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This morning as I was walking through the den going on my daily dirty clothes scavenger hunt, someone said the name “Sally Mae” on tv and I stopped and looked up in surprise just as if they’d said “Christy Jordan”. I chuckled at myself as the memories flooded back of all the times I’ve answered to Sally Mae in my life.
I have no idea who Sally Mae is but during my childhood, I must have looked an awful lot like her. “Come on in here, Sally Mae” Mama would sing out as she opened the door when I ran in from playing to grab a quick cup of Kool Aid. Or she’d call out to me after running my bath at the end of a long day of playing “Get on in here and get in the tub, Sally Mae”. I never questioned it, even though in retrospect I realize my sister answered to it just as willingly as I did.
I got to thinking about that nickname as I read an email from Elaine Wong who mentioned how her Grandpa used to call her “Lanie girl”. There is something about a nickname that shows an acceptance, familiarity, and its sort of a way of saying “You and I are special”. It’s like in Little House On The Prairie (I think everyone should be required to watch the entire run of Little House On The Prairie before they are allowed to be an adult). Did you notice how Laura, who had been called Laura all of her life, suddenly became “Beth” to Almonzo and Almonzo suddenly became “Manley” to Laura? They wanted a special connection and way of talking ot each other that set them apart and so called each other by their middle names instead of first. Surely we all know what Laura’s Pa called her, do you rememeber it? Half Pint. She was his little tagalong, his best helper, and calling her what everyone else did just wouldn’t do. She was his Half Pint.
I received my most prominent nickname shortly after I was born, the one my dad still calls me to this day (I don’t know if I’ve ever heard him call me Christy) and wrote about the story behind it in my book (page 171). It’s funny because every now and then I’ll be out and someone I don’t know will call me that, I instantly know where they got it from!
I have so many nicknames for my kids it isn’t even funny but they willingly answer to each and every one. My favorite nickname for myself to date though is Ma, Mom, or Mama, whichever one the two of them feel like calling me on any given day. I’ll never forget though, about two years ago, when Katy Rose asked “Mama, when you were born, how come Grandmama named you ‘mama’?”
I’d love to hear about your nicknames in the comments below and especially the stories behind them! While we work on that, let me show you how to make some awfully good baked beans. This is how my mother has always made hers and I can make a meal out of the beans alone! They get rave reviews at any barbecue and would be the perfect addition to your fourth of July menu. They’re also a breeze to throw together, always a plus in my book ~grins~.
You’ll need: ground beef (cooked and drained), 28 ounce can baked beans (any kind you want), 2-15 ounce cans Navy beans, onion, barbecue sauce, mustard, worcestershire sauce, bacon**, and salt and pepper.
*Instead of the 28 ounce can of baked beans you can use 2-15 ounce cans.
**We only use Turkey Bacon now.
Now I have my ground beef already cooked and in the freezer but if yours isn’t you wanna go ahead and cook that before this step.
Place beans (liquid and all) and ground beef in a large mixing bowl.
This is the largest of a set of vintage Pyrex bowls called “New Dot”. This one was hard to come by but it completed my set. The others are blue, red, and yellow. Just in case you wanted to know that…
A lot of folks have asked me about my salt and pepper shakers. They came from Cracker Barrel and I got them on Clearance 🙂
I could chat all day but I guess you came here for a recipe so I’ll get on with it…
(~whispers~ but the plate below is a Corelle pattern called “Memphis”)
Chop up your onion
Add to the bowl all of your other ingredients except for the bacon.
Stir it all together really well.
Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking spray
And pour your bean mixture into the dish.
Top with 3-4 strips of uncooked bacon.
Place this in the oven at 350 for 45-60 minutes.
During that time your husband, who has repeatedly stated that he does not like baked beans, will ask you “Man, what are you cooking? That smells good!”. When you tell him it is baked beans he will say “Oh….really?” and look at you in disbelief. This scenario will repeat itself ever ten minutes or so until the beans are done and then your husband, who has repeatedly stated that he does not like baked beans, will magically appear in the kitchen with a bowl and a spoon.
At least that is how it goes down at my house 🙂
Enjoy!
Now pull up a chair while this is cooking and chat with me about your nicknames in the comments below!
Ingredients
- 28 ounce can baked beans undrained (or 2-15 ounce cans)
- 2-15 ounce cans navy beans undrained (or bean of your choice)
- 1 pound ground beef cooked and drained
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 cup Barbecue sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Yellow Mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 to 4 slices uncooked turkey bacon
Instructions
- Spray 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Stir together all ingredients except for the bacon. Spoon into baking dish. Top with strips of bacon. Place in 350 degree oven for 45-60 minutes.
- This is a very forgiving recipe so feel free to use what you have on hand and modify it to suit your family's tastes.
Get rich quick … Count your blessings!
Submitted by Debbie Strum. Submit your quote or read hundreds of others by clicking here. Don’t worry if you have a good quote and you think it may have already been submitted, that just lets me know that it bears repeating.
Love the Story…Love the Beans! My Mama would make this version only doctoring up a cheap can of baked beans. She didn’t always put hamburger in it…sometimes just the Fancied Up Baked Beans! So Good!
My Sweet Daddy would call my cousin Sally Mae…Could there be a relation somewhere along the line?
I love these beans as well! I will try your version which is a little bit different than mine. They will be on my table this weekend for Independence Day! Thank you for sharing!
I call my 2 year old grandaughter Flossie Mae!!! She is so sweet I could eat her with a spoon! Everyone looked at me like I had 4 heads when they first heard me call her that but now even her dad says it from time to time. LOL! It’s Mimi’s name for her precious Caroline!
My daddy always called me Libby Lou! I wish he were still here to call me that! 🙁
I was always Jules — I love that name too. My mom who is no longer alive called me that from as early as I can remember. Oh how i miss hearing her say that. Other members of my family call me that too — It gives me that warm feeling from knowing others have a special place in their heart for me and love me.
Your baked beans sound wonderful — will have to try them out soon.
Have a wonderful day !
Awwwww- sweet- My daughters name is Julie too- and I called her Jewels…she was my little gem!!!! 😉
Momma always called me “Heather Feather” growing up. She doesn’t do it anymore, but I can remember answering to it all the time.
I have tons of nicknames for my son, but the most common one I use for him is “Bubba.” I call him Bubba more than I use his given name, I think. It’s funny cause I’ll call out for him & I’ll go “Hey, Bubba, Bubba!” and he typically responds with “What-a, what-a.” I hope it’s a memory that he’ll always remember & cherish.
Well, I never acquired my own nickname — but I surely gave both of my daughters one. Kynsley became Kynzie-K (not sure why….) and Kaytelyn became Kayte-Bug (and there’s a story behind that one…). Kaytelyn (my strong willed child) at 3 yr. old came in to our room and announced that she would no longer answer to anything other than “Princess Atta-Bug” from the movie Bugs Life, and let me tell you — she meant it! Kaytelyn Princess Atta-Bug was kinda long — so we shortened it to Kayte-Bug — and it stuck. That was 13 years ago — and much to her dismay, that’s was I still call her (mean mother that I am). 🙂
I love nicknames. I have given my children so many nicknames over the years that I couldn’t even list them. My Grandkids also…the most popular nicknames at the moment are the Diva, princess and talulua for Chloe and Butchie, Xander and Lex for Alexander.
My Brother calls me JoJo, most people just call me Jo.
and like you Christy my favorite is Mema or Mom…;)
I too have a Xander – grandson – I call him Monkey Man because of his ability (like mine) to pick things up with his toes
My grandfather always called me “Little Toots” as my mother was “Big Toots”. My dad called me “Toots” as I don’t think my mother liked her nickname of “Big Toots”.
I am going to make these beans for our weekend celebration. I think they will be a big hit!
My Daddy called me “Boy”, because I was supposed to have BEEN one. The funny thing was that I was always so girly, and the name never fit. I called my sister, Celia, “Squealya”, because she always ratted me out, even when she had to make up the story! 🙂 I call my daughter Poopsie Jane, because that’s just what came to me the first time I laid eyes on her, when she was born.
We love beans at my house – this recipe reminds me a little of one that I have, from my friend, Bonnie. She calls hers “Killer Beans”. Hers calls for a pound of dark brown sugar, a T of Liquid Smoke, and a pound of bacon – chopped, fried up, and added to the bean mixture. I was so stunned to hear her say that – and as she went on to say, “couple cans of beans”, I said .. “what kind of beans?” She said instantly, “who cares?” and I still laugh every time I make these beans. 🙂
I never thought about putting hamburger in a dish like this .. my husband would love it to pieces!
I come from a family of weird nicknames. My Mama was always called “Poog” growing up, my Daddy was “Coco”, my sister was just “Sis” or “Sissy” and my brothers, who were bikers, were called by their biker names but, I never had a clever nickname growing up .. mine was always just “Dee” or “Deedle”. All of a sudden, when I started working for Walmart 4 years ago, the general manager began calling me “Deedle Bird” and that caught on throughout the store. Why he calls me that, I don’t know .. I like it though!
My Papa ALWAYS called me ‘Fancy Pants’. My mom would put frilly diaper covers on my bottom and thus the nickname was created. I miss him dearly.
I WILL be making these with my grilled burgers this weekend YUM!
My whole family calls me Mina And we call my daughter punky doodle and my son pedot. My mother just came up with these when they were young. And we call our 6 month old grandaughter Tink
Sissy has always been my nickname. Recently when I was at the hospital with Mama…..Daddy called to leave a message on my cell phone. When I listened to it he had said, “Sandra, this is your Daddy”…….I burst out laughing..looked at Mama and said, I have NEVER heard Daddy call me Sandra…what in the world is he thinking. He must think you have to be more formal leaving a cell phone message!!! LOL
My older sister (57 years) has always been Punkin rather than Janice!
Love the bake bean recipe!!
Love the story…and it also brought back my memories. I had many nicknames all through my life too. My papaw called me Ms Insinger (Ms Insinger was a Methodist Missionary that worked at a bible camp near where they lived) My Mamaw called me Winkle Bug and there are many many more but those are my very first nicknames. My aunts still call me Winkle Bug. =)
Oh I forgot…A very special Great Uncle whom is no longer living, nicknamed my mother “Possum Ann” I do not know why because she is Janice Evelyn, but he also called me “Possum Ann Jr” because my mother and I are so much alike in looks and personality.
My family calls me Suzy-Q. My daddy called me pumpkin. I always thought it was cute, but now I think about my shape when he calls me that!!! Maybe I’ll get him to call me zucchini.!!!
😀
I bring baked beans to just about every family or friend gathering and I’ve had people ask if I’ll be bringing baked beans! I don’t put hamburger in it but I do cook about 8 slices of bacon up very crisp and crumble it in the beans. I also drain off some of the bean liquid because most people like the beans to be thick and not runny and draining off some of the liquid helps the process. If I don’t have onion, I’m not above using onion flakes! My secret ingredients include tabasco sauce and wing sauce with brown sugar. I bake it at 325 degrees for about 2-3 hours until there’s a “crust” and the bean sauce has thickened. I don’t have to worry about taking any home!
My mum had two nicknames for me….Esmeralda and Teresa. They were not exactly pet names, they were called out whenever she was exasperated with me about something or needed me to do something. Other than those, I was just called by my given name, Joan. However, When she called out my full name, Joan Elaine! I knew I was in deep do do!!
Yeah- that Whole name thing always means you in da ca-ca!!!
My daddy called me poot when i was a little girl. Guess i passed a lot of gas! The nickname I liked the best was Debran. It is my name, Deborah Ann, run together. My brother always said it that way. One time when we were teenagers a new family moved to town and we got to know them. There were 8 of us growing up together and they soon learned all of us, but they couldn’t figure out who Debran was. They called me Deborah. One day the mama of the family asked me who Debran was that Nathen kept talking about. lol. She was flabbergasted when she found out it was me.
This is exactly how my Mama made her baked beans except she also added diced green pepper. She made the best baked beans ever! This is how I make mine.
Owwww- my mama also made this adding green peppers!! Best Beans EVER!!!!
My sister used to call me “JellyBean.” I have nicknames for my kids, “punkin”, “cutie putie” and “coodles.”
My moms Dad-Papa Coyle- nicknamed every single grandchild and great grandchild born into his family until he passed away. my nickname(and the name the entire family still to this DAY call me) is SweetpeaI….And I LOVE that Nickname. my brothers and sisters nicknames was Teddy Bear, Pretty-Girl, Sweet Thang, and Bo-Cephus. One of My cousins(female) got stuck with Hell-Cat. Hahahahaha!!!(in all fairness and papa’s defense – she WAS when she was a child.)
my own grandchildren are mostly called by their given names- but a few of them i have given nicknames to…..Teddy’s nickname isTeeter(and yes Teddy IS his given name), Nicholas is St Nick(as anyone who knows me will know, I got to name HIM!!), and Elijah is called Frodo(My hubby actually nicknamed him-he’s a big Lord Of The Rings fan…Elijah Wood-Frodo…get it?) sigh……. I LOVE Nicknames!!.
Oh I forgot my Kids Nicknames too!! I call my daughter Julie-Bird(but the kids in the family all call her Ju-ji…….My eldest son is Rojo…and my baby boy started out as Snickerdoodole….the I shortened it down to Doo( always reminded me of that movie Coalminers Daughter.) None of the kids ever minded nick-names.
My daughter was also called Jewels for a while, then one day-when she was about 4- she announced that she was changing her name to Renee(off Days Of Our Lives). I didn’t like it- but she refused to answer to anything else so we finally compromised and I began calling her Re-Re…..sometimes I still do- and she’s now almost 32 years old….My- how time flies.
Well, funny story. My son-in-law, who is from California, always wondered why every Southern family had a Bubba, and he thought that sounded silly. Now, his daughter, my two year old granddaughter, calls her older brother, his son, my grandson, Bubba, trying to say brother, and it seems to have stuck. Suddenly, my son-in-law thinks it sounds really cute 🙂
Christy, I love reading your stories about family and friends. This bean recipe has been a favorite of my family and friends for a long time. The only difference is I cook a pound of bacon cut in pieces then I add it to the mix and also a half cup of brown sugar. These are a great hit at church and picnics. As far as nicknames go the one I love the most is Nana ! I love Mama but now when your children have children there is nothing like it in the world. I have 10 children and love them all so very much. My husband and I adopt hurting children and try to give them the love they deserve . Thanks Christy for the joy you bring to me and so many others. God bless you and your family, Verna Corbett and the ark of hope for children.org
My daddy has always called me “Yackidoodle” or “Yack” for short. I do tend to talk a lot. I call my son “Fred”, or at least I did until he got in the 6th grade and said I embarrassed him! My granddaughter, Riley, is “Doodlebug” and she will correct you if you call her anything else! Lol. My Bigdaddy always called my Granny “Snooky”. I called her Granny Doodledump. I miss her every day.
That’s so sweet!! My bestie’s Grandaughter’s real name is Rylee and My bestie calls her Doodlebug too!! 😉
Oh the memories of Little House on the Prairie! I loved Pa and his nickname of Half Pint for Laura. Anyway, my daddy (who has now been dead 23 years) always called me Punkin, I loved that!! No one but him would call me that. My mom, on the other hand, had several nicknames for me (some more embarrassing than others 🙂 She called me Shanna-Boo, Boo-Boo, Boo-Bear or Niecy (my middle name is Denise). I have also bestowed nicknames on my three children 😉 Chase (11), we call Chay-chay; Kennedy (8) we call Deeni or Deeni-girl; and Carter (7) we call Bug.
The only one that has a story is Deeni’s. When she was a baby I would sing (to the tune of Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini) … You are my Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny, Little Tiny, Kennedini and I’ll love you forever, always! My itsy bitsy teeny weeny little precious Kennedini and in my heart, you always will stay!
Kind of corny, but you know us moms! 😉
My mom called me Gracie Fay so often as a kid that there were a few times that someone would find out my real name was Brandy and be extremely confused. As my mamaw often said, I answered to anything Mom felt like calling me. She was always making up names for us. I still call my little brother Jehoshaphat from time to time because of Mom. His real name is Joshua, so that one is kind of close at least. I name and nickname everything and everybody too, and like Mom, I often make up little theme songs for people too.
My precious Daddy called me “hollywood” because he said I should have been in Hollywood. God bless him. Only a Dad…lol. Husband of 22 years calls me ” punkin”.
That’s so sweet!! My bestie’s Grandaughter’s real name is Rylee and My bestie calls her Doodlebug too!! 😉
Christy, my baked beans are sorta like this, except I use ground sausage and I add brown sugar. I like the hot of the sasage and the sweet of the sugar. The brown sugar also makes it syrupy. Also kechup instead of BBQ sauce. You should try it everybody loves my baked beans.
Oh my Daddy called me Legs from the time I was a little girl because my Legs grew so fast that I looked like all Legs. Now he just calls me Hey Babe, which is sweet too.
Love reading the posts! My daddy used to call be Andy Ball. Have to idea where it came from. He has not called this in a while, but it brings back memories. Thanks Christy for the receipe, I know what I am taking to the family reunion on the 4th!
Sausage I hate when I misspell something!
Wow, what a great post on nicknames! I never felt very close to my father, but this post made me think about his nickname for me, “Little Bit”. or “Lil Bit” Mom called me “sis”. Guess it is a family tradition, My darling daughter is “Baby girl” or sometimes, “little one”, Her big brother is “Kiddo”. My Baby girl will be 20 next month, but forever my baby girl. She is beautiful, independent and very grown up, but still my baby.
I have some left over pork loin in my fridge, bet that will work in the beans this weekend too!
Thanks Christy for helping us think about the little things that mean so much.