The Naming of the Child

Before we found out the sex of the baby, we had decided on names: Levi Piper for a boy and Lydia Piper for a girl. Keeping in the tradition of my husband's side of the family, the baby would be referred to by it's middle name. (My husband, our daughter, and her aunt all go by their middle names.) In telling friends, I got a lot of flack for wanting to call my son Piper: "Ya know, he's going to get beat up on the playground with a name like that." They are glad to know that Piper will actually be a girl.

Tonight my husband was on the phone with his fraternal grandmother, a woman who resides in Texas, has a very heavy southern accent, and is hard of hearing. This is a portion of their conversation:

"Grandma, we are calling the baby *Piper*."

"Pay-per?"

"No, PIPER."

"Pay-per?"

"PIPER!!!"

"Pay-per?"

"NO, Grandma! It's Piper! PIPER. Like your pipe, but with an er? PIPER"

"Oh....Paahh-per!"

Good lord....It was like that scene in 16 Candles..."Mallied?" "Mallied!"