Survived First Avuncular Babysitting

I was called in for last-minute Ava-sitting tonight. Johnny expertly took me though the official feeding, cleaning, diapering and soothing protocols. Other than my avuncular [and possibly annoying] “check every 10 minutes to make sure she’s still breathing” routine, the night was uneventful, and she didn’t stir once. Next stop “anarchist indoctrination for infants.”

Comments

vbj's picture
vbj on July 18, 2007 - 17:44 Permalink

Avuncular is a great word. Use it whenever you can.

Peter Rukavina's picture
Peter Rukavina on July 18, 2007 - 17:49 Permalink

I agree completely. Isn’t it wonderful to have a word so specific as to mean “of or relating to the relationship between men and their siblings’ children”.

vbj's picture
vbj on July 18, 2007 - 18:03 Permalink

And in Danish, there are specific words for grandparents, meaning “mother’s mother,” “mother’s father,” “father’s mother,” and “father’s father.”
Makes English seem pretty clunky.