VandVsmama
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2011
- Messages
- 8,849
My mom passed away when I was an adult, but a few years before DS was born. My Dad is with someone now whom I really adore, but I never know if it's appropriate to introduce her as my "step-mom," as they're not actually married. DS just calls her "Nana" (and we refer to my late mom as "Grandma Firstname"). He has a different nickname for his grandmother on DH's side.
I have a similar situation. My mom passed away a few years after my kids were born. Soon after that, my father remarried. My children call his wife by her first name. If we lived in the South, they'd probably call her "Miss First_Name." I call her by her first name. When I speak of her to others, I refer to her as my father's wife. Under no circumstances is she my step-mother. For me personally, a step-mother is someone who was present & involved in raising you. My mom passed away when I was an adult. I respect my father's new wife very much, but she is in no way shape or form a mother figure to me.
That being said, my father was very insistent that my kids call her by various forms of "Grandma." We vetoed all of them. He also suggested non-English language forms of "Grandma" and we vetoed those as well. Basically, it confused our kids a lot. They have 2 grandmas as far as they're concerned. 1 just happens to be in Heaven.
Your mileage may vary.
