Exasperating Conversations With My 2nd Grader
So I picked my 2nd grader up from the school the other day, and this is the conversation we had on the way home…
*o* *o* *o*
Daughter (accusingly): Mom, why didn’t you name me “Sage”?
Me: Because it wasn’t my favorite name, at the time. It’s a pretty name, though.
Daughter: So why couldn’t you have just named me “Sage”?
Me: Because I never even thought of the name “Sage” when I was picking baby names. There’s a lot of good girl names out there.
Daughter: But I love the name “Sage”!
Me: We have some friends in South Dakota who named their baby girl “Sage”.
Daughter: (She is neither impressed, nor deterred, by my little anecdote) Why didn’t you name me “Sage”?
Me: How could I possibly know, when you were born 8 years ago, that one day when you were in the 2nd grade, you’d hear the name “Sage” and decide that’s what you wanted to be called?
Daughter: (Processes this logic. It actually sinks in. Moves on to another angle.) Well, can you change my name to “Sage”?
Me: No
Daughter: But WHY NOT?!?!
Me: Because to change a name is a big deal. We’d have to hire lawyers, talk to a judge, go to a courthouse, file a bunch of papers and pay big processing fees. That’s why.
(Exaggerating, for effect. It’s my only weapon, really. In truth, I have no idea how you would change your kids name…)
Daughter: Can’t we just change my name to “Sage” for a year?
Me: No
Daughter: But WHY NOT?!?! It’s just for a year!
Me: I told you why. It’s a big deal.
Daughter: But I really love the name “Sage”! Can’t you just call me that, and tell the school to call me that, for the next year?
*o* *o* *o*
Aaaaaaannnd round and round we go!
Do you have conversations like this, with your grade school aged child?
Comments (10)
Lisa from Gone With The Family
March 4, 2013 at 12:26 am
I can relate – I have a 16 year old “Katie” who hates that her birth certificate says “Katherine”. She thinks it was stupid to use the full name if I planned to call her “Katie” and can’t accept my explanation that there may come a day when she would like to have a more grown-up sounding name!
COMtnMom
March 4, 2013 at 5:27 pm
Nicely done! I love longer, “classic/strong” first names that have cute abbreviations. Like you said, leaves them some great options throughout life.
Not that my 2nd grader would appreciate this logic… but we moms definitely EARN the right to name our children! End of discussion 🙂
Jess @ Magic, Memories, Mayhem
March 4, 2013 at 1:59 am
Second grade boys are just as dramatic as the girls are!! Mine was just annoyed yesterday about how he never has “options.” All this because I told him he needed to play a three-player video game with his two friends so no one got left out. Needless to say, he didn’t get the option to play video games during his sleepover at all. Gotta love seven year old logic. 😉
COMtnMom
March 4, 2013 at 5:28 pm
Hahahaha!! This totally cracked me up – the ‘options’ thing is way too funny!
But then it made me sad, once I processed what you were telling me… and here I thought the drama would die down once my son reached this age?!?
Holly (DisFanInCO)
March 4, 2013 at 3:29 am
LOL. I have a friend who’s 3-year-old has started this! She wants to be called a different name about every two weeks or so. Right now, she’s insisting on being called “Holly” 😉
Oh, and I’m SO glad to hear that I’m not the only one who uses exaggeration with their kids. It’s usually the only way I can win an argument!
COMtnMom
March 4, 2013 at 5:30 pm
I love it – I want to be a fly on the wall, listening to you use exaggeration to debate with your very clever son, Holly!
Yes, isn’t it reassuring to hear others are sharing our (perhaps questionable) parenting techniques?!? 😉
Michelle Stice
March 4, 2013 at 6:45 pm
I was nanny for 10 years to a little girl who decided at that age that she wanted to be called Scully. This lasted for a couple years and it was the only name she would answer to. She did eventually outgrow it and go back to her given name of Avery.
COMtnMom
March 14, 2013 at 4:20 pm
This is so funny… it took me awhile to place “Scully”. X-Files? What a hoot – sounds like Avery had quite a little personality on her! 😉
Thanks for sharing, Michelle!
V No Privacy
March 14, 2013 at 8:33 pm
When I was 3 I absolutely insisted that everyone call me Silvia Violet. My parents, my preschool teacher, my friends. I would only answer to that name. They mostly complied. Thankfully the phase passed LOL 🙂
COMtnMom
March 14, 2013 at 8:41 pm
LOL… 3! Wow! And what a glamorous name your chose for yourself! Ok, now I’m dying to see a picture of 3 year old “Silvia Violet”…