Friday, May 2, 2008

What Shall We Name Her?

May 3, 1972 & that was the question.

Apparently my parents hadn't decided on what to name their 1st born until that fateful day.

Daddy had chosen Jennifer Lynn & wanted to call me Jenni Pooh.  Mama disagreed.  She didn't like either one & suggested Monica.  Daddy was okay with that & still suggested Lynn for my middle name. Mama said no.  So here's 9lbs & 1.5 oz little Monica with no middle name. 

Mama pondered the middle names of her nieces & chose one that fit, but spelled it differently. {Ya'll know how we do.}  Mama was happy & Daddy was too.  You see my family has a tendency to recycle and/or combine names to create a middle name.  Considering my grandmothers were Dorothy Mae & Lillie Mae, I'm just damn glad I'm not Monica Mae.  *gag*

Papa even threw in his nickel's worth and decided to nickname me Pumpkin because of my smile...imagine that. {I miss that old dude.}   I hear he raised quite a ruckus with nurses because they would only let him see me from behind the glass.  In the end, Papa got what he wanted.

Now of course, I have to ask - do you know how your name came about?  I'm all ears!

102 comments:

  1. I was named after my father and my grandfather. I got Dads first name. It was name that you could spell more than one way...and the middle name was her fathers. I got Mamas maiden name as my last name, tho. SO, I'm the last one to have the family name...that is, until my child comes, which won't be soon.

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  2. Oh, and I ain't gonna tell you what neither of those names are either. HEHEHE. You know I'm private.

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  3. You can whisper it in my ear. I won't tell. I get paid to keep secrets. LOL

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  4. That graphic is so SAW-ish...LOL

    My great uncle named me...go figure! He named a lot of us girls in the family, and yet I have no idea where he got the idea to name me Kelly LaTrice --but I love it anyway. That always wasn't the case, because growing up I had the "Kelly, belly, bo belly song" sung to me more times than I can count and I HATED it!

    Monica Mae you gone make me bust out my baby pictures next. The throwback pictures are so sweet.

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  5. my mom "stole" the name Gina Monique from my aunt who said she would name her daughter that one day. my mom was the first to have a baby, so she ganked it. true to form...my Aunt "stole" the name *I* had picked for my future daughter - Deja...who is now 13...a longgg way ahead of FiGi (who incidentally told me what her name WASNT goin to be in a daydream/vision - FiGi's used to be name was Imani (long story)

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  6. I am my dad's first born... I was born in a small place, Berwick, PA and my dad knew of a guy who named his son Robin...and he liked the name... so I was given a "boy's" name...(my dad's first name was Robert... I should be grateful he didnt name me Roberta... *shudders at the thought*) no offense to all the Robertas out there... just glad it aint me. My middle name came from momz... she says she liked giving me a girlie middle name... she never had one, so Denise it was.

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  7. My mother had two names picked out Kimberly and Moronka. I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOO glad they chose Kimberly. Some how I think my life would have been different if I had been called Moronka. But then again, I'd probably be "Mo" and we would really be twin material. LOL

    For my middle name, my mama made a creative arrangement of my daddy's name, Larry and came up with LaRence.

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  8. That's one of my BFF's first name. I never knew anyone named LaTrice until I met her in college. Now, I see a lot of LaTrice's.

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  9. One of my BFFs is LaTrice too! And we both capitalize the "T"...

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  10. My BFF's is meant to be capitalize, but she says she is too "fresh to deaf" for that now. Are all LaTrice's complete nuts???

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  11. Ummm ok....even tho you have a uber-common name, I'm glad "moron" is not part of it! LOL

    I wonder mom & pop were sipping on when they came up with that one. LOL

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  12. I have no freakin idea. They probably were sipping something. LOL I am glad they squashed that one. It's in my baby book too. It always made me think of Ronco pasta.

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  13. I'm named after my mother and Lord willing I'll be able to name my child after us.

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  14. Occasionally...LOL...

    I only began capitalizing mine after high school. I think I was trying to be extra fancy with mine, seeing as though I have a very white bread first name. I had to show my inner urban-ness with the LaTrice! Funny though, my birth certificate it is actually spelled that way too. I made sure my college degree read LaTrice as well...

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  15. On my birth certificate my middle name is spelled La Rence. With a space. I never do that though. For a time I just spelled it Larence and pronounced it like Lawrence. That's what people say anyway when they see it.

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  16. De - Father's name is Dennis
    Shanna (pronounced Shauna) - Romance Novel Heroine
    =DeShanna

    Yvette - Mom's middle name

    I have noticed that it YOU BLACK PEOPLE who always jack up my name. However, white people seem to be able to pronounce it with ease.

    Its not DeShundra, DeShrundra, DeShandalah, LaShundra, RaShundrala, or DeeShanyna...its DESHANNA!

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  17. I like that. I think I will call you that from now on.

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  18. Well I've been called Veronica, Ramona, Mona and Monique. I'm Monica or Monni (short o please). My ex started calling me Mo (long o) and it stuck for a lot of peeps, esp online.

    Call me what you want, just don't call me collect.

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  19. Speaking of jacking up names. My sister's name is Krystle and one day our great grandma was wanting to call her but she just couldn't seem to remember her name. She ended up calling her Silver... (God rest your soul, Lil' Mommie). Till this day, everyone on that side of the family calls my sister Silver. My hubby calls her Chandelier.

    As an aside, my mom was being different with the spelling of Krystle (I think she took the name from Krystle Carrington on Dynasty) and like Shanna, my sister has seen a hundred different spellings of Krystle. What's so annoying about it is, it was usually the school messing up her name and printing it wrong on school programs, documents and such. I'm like, the girl is in school of all places..shouldn't the teachers know to at least read and copy the name as it's presented...

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  20. I don't understand how people mess up Kim??? Ken, Karen, Pam, Sharon, Shannon, even Stephanie. There have been a few people who have called me names like Pat, Jackie and Stacey. I guess they remembered that I have some sort of plain name and they guessed at it.

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  21. I have my father's middle name. My first name came from there being no other Robert on either side of the family.

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  22. Im the 2nd of 3 girls to my mom and the 1st of 2 girls for my dad.... One fateful and mysterious night, I pushed my way through my momma's womb and.... well you how that part goes... lol But, my aunt (dad's sister) was doing a little stint in Africa on some type of world relief type stuff... And apparently my parents (more so my dad) decided it was a good idea to let my aunt name me... And from that Im Giselle blah blah blah and blah..... I wont say my middle name... Only cuz I dont wanna get stalked by some maniac mofo's on this site... And then too... I dont even like my middle name... Sheeeeesh it took me nearly over 20 years just to appreciate my name... people have ALWAYS mis-pronounced my name.. ie.
    Jizel
    Gazelle
    Jaselly
    Gizelly
    Grizelly

    All kinds of shit...lol

    But the parental's thought enough to give the others normal ass names.... My sisters are Yolonda, Tiffany and my little brother is Charles... Then you throw odd ball Giselle in there... But honestly I love my name now... Im just glad I wasnt named Tatiananisha or some shit... lol

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  23. His first name is Sexual and last name Chocolate.... lol

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  24. Im glad they did too....cuz I couldnt guarantee that I do wouldnt make fun of you....lol

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  25. LMAO @ Grizzly. Told you to shave your back.

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  26. I think Giselle is a beautiful name. The next time I take over and try to name somebody's child, I think I will suggest Giselle. It worked with one of my BFF's naming her little girl Mariah at my suggestion. Maybe it'll work again. Now somebody I know just have to get pregnant with a girl.

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  27. My older sister's middle name is Catrice... I always wanted to call her Katie... but she wouldnt let me.... So Im so glad she had a daugter and she named her Kaylynn and I get to call her Katie... lol She dont like it, but oh well... Im the auntie... lol

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  28. **cringing at the thought of all the crap people can come up with for Moronka** LOL

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  29. My mother's name was Carol and I think if I have ever have a daughter I want to name her Karol Anne. But I KNOW I would get more flack from that than I do Kennedy. LOL

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  30. lmaoooooooooooooo Now thats gotta make for some good get togethers... lol Thats funny...

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  31. Or Karol Lynne. And you must say both names together like Jessie Lee.

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  32. You do that... Im serious to...lol

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  33. *whispering* I was looking at Mo too.

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  34. Shut it Rob... lol My back aint hairy... AInt nothing hairy to be exact... lol And stop it.. Im trying to keep this convo straight forward... You keep messing me up and getting Mo's blogs all sidetracked she gone ban us both from being over here... So hush it dammit...

    *pssst* Bring that over to my place a lil later... lol

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  35. I definitely will. There is a lady at work who is pregnant. But she's having a boy. I haven't found a good name for her yet, but I'm trying. The middle name is Aaron but she hasn't picked a first name yet.

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  36. That's why I am glad to be plain ole Kimberly.

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  37. You know it baby. He better be gone this time.

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  38. ***in shock and awe***

    Was it Red's husband who caught you slow dancing?????????????

    ;o)

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  39. If I were to ever have kids... I would much prefer to have twins (boy and girl).... cuz I can get one of each out the way at the same time... But names that I already have are Matthew Alexander and Sarah Michelle....

    Not your conventional names or hood fab names... but they have serious meaning for me... And if I dont hurry up and have some kids...then Im gonna get 4 dogs and give em those names... lol

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  40. Huh? What?

    what I miss out on... lol

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  41. hey lady.. My name is Khaalis...name after some muslim dude cause my mother liked name, because it was different.. lol She was going to name me kia.. It was the late seventies .. people were naming the girls with names that start with a K. anyhoo.. Its pronounced kellis.. like the milkshake girl..lol My middle name is Irene .. after my great grandmother.. My name is khaalis Irene

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  42. Thanks.. It took me a while to like my name. In school the they used to murder my name trying to pronounce it..lol Hey uncle rob, *big hugs *

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  43. Are you a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan??? Are you naming your child after Sarah Michelle Gellar?
    *just joking*

    Matthew and Alexander were on the list I gave my co-worker. I think both are very nice names. My child doesn't have a very hood friendly name either. But that's the way I like it. lol

    My 18 year old brother's name is Kendall. I have always liked that. It seems to be getting kinda popular with babies now.

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  44. Not a THANG. Somebody tell him, please. LOL

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  45. Khaalis is a very pretty name. I love the spelling.

    I used to want my name to be different. I was hooked on Kaja for a time. I just knew as soon as I was old enough I was gonna legally change my name. I had the signature already ready. LOL

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  46. **snickering**

    Now, Rob has to tell his story.

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  47. Im a serious mofo when it comes to giving decent and proper names... cuz that silly shit people feeling at the moment.,, cuz putting to flavors or brands of pop together and calling it a name...that aint cool... cuz this kid, which will also turn into adult has to live with it... And then too... I go by the whole can my child get hired with this name... gotta ask yoself these questions... we know racism and profiling is still as active today as it was back then... and I dont bet my paycheck that its gonna stop anytime soon... So i say give that kid a fighting chance out of the womb... I may be a bit over the top with this... but thats how i feel about it...

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  48. If I had to give myself another name... I could see myself as a Angie or Jaime ... I really like that name...

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  49. I love the bald head baby's name Miya Monique... she has her mom's middle name...

    And I dont understand that.. because my neice never went by her middle name Monique... and I just didnt see the importance of passing that down to the baby... but when she explained her reason I was like awwwwww..... its a long story and im too tired to type it...lol

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  50. We go by the same philosophy then. When I was naming my child I wanted his name to sound nice with "CEO" behind it or "President" in front of it. I didn't want to start him out with a name fit for a wrap sheet.

    **Disclaimer**---Sorry if I offend anyone with a wrap sheet.

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  51. Miya Monique is pretty. I love names that have a meaning or a purpose behind it. My son's name and mine have loosely the same meaning "ruler" or "king" and "queen" respectively. (And the boy CAME OUT acting like a little tyrant!) His middle name is Lawrence, the same as my brother's middle name and they are named for my daddy.

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  52. My first name (Alaina) came from a woman in my mother's bowling league. She saw the name up on the score boards (she didn't know her) and loved it, especially the way it was spelled. My middle name is one of the two middle names that get passed down to women in my family (I was on the Louise rotation, any girl children I have will have to have the middle name Elizabeth).

    When I was in grad school, I became really good friends with a woman who said her aunt was named Alaina (spelled the same way). When my grandmother passed away later that year, my friend came over to the house to sit and visit, and she and my Mom started talking, only to find out that it was HER AUNT who was in that same bowling league with my MOM! Small world, hunh?

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ms. MONICA!!!

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  53. I think so because my bro's ex-fiancee' definitely may have a screw or two loose and her name is spelled LaTrece (same pronunciation).

    As for my name well my mother wanted to name me Ericka Caine and join it with my last name. She was a Soap-aholic and loved Erica Caine from one of those soap operas. I guess they decided to let my God-mother name me and she came up with Tonya. Not very original but I like it it does suit me just fine. Now my middle name that's a whole different story. I get offeneded when I tell people it and they don't pronounce it right so I just don't like to tell folks.

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  54. I'm with you Moni cause this lil ol' white lady I use to work with use to call me Molly. No matter how many times I corrected her she would continuously call me Molly. That doesn't even sound like Tonya. Oh but when she met my brother Elbert she got his name right quick and unlike some who will call him Albert (mind you he does like to be called Albert and would prefer to be called El) she called him Elbert.
    Maybe she just wanted to mock me.

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  55. Isn't that the lil girls name from poltergist? (giggles)

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  56. My first and middle names came from my aunt. While she was living in German, she knew two friends with my two names. When she mentioned them to my mother, mom asked if she could use them. The rest is history!

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  57. **blushing and crossin of my future baby name list**

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  58. You always trying to get somebody else "babied" up .. YOU have a girl....

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  59. You silly.... You know I may just make it easy for my future kid... Cuz some kids cant even spell their own names til their teenagers... with all the damn hyphens and misspellings and a's sounding like e's and La Ta De Do's..... lol Sounds like a singer warming up his/her vocals... Might just name em Bob and Ann....lol

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  60. So are You saying no... I think you're quite the eligible candidate... lol

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  61. I think she is too Red. I think she should be responsible for having the next Giselle.

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  62. Your ovaries are quite fresh for the picking too!

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  63. Me too! **Adding to my possible baby name list**

    I liked Kelis too, but I didn't want folks looking at my baby's name and have them start singing the Milk Shake Song in their heads. (Like I am doing right now...lol)

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  64. Well, aint nothing wrong with having a bunch of Giselle's running around her... So Flyy,,, that goes for you too... The more Giselle's the better..

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  65. You are so right! Some names are cute when you are little, but when you get older .. you gonna get strange looks. Like, if your name is Precious Memories Jackson, how am I gonna look at you with a straight face?

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  66. Ummmm... I dont think my ovaries work... In fact I dont even have any... nope... I was born without them... Thats my story and Im sticking to it...lol

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  67. what the flying fairy fuck is that... lol

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  68. Yeah... cuz I know I would... po chile would be doing the milks shake dance at 5 years old... lol

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  69. **slaps pen out of your hand and rips paper in half**

    STOP COPYING MY LIST!!

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  70. I got a client named Precious (first name) and he is something else, I tell ya... lol

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  71. you heffa's is violent... Cant take yall to chucky cheese... damn heffa's gone be in their picking fights with the big ass mouse and then we gone get kicked the freak out and then we gone have our pics posted on the wall cuz we aint allowed back in there no moe... all cuz you wanna fight and argue all the damn time....

    give each other a hug dammit...


    I mean now...


    what you still sitting there for...


    Shanna... get over here and hug Kimberly...


    Damn heathens... lol

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  72. Yep... a he... I would tell you his last name but Im fearful that some of my chitown people know how to use the computer... But it sooooo finishes up his name... funny as hell... may tell you in pm

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  73. I know a guy named Precious. He's an attorney here in town. Best believe if my name was Precious, I'd be going by "P. Kimberly Whatever". Cause That would NOT be on my business cards.

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  74. I ain't hugging that heffa. She called me a crackish hand tramp. *folding arms, turning around and pouting*

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  75. Which hand constitutes you being a hand tramp... lol I just gotta know, so when we meet, I'll shake the other one... lol

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  76. Yall know we all the way wrong... Its Mo's bday and we on her blog talking all kinds of shit.... smh @us...

    Yall, think we should leave or stay right here? lol

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  77. Let's move it over to another spot. Let's leave Mo to her birthday festivities. She is probably somewhere getting "some" anyway. Where are we going?

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  78. My ex-boss has a daughter named Ericka Caine and her son is named Harrison Ford....*eye roll*

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  79. My name was ALMOST Cedric Leonardo.

    Let that simmer for a moment....

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  80. MAN I am so glad you aren't named after a Ninja Turtle, Mike!

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  81. As long as your last name isn't Elba you're str8!!!

    You don't EVEN wanna know what my government is!!! Monica is a googol times better! TRUST ME!

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  82. Ok i'm slow...Happy Birthday Moni...right? giggles

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  83. Mrs. Monica Elba! Just perfect!

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  84. Here's one for y'all - I have a cousin, Brittany Shiphina. My aunt & her grandmother is Shirley & her other grandmother is Josephine.

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  85. Wasn't that the Poltergeist girl Moronka?

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