While we’re not always technical in the words we use with Toren (e.g., “Are you poopy?”), we did choose to use one technically accurate term – vulva. Vulva, for those who don’t know, is the technical word for the external female genitalia from the mons pubis to the labia and anus. Most people refer to this area, erroneously, as the vagina.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31b_70kzfwQ
(Admittedly, the little boy in this clip does use the word correctly, but vagina is often used to refer to a woman’s vulva.)
Since I teach a class on human sexuality, we opted for the technically accurate term in telling Toren why Debi’s genitalia are different from mine. Toren picked up the word and seems to understand the difference.
To illustrate: Toren ran into the bathroom one day just as Debi was getting out of the shower. Noticing she was wet, he handed Debi her towel and said, “Wipe vulva with towel.”
