How they got their nicknames

I was asked how the kids got their nicknames, so I will try my best to explain...I'll start with The Jib...

The Jib is (almost) a year old. When she was born, my husband and I thought it would be cute to call her "Jillybean" as a nickname. Puckey, who was 18months old at the time couldn't say that, but she COULD say "Jibby-Gee", which was what we called The Jib for a while. Then it got shortened to "Jibby", and finally, "The Jib". Not really sure where the "The" came from, but it sounds cool, kinda like she's in the Mafia or something. (Not that I condone criminal activity, but you have to admit that some of those guys had some pretty cool nicknames) Occasionally she is referred to as The Jibinator, Jibernathy, Jibsworth, or Jiblet as well.

The Jib Then....

And Now...

Puckey, who is 2 1/2, started life being called "Monkey" because when she was born she was all long limbed and hairy. Even her little ears were hairy. She was SO stinkin' cute! Little did we know that her nickname would also indicate her LOVE of climbing. She climbs everything. One day, after she started talking, she informed my husband and me that she was "Puckey". So she's been Puckey ever since. There are variations, such as Puck-ster, Punkinator, Pucksworth, and Puckey-pie, but mostly she's just Puckey. (Although if you ask her now, she'll tell you she's a dinosaur)

Puckey Then...And Now...

Nans, who is 9, has been called Nans by my husband for years. When she was really little, she was Hanner-Nans or Hannah-Banana. Nans was just the natural progression (plus I think SHE likes it a little better than the other names.) My dad calls her Hannah from Savannah. She is also referred to as "Sissy" by Puckey.

Nans Then... And Now...

Bug, who is 10, started out being "booger", because she always had her finger in her nose. Then she developed an intense interest in bugs. She was always catching bugs and playing with them. To this day, she's not really bothered by bugs. (I, on the other hand, only like ONE bug - HER!!) She is also called "Sissy" sometimes by Puckey, but more often she is called "Ashwe"

Bug Then...And Now...

Bubber, who is 13, got his name because we wanted something cute for Puckey and The Jib to call him. (Ande's mom called her brother "bubber" when he was born, and it's pretty much stuck ever since. He's known as Uncle Bub now...) Before Puckey and The Jib came along, he was Bud or Buddy. We wanted a special nickname for the babies to call him, though, because he really loves his baby sisters (whether he'll admit it or not is a whole OTHER story).

Bubber Then...

And Now...

I guess, all in all, my kids have pretty decent nicknames. It's better than the one I had when I was a kid...Pooper. Yes, you read right. Apparently it had to do with a diaper incident when I was just a baby. My dad, in all of his dad glory, used to LOVE taking me to the mall and if I happened to run into someone I knew he'd yell something like, "C'mon, Pooper, we need to get going!" Yes, it was fun being 16 at the mall with my dad.

This is my dad and my Great-Grandma Lula (Full name LulaBelle, yeah, she was from the south) in 1980 - check out my dad's mustache!! (Watch out Tom Selleck)

My dad is king of the weird nicknames. My cousin Ted was (and always will be) Mathilda. Why? Who knows. My aunt decided that my dad had cursed Ted by nicknaming him Mathilda, though, when he ended up marrying a girl named Hilda. What a pair! (Hilda is a lovely woman, by the way, who has made Ted quite a happy man and a daddy twice over!) Then there's my cousin Samantha - AKA Yosemite Sam from Alabam. Yeah, my dad's an odd one...but he's pretty funny. One of my favorite things about my dad is that he sends each member of the family a Christmas card, and on Ande's, he always signs it, "With Love, Ron Martin" Ande and I have been married for nearly 5 years. He signs my brother in law's card the same way. My sister has been married for 15 years. I guess he just wants to make sure they know who the card is from?!?!

These are my parents (on the left) and our former neighbors on Halloween 1981...yes, my dad is dressed as "Ronna Summers" Classy, right? Apparently that year they decided cross-dressing was the way to go - the lovely cheerleader's name is Dave. Notice the sweet wall decor - SO 70's!! I wonder if my mom still has that stuff...it went GREAT with our verigated GREEN shag carpet.

Well, hopefully I haven't bored anyone to tears with this. Thanks, Devin, for asking!!

Oh, and as a special request from Ande - "Hi, Aunt Pearl!!!" (Grandma says she reads this blog, so we wanted to say hi)