Vulgar language warning. If you don’t like other words for girl bits, you should probably skip this post. It’s a conversation my son and I had on the way home the other day. The girls didn’t say much but were keen observers. I’m wondering if it wasn’t a bad idea to talk about this in front of them. I guess I’ll know when a really inappropriate word pops out of one of their mouths.
______________________________________________________________________
Son: Hey mom, is pussycat a bad word??
Me: No, it’s not a bad word.
Son: Well, D______ says it’s a bad word.
Me: Well, it’s not.
Son (sheepishly): What about the word “pussy” by itself????
Me: Okay kids, I’m going to do some cussing. Remember that some of these words are adult words. Okay?
Three VERY INTERESTED kids: Okay.
Me: You guys know the word “butt” right? You know that “ass” means the same thing, right?
Six giant eyes: Right.
Me: Well, pussy is kind of the same thing. By itself, it also means a body part and it’s a bad word.
Son: Well, mom, which body part????????
Me: It’s means a girl’s front butt* and it’s not a good word to say. Got it??
Three kids with giant squid eyes and open mouths: Got it.
Son: So it’s okay to say pussy when you say pussycat but not by itself??
Me: Yup. But you know it’s a very bad word, right? No more saying it okay?
Son: Got it. Is it kind of like how you can HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL-icopter? And HEELLLLLLLLLLLLL-o? And beaver-DAMMMMMMMMMMMMMM And ASSSSSSSSSSSSSSS-k? And ASSSSSSSSSSSSSS-hole. No, wait, sorry mom. That one really is a bad word. *giggle, snort* Sorry. Really, mom. Sorry.
Me: siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.
*My girls call their butt their “back butt” and the front the “front butt.” It made sense at the time but seems a little weird for my girls to be calling that part their “front butt,” but vagina, urethra, and vulva seem even more crass. The science teacher in me cringes when I hear “front butt.”
