Before I became a mother, I thought it might be “hip” to let my kids call me by my first name. After all, it’s just a name, right? Then I became a mother and I quickly changed my mind. I felt I earned the right to be called mother.
Since Tyler and I moved to Mobile after Hurricane Katrina, we have gone back and forth about this issue. He knows it’s not acceptable for him to call me Myra but he hears everyone else calling me Faye and feels it’s okay for him to do the same. You see, no one in my family or any of the kids I grew up with call me Myra. I’m either called Faye or Myra Faye. He tries to rationalize that calling me Faye like everyone else does is not the same as calling me by my first name. But to me it is.
I have thought about just ignoring him and hoping this behavior goes away but by the same token, I feel that calling your parents by their first name is not being respectful. And I want him to know that it’s not acceptable to me. Even though, as I said, I initially thought it was hip. I know several people who allow their kids to call them by their first name. These same parents seem to consider themselves more friends with their kids than parents. Being close to your kids is great but I think a line should be drawn when it comes to being “friends”. I know a mother who even went out drinking with her young daughter. I always thought that was just plain weird.
Things have changed since I was a child. We called all adults, Mr. or Mrs. Many kids today don’t and some adults don’t mind. We called our aunts and uncles, Aunt So and So and Uncle So and So. Today, my nephews and nieces call us all by our name. I don’t have a real problem with that because of the age difference. I’m so close in age to most of my nephews and nieces it would seem stranger hearing them call me Aunt. However, for my child I want the honor of being called mother.
What’s your opinion, is it okay for kids to call their parents by their first name?
See also:
Teaching Your Kids How To Show R-E-S-P-E-C-T
How To Teach Your Kids Good Manners
Teaching Your Kids To be Helpful