General Chat

And as they used to say on the radio . Goodnight children - everywhere.
Well we are all children at heart.

Thanks to all who have contributed.

Happy days

I dislike the word Kids too Harry.

Always Children, unless as a general lighthearted exasperated way - Kids, Eh? (Tut and grin)

Now that they are adults, if asked, I'd say that we have x children, then give general details age etc, or x sons/daughters.

I call them my kiddywinks! My term of affection.

I tend to refer to mine as "Kids".although I do refer to other peoples children outside my own close family & friends group as "Children".

I think its snobbish to correct anyone other than your own family for using the term Kids. :-P

Even worse calling them slovenly & lazy for doing so :-(

As long as children are not called brats or worse then I dont see any issue as long as you love them :-)

Hi Harry, hope you're well :-)

I use both children and kids.

Wrt 'the wife' as opposed to 'my wife', atm I'm nobody's wife but I would strongly object to having 'the' put in front of 'wife' in reference to me. Anyone who values their life will not use 'the wife' in reference to me in front of me.

I prefer children in reference to any under 11/ 12 as a collective term or just child ,,,,,, over that its a young adult or by name......

I have never referred to my children as 'kids' - that would make me a nanny-goat.
They are my children, and will be, whatever age they are!!
When I talk about them to others, I will call them 'my girls ' or 'my children' - and they're 28 and 30!! Hopefully they still refer to me as their 'mum'!!
I have been known, when I really want to annoy them, to call them 'kiddly winks'

My elder child, who has 3 children, never calls her children 'kids' either.

Obviously there are regional variations - places where the word 'kid' is the usual way to refer to children - particularly Liverpool, but I don't come from there!!

Calling someone 'duck' as a term of affection is another regional variation - but not one used where I've ever lived - hence I don't use it.

I agree with Patchem. When I was little, my Mum always told me that it was 'Common' folks who referred to their children as 'Kids'

Nowadays it does not bother me one little bit if children are referred to as Kids Lol.



I was always bought up to believe that the word 'Belly' was a naughty word.
I had a 'Tummy Button' Lol. So did my children.

I will never forget when I was about 9 years old, a neighbour of ours who was a good friend of my Mum, asked me to go to the butchers for her.

She wanted a 1lb of Belly Draft. I was so worried and told my Mum. She wrote down on a bit of paper 1lb of draught pork, for me to take to the Butcher.

Jenny

Stan,
You are entitled to that view, and indeed may be right. Think Patchem's view is nearer the mark though. Seems to me that nowadays 'kids' has become the norm, which it certainly wasn't say twenty years ago - you even hear it on the BBC.

My particular hate is hearing the expression ' my wife and kids' or indeed 'the wife and kids'. 'My wife and children to me, has a much more pleasant ring to it.

We can all agree to differ.

Happy days

Don't be stuck up its kids from years gone by

Kids are baby goats, and my children, when younger, have corrected others who have referred to them as 'kids'.
I think it is just a slovenly and lazy misuse of language.

I prefer children too.

But when I was a young'n I was a bairn and even though mine are now adults they're still my bairns ;-) :-D

Mau xx

Teresa ,

It was,nt us by any chance? no it could not have been my mother had 12
children.!! ha ha. The first lot were working when she had we younger ones .But she used to come out going through our names untill one would answer usually was me! to go to the shops for tea.

Great days! children , kids ? what does it matter?

Flo

I use both terms equally I think....so I'm not mithered either way.

With my own I invariably call them *the girls* x

Flo i remember a mum who lived on our estate who had six children.
When she wanted them in from playing out she stood on the doorstep and yelled their names in the order they were born from the eldest to the youngest

Teresa :-D

IT ALWAYS SOUNDS STRANGE TO ME AN OFFICIAL OAP
SAYING
MY CHILDREN
BUT FEEL COMFORTABLE SAYING
MY KIDS
ALSO GRANDKIDS

A child's life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark.

(Chinese Proverb) .

ooh Memories!! Teresa!!

My mother used to call my younger brother babbie because he was the youngest.!! we others were her children ,though in speach when she wanted to get rid of you from under her feet (so to speak) she used to shout kids!!!!

Flo,

I cannot bear the word 'kids' when referring to children and would never dream of using it. Call me PC, old fashioned or whatever you like, but I think children is a beautiful word and kids is short and harsh. In my opinion :-) BC XX