More nickname stories

Here, from our mailbag, are stories of more father/kid nicknames that we didn't have space for in the print edition of the Review-Journal.

And, again: Happy Father's Day.

CHRISTOPHER A. KEARNEY, LAS VEGAS

I have two children I have nicknames for.

My 5-year-old daughter, Claire, is called "Missy Bear" because I used to call her "Clairebear" as a baby and my wife, when Claire acted up, called her "Missy." So, I eventually combined the two long ago into "Missy Bear" (or, when singing to her: Missy, Missy, Bear Bear Claire, she's the Missy Bear!).

We have great fun with this. When in the pool, I say, "High in the air goes a ..." and she finishes it with a loud "Missy Bear!" before I launch her upward and into the water.

My 7-year-old son, Derek, is called "Big Boy" because, as he was a baby, I imagined him growing fast and tall (he hasn't disappointed in this regard). Even though it was meant as a baby name, it stuck and so I still call him "Big Boy."

BARBARA MAHONEY, LAS VEGAS

My husband, Marty, has nicknamed our youngest son (age 7) "Moosinator." It's a combination of "Moose," because he is a sturdy, thick boy, and "Terminator," which I have no idea how that came into play. We regularly call him that and he has no problem answering to it either. His real name is Mason.

NED THOMAS, NORTH LAS VEGAS

I'm not sure how or why it happened, but we have four children with individual nicknames based on bakery items.

It started with our first child, Harrison, who came to be known as "Harrison Pie." Our second child, a daughter, then came to be known as "Whitney-cakes." Our third child, a son named Bretton, goes simply by "Biscuit." And finally, our youngest daughter, Julianna, started off as "Julianna Jellyroll," but since this was kind of a mouthful, her nickname has since shortened to "Ju-Ju Bee."

SUZANNE WINTERS, LAS VEGAS

My dad has been gone from this earth since 1971. He was only 56 years old when he passed away. He was the kind of dad that loved his kid and was always there for all five of us.

My dad had a nickname for each one of us. I was "Lambie Pie" and my sister was "Sugar Lump." I don't remember what he called my brothers, although I know they also had nicknames, too.

Reading about nicknames given by dads brought back so many memories of my dad. I am 62 years old and, even after all these years, I can still see him in my mind's eye and hear his voice like it was yesterday. The impact our fathers make on us is amazing and I only wish more fathers would know that.

DEVON SPARKS (14 YEARS OLD), HENDERSON

My father's name is Delber. The nickname given to me by both my parents is "Budda."

The fact that I was even born is, I have been told, a miracle. My parents love each other very much, and every night they would lie in bed together. My dad would rub my mom's stomach and chant "Budda-Budda-Budda." Sometimes I would get the hiccups, and my dad would lay a glass on my mom's belly and they would laugh and laugh.

When I was born, every time my dad would feed me -- just my dad, not my mom -- I would get the hiccups. And, even today, sometimes when I get the hiccups he yells out, "I didn't touch her!"

I love my dad. He is the best dad in the world.

DONNA SILVA, LAS VEGAS

It was 1949 and my father was a captain in the Air Force. We were stationed at Tachikawa Air Force Base in Japan. I was about 3 at the time. As I was the youngest, my father began calling me "Chi-sigh" which I understood to mean "Little One" or literally "Little Life."

Many a birthday card (well into my 30s) was addressed to "Chi-sigh" by my father. When my second grandson was born, I began calling him by the same nickname. It gives me loving memories of my father and my life as a small child.

BRUCE R. MASTRACCHIO ("THE BROOK"), LAS VEGAS

I have three children, all now grown (38, 37, 35). However, when they were little (and still now), I gave them nicknames and even expanded on them a little so that they might be the stars of the bedtime stories I told them each night.

My oldest daughter, Christine Marie, was "Pookie" (sometimes "Petunia") and for the bedtime stories she became "PookMaroo."

My son, Bruce Ronald Jr., became "B.J." (for Bruce Jr.), later expanded to "Beej," and for the stories he was "BeejMaroo."

My youngest daughter, Tara Ann, became "Tarooch" (also "Petunia" or "Matilda") and for story purposes was "TaroochMaroo."

The Maroo family was incorporated into every fairy tale ever known and replaced the long-starring historical principals like Hansel and Gretel, Rumplestiltskin, etc. It was a lot of fun, and I invented and reinvented the stories each time I told them. I could do it in the dark, which helped them get to sleep quicker, and did not have to use a book all the time.

Anyway, it is one of those endearing memories of their childhood, and I remember it fondly.

DONALD WILLIAMS, LAS VEGAS

I remember when I gave my daughter Donna and the three girls who lived next door their nicknames in 1965.

I returned home from work one sunny afternoon to find every toy you could imagine littering both driveways (ours and the neighbor's) where the four girls had been playing. There was no way I could drive into the garage.

I honked and called, and all of them came out of the backyard to see what was happening. I said: "You boys get your dolls, tables, dishes, and whatever out of the driveway."

Almost in unison, they yelled, "We aren't boys, we're girls!" I laughed and called each one by their new names. My daughter's name was Gus. The three neighbor girls became Pete, Sam and Oscar.

Two names stuck, Gus and Sam. Gus has gone through grade school and high school, and still is Gus to me and our family. She apparently enjoys the fact that she is special and still goes by Gus.

DAVE SHEEHAN, HENDERSON

My daughter Brianna, 10, has many nicknames. She goes by "Bri-Bri" (her favorite), "Bri," "Breezy," "Breezy Bug," and, up until the age of 5 or so, she was known primarily as "Boo-Boo." None of these nicknames really mean anything; I just think they are cute and appropriate for my daughter.

Brianna's 3-year-old sister, Olivia, calls her "Nini." And I sometimes call Olivia "Little Nini" or "Little Boo." So there are plenty of nicknames floating around.

I can recall when I was 7 years old and growing up in Wisconsin, I begged my mother to come up with a nickname for me because all my friends had one. We thought about it for a long time but came up empty-handed. So I'm still just plain old Dave.

DENIS CHRISTOPHER-RYAN, HENDERSON

My nickname is "Sugarlump," actually bestowed on me by my grandfather at my birth.

I am one of 18 grandchildren that he had and he gave each and every one of us a nickname when we were born. I guess he thought I was as sweet as a lump of sugar!

He passed away about 12 years ago. Even now, at the tender age of 51, I cherish my nickname in my heart (even though I never use it).

GINA TILLMAN, HENDERSON

Weiner.

Just writing it annoys me and, at 34 years old, I'm exasperated that my dad still calls me this.

The story goes that I was very long and thin when I was born, and my dad said that I looked like a hot dog. Boy, I hope that's the truth!

For the most part, Dad has been much better about using it only in private (when I'm around, anyway), though there have been times he's called it across shopping centers to get my attention -- or, just to make me mad.

I love my dad, but I wish he'd settled on "Oscar Mayer" or even "Frank" to satisfy his hot dog nickname desire.

JAN WILSON, LAS VEGAS

My son, John E. Wilhelm, who lives Humboldt, Neb., has a number of nicknames for his daughter, who is now 12.

From the time Jamie was 2, he has called her "Pussycat" because, when she eats, she continually licks each finger on both hands during and after eating. John still calls Jamie his little pussycat.

AMY BREWSTER ("MY HUSBAND, THE NICKNAMER, IS JOEL BREWSTER"), LAS VEGAS

My husband's family is really into nicknames, and my family never used any, so nicknames are quite mysterious to me.

My husband calls my 2-year-old daughter Sierra, "Lego," and my 6-year-old son Toby is "Y-bot" (pronounced "why-bot"), sometimes "Y-bot the robot."

"Lego" came from last Christmas when the family made Lego people to resemble each member of the family. We lost Sierra's Lego clone and my son asked where Lego Sierra was. Now the real girl is known only as "Lego."

When Toby was smaller, he wrote the letters of his name out of order, hence "YBOT" or "why-bot." Because it sounds like a robot, he is "Y-bot the robot."

Yeah, I still don't get nicknames, really.

PAMULA WALKER, LAS VEGAS

I am writing this letter on behalf of my husband Lonnie Walker II, the greatest husband there is in America. We have three wonderful sons: Lonnie III, Joshua and Aaron. Before we ever had children we both agreed that we would never give our children nicknames, especially since neither of us had a nickname and never felt that we needed one. That all changed once our first son was born. We started calling Lonnie III, "Little One" because he was a little version of his father and he really wasn't as little as we imagined him to be. He had very big hands with long fingers and very big feet. He always laughed and smiled, which caused everyone else to do the same. He just brought out all the joy and happiness even when you didn't feel like it. The irony in this nickname is that he is much taller than his father or I, so being called "little one" is a bit odd.

Our second son, Joshua, is called "Boonkee Noonk." Why that name? His delivery was so easy and smooth, which proved to be a great reflection of his personality. He was such a happy, sweet, easygoing, quick-to-smile baby that when I looked at him and talked to him, that name just came from my heart to my mouth and quickly became his name. Now that he is a young man, he absolutely hates that name. He is trying out for the school's football team and we have told him that we would get T-shirts made that have his nickname and picture on the shirt and would wear them to all of his games. He begged us not to do it, but we think it's a great idea.

Our third son, Aaron, is called "Woodee Man" or "Woo-Woo Woodee Man." We chose this name because his delivery was quite difficult. He took his time and did things the way he wanted it to be done, which is so true of his personality. He has been described by people as a person who has been here on earth before. He has wisdom and understanding of things that, for a child his age, just blows you away. He can be very dogmatic on some issues and very laid-back on others. He will let you know what he thinks and will argue his point until you give up. Because he talks so much he has recently earned a new nickname, "A-A-noy," a combination of "Aaron" and "Annoying."

DAVID FRIEDLANDER, LAS VEGAS

We have two boys with very distinctive personalities.

Our first, Aaron, caused my wife a moderately difficult labor. She had to be taken down to have some repairs done after labor, leaving me alone with my first-born son. As I marveled at the miracle I was holding in my arms, I thought he looked like a newborn cub, with his eyes scrunched shut and needing my body warmth. "Bear" rhymed with the first part of Aaron, and I quickly started calling him "Aar Baar." Almost five years later, he is still my adorable little cub.

Our second-born son, Nathan, was independent from the start, wanting to prove to the world that he could do everything. We could tell that he was a very strong boy from the very beginning, thus his name: "Hercules." As he has grown, he continues to amaze us with his strength and daring. Even though he is not quite 4 years old, he performs feats on the playground and lifts things around the house that many kids twice his age would be unable to do.

I am so proud to be the father of two fantastic kids.

DAN DESIDERIO, LAS VEGAS

Take it from the French! They have common girl names, such as Veronique, Frederique, Monique, Michelle, Danielle. On the other hand, what I find quite interesting are unique names, such as Delphine, Raymonde, Damiene and the like, given as birth names to girls. Of course, without the "e" affixed at the end, we know it's the male version, though rarely used as such.

On the western side of the pond, girl names like Bobbi, Toni, Gerri, etc. are indeed popularly accepted, however male-sounding they are. So much so that, trendy or otherwise, I nicknamed my daughter Laura early on as "Larri," to be in synch with her cousins Freddi and Jelli (Fredalyn and Angela, respectively). Could you imagine how people react when they hear Grandnana call these girls by their nicknames (when mad)? Boys will be boys?

LORNA PHEGLEY, LAS VEGAS

My husband, John Phegley, calls our daughter, Mika, age 26 months, "Critter."

We started later in life when we had our daughter two years ago. He's been calling all of his friends "critters" for years. Now he has one of his own. All of our friends know her as "Critter" and so do the folks at day care.

ELIZABETH (PENNIE) GRAJEK, MESQUITE

If I were a betting woman I would bet that I have the longest-lasting nickname.

I was born March 3, 1937 in Detroit, Mich. At that time, mothers and babies spent several days in the hospital after the birth. During that time, my father went to see a movie titled something like, "Red Nichols and the Five Pennies." It was about a family performing on Broadway, I believe. The song, "Pennies from Heaven" came from that movie.

My father immediately started calling me HIS penny from heaven. It has stuck ever since! I changed the spelling from "Penny" to "Pennie" when I was in high school because of the coolness factor (yes, we were concerned about cool even then).

So, for 71 years and counting, I have been "Pennie."

MARY SEXTON, HENDERSON

My father (who passed away three years ago this month) gave me and my siblings "family nicknames." I can actually tell at what stage in my early years I met my friends by what they call me.

My father called me "Mame." Not quite certain how it came about, but it seems to have been because, when I was quite little, I couldn't say "Mary" but called myself "Mae Mae" which shortened to "Mame" and stuck.

The same year I was born, I had a boy cousin and a female aunt born earlier in the year. They were big babies, and when I was born, my paternal grandfather thought I was so little I wouldn't make it, and he called me "Mimi." To this day (some 50 years later), I cannot call my grandmother (who is 98) and say "Hi, it's Mary." She hasn't any idea who it is. If I call and say "Hi, it's Mimi," she knows right away to whom she is speaking, and we chat away.

To round out the family nicknames: Mary (myself) was called "Mame" by my father and "Mimi" by my paternal grandparents; Nancy (sister) was called "Nanny Goat"; Gregory (brother) was called "Dre Dre" (he pronounced Gs like Ds); Jim (brother) was called "Jimmy Jet"; and Eileen (sister) was called "Beanie Copter" (and if you want to get her riled up to this day, call her that!).

MICHAEL J. PERFETTO, HENDERSON

When I was a kid, my dad would take me down to the park with him to run along the reservoir for exercise.

I was only about 5 years old at the time. I remember running by his side, trying to keep up and talking the whole time -- "Hey Dad," "Dad, do you know what?" etc. Finally, my dad just stopped, turned to me and said: "How can you keep talking like that? Don't you ever run out of breath?" That's how I got the nickname "Motor Mouth."

Now I have a 5-year-old son of my own, and I am afraid that it must run in the family. My wife and I are constantly pleading with my son, Joey, to "just stop talking."

MITCH BISHOP, LAS VEGAS

As the father of five boys, I have lots of nicknames for my little guys (ages 7, 5, 4, 2 and 10 months).

My favorite is that of my 4-year-old, Gage. He takes little man syndrome to new levels. His persistence, aggression and temper have earned him the nicknames of "Gage the Rage" and "Gagezilla."

PENNY TYEBO, HENDERSON

My name is Penelope Ann and, for some reason, that gave birth to a plethora of nicknames. It's a British sort of name and my dad was in England during World War II. He was always very cagey when quizzed about where he got that name.

My dad called me "Loper" or "Lopey," or "Dopey Lopey" when I was being particularly goofy.

He died too young of lung cancer 28 years ago, and I miss him still.

PHILLIP PAGAC, LAS VEGAS

In 1995, my son was born here in Vegas. When he was presented to me, I noticed his head looked to be almost twice the size it should have been, and he had really long hair for a newborn. I guess subconsciously in my mind I said "Bug."

I never really gave it much thought after that until he was around 4 to 5 months old. When he started pushing forward on the floor, prior to crawling, he really did look like a bug. So from that day forward I started calling him "Buggy," as did everyone else in our family, and from that day on, he became my "bug."

Of course, his body eventually grew into his head, but he has remained our "Buggy" nonetheless.

RONALD NOAH, MESQUITE

My son's nickname is "Gobi-san."

Many years ago he and I went to an outdoor concert in Sedona, Ariz. It was summer and, to beat the heat (he was about 12 years old at the time) he wore a tan cap with a visor on it with a tan cloth attached that covered his neck. I told him he looked like he was ready to cross the Gobi Desert. Hence, since that day he became known as "Miquel of the Gobi." Later in life he became a military historian on the Imperial Japanese Navy, so I added "san" to his nickname. He is now known to me, affectionately, as, "Gobi-san."

My father, who was quite a character nicknamed all my kids for no apparent reason other than that's the kind of thing he did!

So my eldest son, Andre, became "Ornery."

My next son, Cameron X., became "Kodak."

My daughter, Germaine, became "Grenade."

And my last son, Miquel, became "McGoo" (but he is still "Gobi-san" to me).

My father called them by their nicknames until he passed away.

RON HUNTINGTON, LAS VEGAS

When our son was born in 1975, he was quite large and bald. My wife and I started calling him "Bubba" after an NFL lineman. As he grew older we started calling him "Blue" because of the bruises he gave his older brothers.

We never thought that he would finish high school because of a "lack of attention." We then found out that he had a heart problem and needed a pacemaker.

Once he received "the can," he took off, both academically and in extreme sports, from snowboarding the peaks in Alaska to attending the University of Nevada, Reno. He received a bachelor's and a master's and is a Ph.D. candidate.

He is hydrologist for the Nevada state engineer's office, trying to keep Nevada's water "Blue."

KEVIN DIAMOND, HENDERSON

My nickname as a young child was "Chopper."

I was a terrible eater. I would sit at the dinner table, sometimes for hours, and not eat. Worse yet, I would keep food in my mouth, like a chipmunk, and not even chew. My father would say, "Chop, chop, eat up, let's go..."

After years of telling me, "Chop, chop," my father game me the nickname "Chopper."

SYLVIA M. ROWE, LAS VEGAS

My dad, Jess, didn't necessarily give my brother an unusual nickname. It was the reason for the nickname that was unusual.

My dad grew up as one of eight kids in a small mining town in Virginia. His brother, James, died young. Dad decided to honor his brother by naming my younger brother James.

The dilemma? I also had an older half-brother named James.

Therefore, James the Older became Pat (James Patrick), and James the Younger became Jimmy. But James the Younger grew up hating the nickname Jimmy, and he started to demand that we call him James. Meanwhile, Pat decided he liked his first name, and he wanted to be called Jim. He liked his name so much, in fact, that he named his own son James, nicknaming him Jimmy.

Yes, it's true. In my immediate family we have Jim, Jimmy and James. Makes for interesting holiday gatherings, at least.

TERESA KARL, LAS VEGAS

My husband, Gary, gave our firstborn son, David, a nickname when David was about 2 years old.

We were visiting my sister-in-law's classroom when she introduced us to her ventriloquist's dummy, Danny O'Day. She showed us how to "work" him, and David was fascinated by him. Thereafter, Gary would put David on his knee as if he were the dummy, put his hand on the back of his neck, and say, "This is my puppet, David O'Day. Say 'Hi' to the folks, Dave." And David would say, sullenly, "I'm not a dummy."

The nickname "David O'Day" stuck so well that when he started Little League, the name he wanted on his uniform was 'O'Day.' " And we still call him that today; he turned 30 this year!

TJ THOMAS HUGH DENTON JR., LAS VEGAS

There is no bigger joy in my life than being a father to my two children ...

My son's name is Austin Bean, and the nickname I gave him is "Freijolito" or "Freijole," which I have been calling him since he was 3. He is my little bean.

My daughter's name is Aubrie Denton. As soon as she was able to start getting into stuff, I've been telling her, 'No, no, no, no, no, no," which slowly progressed into "Na, na, na, na, na, na," so her nickname is "Nana."

TIM CHEATHAM, LAS VEGAS

I have two daughters named Zehra and Zoe Cheatham. The nicknames I chose for them are, for Zehra, "Rah-Rah," which is the end of her name that we like to say twice (Rah, rah!). Plus, her sister is fond of that name.

Zoe's nickname is "Doh-Doh" (sounds like "doe-doe"). Her grandma is old with no teeth, so when she would call for Zoe it always sounded like she was saying, 'Dogh-ee." So we named her "Doh-Doh."

LEW AND AMY SHIMAOKA, LAS VEGAS

My daughter's name is Shania. When she was about 1 year old I started to call her "Shaka-nia" and sometimes just "Shaka." Soon after I began teaching her the sign. My daughter is now 41/2 years old and still answers to this nickname.

In Hawaii, where we are from, the "shaka" sign is a form of greeting. It conveys friendship and/or recognition. The signal can mean many things such as "Hang loose," "Hello," "Goodbye," "Howzit?" "Take it easy," "Later," and "Right on!" to name a few.

How to shake your shaka: Extend the thumb and pinky finger while keeping the three middle fingers curled, and raising your hand as in salutation with the back of the hand facing the person that is being greeted and rotate your hand back and forth.

You will also see this sign among the ninth Islanders, the self-given name of people from Hawaii who now call Las Vegas home.

MARK FINK, LAS VEGAS

Growing up, I was always the tallest, but thinnest, kid in my class. My father, who passed away just months ago, came to call me "Slimbo." As the years passed and I became an athlete, put on muscle and filled out, he never stopped using the nickname. Even into my late 40s, he continued with my childhood nickname and he always smirked as he looked at me, now 6-foot-1 and 238 pounds.

These days, I have a 9-year-old son, Ross, who physically is following in my footsteps. Thin and tall, I call him "Stick" (short for "stick figure). He just smiles, and I smirk thinking about how that will apply 35-40 years from now.

BONNIE KERKHOFF JUAREZ, LAS VEGAS

My name is Bonnie. When I was a kid, my dad gave me the following nickname: "Bean-a-Bon-a-Boon-a-Bon." Sweet, huh?

To this day, my older sister still calls me the shortened version "Bean." My dad does, too, sometimes. You wouldn't believe how many nicknames the name Bonnie can make: "Beaner" (in a good way), "Bean,' "Bonstance" (like "Constance" I guess) and "Bunny" (the worst!).

DALE CARSTENS, HENDERSON

From the day they were born, my husband calls our son "Bubbalicious."

Our daughter started it by calling him "Bubba" for "brother," and he is so sweet we call him "Bubbalish" most of the time ...

Our girl is "Smoochie" and our great-niece is "Squishy." I am not sure he has ever called them by their real names!

By the way, he is a great father!

WILLIAM H. ISAAC, HENDERSON

I nicknamed my son, William, "Porky," after Porky Pig.

Just after he was old enough to sit up, he would make a Porky snout with his lips whenever he got excited. Everyone in the family totally cracked up whenever he did this. It progressed to the point where he would do it on command. We would just say, "Make your Porky snout," and he would do it. We have photos of him doing this, and laugh whenever we view them. The nickname has stuck to this day.

He is now 35. He was/is not heavy, so it really did not embarrass him in that way.

LITA (BOUBON) MOFFITT, HENDERSON

When I was growing up, I was in ballet starting at 6 years old. I had muscular legs and a muscular body, mostly due to genetics.

Back in the '70s, "The Six Million Dollar Man" and "The Bionic Woman" were popular TV shows. Due to my muscular physique, my dad would call me "Bionic Butt" and make the same noises played on the show when Lee Majors would use his supersonic vision to eyeball some "bad guy" then catapult through the air to somehow save the day. So, I spent my youth known as "The Bionic Butt."

Luckily, I didn't carry that one all the way to high school but, when I got there, my friends called me "hazher" because my first name is "Lita" and my last name is "Boubon" -- "Lita has her boob-on."

So, as they say, you can take the girl out of Minnesota, but you can't take the Minnesota out of the girl. Definitely not California Beauty Queen nicknames!