moment, I've been blessed with four hearts above the “i “ in Grammie and I'm tickled pink…and blue.  I'm waiting for the day when my 6-year-old granddaughter, the oldest of the crew, asks “Grammie, which heart is mine?”

What's your grand name journey? Contact me -- I'd love to hear and share it to The Grands Club Community.