Stories Collected While Living in France

French la Vie

Terms of Endearment: Coco Puff

Wine-and-coke

 

When the women are from America and men are from France, wait isn't there a book with a title like that… how does it go? Venus and Mars isn't it? Well, let's just say when you heart parks in Venus and your language is a mixture of Coca Cola Light and Cotes de Provence it can be full of snap, crackle, pop and a few hiccups in between.

Mr. A. (he loves his blog name) and Mimi fall into a similar loophole as did French Husband and I when we first met. Talking matters of the heart, when your first language is not the same as the one you love, can be challenging. Add to the mispronounced words, culture differences, and another country that is known for romance and topless beaches, you have a bag of tricks that can easily be laughed about, and add confusion all in the same breath.

My dear French friend Françoise had the best tongue-twisting, language fowl up to date.  Françoise thought she asked her American Husband:
"I would like a sheet of paper to wrap a present."
Instead, her accent made the sentence sound like:
"I would like a shit of paper to rape a present."

Mimi and Mr. A's. text messages are book worthy, the language is so sweetly butchered. "Mon Chou" just doesn't sound as sweet in English, "My Cabbage."

What term of endearment do you call your loved one?

When my little nieces couldn't say YANN I told them that their French Uncle's name was: Uncle Yo-Yo. They use it all the time. I became Coco that same day.

One of my favorites nicknames for French Husband is: Chérie FM, it is the name of the French radio channel he listens to… I heard the advertisement so often that I started singing it to him. French Husband doesn't use terms of endearment… he finds them insulting. Though I don't. I wouldn't mind if he called me: "My Coco Puff".

Though I don't take offense to French Husband's lack of endearing nicknames. Instead, I take heart in one of my father's favorite mottos:
 "Call me what you'd like, just don't call me late for dinner."

 

Comments

40 responses to “Terms of Endearment: Coco Puff”

  1. Merisi

    “My little Coco Puff” sounds sweet!
    Love the “language fowl” – wide wings and a twinkle in the eye, I imagine! 😉

    Reply
  2. Alexis

    “Call me what you’d like, just don’t call me late for dinner.”
    I like that! 😀

    Reply
  3. meredith

    In France, I’m Tatie Ditdit because my french nieces and nephews couldn’t say Meredith.
    That’s where I got the name for the new blog 🙂

    Reply
  4. Maria

    Oh, Corey, my dad used to say that, too!

    Reply
  5. Bev

    Oh we have lots of nicknames for family members. The kids call their aunt “Ti-tia” (which is pronounced chi-chia) which means auntie in Portuguese. They also call their uncle “Uncle Oggie” because they think their uncle looks like a frog and they weren’t able to make an fr sound when they were little.
    I call all of my family “sweetheart” which my teenagers used to roll their eyes at and now they’re used to it.

    Reply
  6. Bao

    “Winner”. He asked me how to pronounce my last name. The easiest pronunciation would be ‘win’. Close but not completely correct, but good enough. After lunch, he turns to me and says. “Hey winner, I’m going to be a loser.” He smokes.

    Reply
  7. Sharon, Morrison Mercantile

    My late husband would call me, “Sheri baby.”
    It has been 8 years since I have heard him say that out loud, but I hear it ever so often in my heart.

    Reply
  8. Star

    We had dinner last night with friends, and my husband was sharing one of his many stories. As he was quoting what he’d said to me on the phone, he used my given name–I immediately called him on it because he never uses my given name, always one of the many other pet names he has for me. I do have to say, it was nice hearing him say my name, kind of makes me wish he’d use it more often…
    I love that your nieces and nephews call FH Yo-Yo. Yo-yo and Coco just seem to go together 🙂

    Reply
  9. Denise Moulun-pasek

    Vlad is occasionaly called Minou.

    Reply
  10. Everton Terrace

    I refer to my husband Andrew Henry because of a childhood book I loved. He IS the character. In fact, my parents often refer to him as this as well. He calls our daughter “Tina” because of the Llama in Napolen Dynamite, her name is not Tina. They think it’s hilarious and she likes it, I don’t get it.
    I love Coco and YoYo, it’s perfectly delightful!

    Reply
  11. AmyKortuem

    I was once called “mon petite papillon.” Sweet, no?

    Reply
  12. Natalie Thiele

    I used to call my husband “HB” short for Honey Bunny, but then I had a boss who went by “H-P”, his last name and his wife’s name hyphenated. The sound was too close and my husband thought I was calling my boss “HB”, too. So now I call my husband “Cute”. He calls me “Sunshine.”

    Reply
  13. joodie

    ditto what Bev said ….. my sweet handsome Daddy used to say
    “take what you want, but eat what you take” , too – but “call me
    anything, just don’t call me late for supper” was a favorite
    my darling father has been gone several years now, and it seems like the blink of any eye ….. he is poking my memory ashes from Heaven, though, because I responded to an Etsy gal who listed an item that is duplicate of one I have that she wondered about … had msg this a.m. asking if she could share my story about Daddy on her blog
    this blogging is SO MUCH FUN
    all best, Corey, you magnificent match-maker!
    Judy in San Antonio

    Reply
  14. Nancy from Mass

    I LOVE CHERIE FM!!!! I STREAM IT ONLINE AT WORK EVERY DAY! (shhh, don’t tell anyone – we are not supposed to stream:) Cherie f-emmmmmmm (insert musical note here)
    I call my hubby sweetie, or honey and sometimes bon homme. (and sometimes I call him a ‘pain in the a**). He calls me hon or love or just calls me by name.
    I had an aunt O’Belien and when we were younger we couldn’t say MaTante O’Belien so we used to call her Aunt Belly Button. Then we shortened it later to Aunt Belly. She got a kick out of that.

    Reply
  15. georgie

    My Dad said the same thing!

    Reply
  16. Jenny N

    Love your dad, Corey. I don’t call David by a love term (which I think is funny for me because I call our girls “sweetie” and Sophia is my little “pill”) but on my blog I love calling him hubby, because for a long while in my completely single 20s it was looking like I might not have a “hubby” so the term is precious to me.

    Reply
  17. Sharon, Morrison Mercantile

    My late husband would call me “Sheri Baby.”
    I cannot hear a verbal usage of the name anymore, but it is in my heart often. That is when I think he is somewhere close.
    Sharon

    Reply
  18. Lucy

    My husband calls me SUGAR..!
    I inquired about a piece of French property once and the realtor told me that the house had an out building that was in close “promiscuity” to the main house!! We got a good laugh from that.

    Reply
  19. Tricia

    I don’t like to be called “honey” or “sweetheart” or any other term that can be used subconsciously. I like hearing MY NAME spoken by the one I love.

    Reply
  20. Julie Ann Evins

    You are Coco to me, Jx

    Reply
  21. Gina Johnson

    Oh, I love sweet nicknames. I always know my husband is miffed if he calls me by my name. Otherwise, it is “baby” or some other term of endearment. My Mom calls me “sugar”, love that. Remember when you were a kid and your parents would call you by your “full name”, first, middle and last? You always knew you were “going to the woodshed”.

    Reply
  22. J. Is a bird

    I’ve called my husband “Honey” so many times, my KIDS call him Honey. It cracks me up to see our 2 year old daughter stand in her bedroom doorway, with her pixie haircut and her hands on her hips and shout “Honey!” when she needs her Daddy.
    Every time I walk in the door my husband says “Hello Beautiful”. He always says it in that deep Bogart kinda voice that sounds like I’ve been gone 10 months not 10 hours.
    Happy Father’s Day!!

    Reply
  23. Kathie B.

    Farmboy Husband and I don’t use nicknames, but my mother’s parents called her “Toodie,” which my father embraced when he married her.

    Reply
  24. g

    my ex boyfriend of 10 years, whom i am still very friendly with, always calls me bunny…and i am so not the bunny type, but so it is….my nickname at home is dolly and only one boyfriend called me that. i do not use names like hon or sweetie or babe just not me– it feels foreign to me– makes me bristle. but to each his or her own whatever works for you.

    Reply
  25. Alan

    I am from Chicago, my partner is from New Jersey. For weeks I thought he liked a television show called ‘Porn Stars’. Turns out the show is called Pawn Stars.

    Reply
  26. Rhonda P.

    I’m Darling and he is Honey. I know they are not made up names of endearment but that’s what we call each other. It has only been 5 years we’ve been together – so I’m hoping we do end up with names of endearment down the road.
    Of course, Carrie’s Mr. Big was always so cute to me.

    Reply
  27. Sue K.

    My sweet daughter-in-law has a nickname for everyone. All of her many friends have a special name (one girlfriend is nick-named “Banana”). My son (Chris) she calls “Tugboat.” I don’t know why…I don’t ask.

    Reply
  28. Marilyn

    My father-in-law use to say that say quote. Terms of endearment can be so delightful.

    Reply
  29. carol

    I call many of my high school students -darlin’- I guess it’s a southern thing. They seem to like it, or if they don’t, they are too sweet to say so.
    Since my own children have become older, I don’t have pet names for them. My dad called me punkin’ when I was a little girl.

    Reply
  30. Karena

    So many sweet endearments. My grandchildren call me Mimi. I called my husband a big bear! and I was his honey bunny!
    Karena
    Art by Karena

    Reply
  31. Jane Ann

    Our family is full of lovey names. I’m Bunchne (bunch of honey)to my husband and Buggie boo to my parents and siblings. Hubby is Honey. Our children are Buddy, Bunny Rabbit, Bear, Bean, and Bo. Some friends didn’t even know the children’s real names. My children collectively are my Chickadees. I love that I’m hubby’s Bunchne even when I know I am being a stickpot.

    Reply
  32. Linda

    My French husband often calls me Sweetie. I’m not sure where he got it. That or Leenda-his way of saying Linda.

    Reply
  33. Patty

    We have lots of “bugs” in our family. My aunt started that, and I picked it up for my kids.
    Having a conversation with my barely 2-year-old niece, I wanted to know if she knew her father’s name, so I asked her straight, “what’s your daddy’s name?” and she turned her serious brown eyes on me and replied, “Honey.”
    My mom and dad called me Pitter for the pitter pat sound of my feet as I ran down the hall to their room.

    Reply
  34. Jill (Mmd Tortoise)

    I love nicknames.
    Dad called me Dolly, a good friend calls me dolly pie, my love is mom petite chou,, friend’s kids call me Jilly Vanillie, to another I am Biscuit…..and my ex husband calls me shuge and J Bean….terms of endearment that warm my heart.
    I so love that you are match making……

    Reply
  35. Maura @ Lilac Lane Cottage

    My dad named me Pud right from the ‘get go’…had something to do with mom putting cornstarch on my bottom and then me putting a little bowl of chocolate pudding on my head. I’m 57 and I’m still Pud to my sisters. I call my hubby Sweetie and he calls me Cutie. I really like Coco Puff!

    Reply
  36. cynthia Wolff @Beatenheart

    English Husband calls me “Titch”. Neighbors children call me “TT”
    friends call me “CA” and I am never late to dinner.

    Reply
  37. home before dark

    After taking a preShakespeare drama class, I came to love the word “boon” (help mate). So I called my new in love boon, which devolved to “boonie,” which devolved to boondog (inspired I am sure by moondog). Now 36 years later he is dog and I am pup dog. If we are separated in public I use the same little whistle I used for my dog. He immediately knows where I am. Better than yelling “Dog!” and having my 6’5″ husband answer me.

    Reply
  38. Sherry

    Corey, What fun your posts are! Of all my “pet” names, I liked Babycakes the best. But it depends on who is calling me that!
    My father used to say “Don’t call me late for dinner” too. I have been heard to repeat that. The parental phrases come down the generations. Have a great day and have FUN!
    Sherry

    Reply
  39. Johanna, 365 Days of Drawing, All Things French

    delightful…

    Reply
  40. Helene

    When our grandson was two he named my husband, his grandfather Yaya. A week later he pointed at me and said “Lulu”. The names have stuck these 9 years later and many people call us that. I even give that name when asked at Starbucks how to call out “your coffee is ready” because they can never pronounce my given name, Helene

    Reply

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