The Boy of 100 Names

Is it true that a loved boy has many different names?

We really do love the name "John Patrick." It's a combination of both our father's names, a nod to my French Canadian roots, sounds great with our last name and can also be shortened to "J.P." for a banker or lawyer effect. It was the chosen boys name to go along with Athena. And well, five years and two baby girls later, we finally got our chance to use it. But "J.P." just hasn't stuck and truth be told we hardly ever call him "John Patrick."

Instead, he has a million nicknames, like:

The Dude

"Dude" or particularly "the Dude" is his affectionate nickname ala Mommy and Daddy, the girls will only sometimes call him that. It suits his laid back personality. But, we mostly use it when talking about him i.e. "I think the Dude is awake," its hardly every used directly at him. Another favorite is

Johnny

"Johnny" is Zoe's special name for him. She calls him this when she is loving on him, when he's "Johnny" he is hers no one else's. Then there is

Nacho

"Nacho" is an unfortunate nickname Athena gave him awhile back. We don't really know the source of it except one time at lunch her favorite teacher had Del Taco "nachos" and gave her a taste. When he's called Nacho it usually means he is a somewhat unwilling participant in an elaborate game conjured up by Athena which probably includes dress up of some sort. And

Jack Jack

Because Zoe is Violet, Athena is Dash, I'm ElastaGirl and Chris is Mr. Incredible. Or

John John

A loving derivative of "Jack Jack" and usually called that when the girls are snuggling with him or wanting to snuggle with him. It is a baby talk plea from his sisters, as in "Come on John John, please snuggle with me?" And, can't forget

Stinky Cheese Man

which is what Zoe calls him when he is a little "less than fresh" shall we say? We also like,

Jacquey-baby

Because he is that suave. And, finally

Jack

With all these names, he actually answers to "Jack." It is, in fact, the only name he responds to. So, we think he has chosen his name for himself.

And that is how John Patrick became "Jack."