@adirat, I thought about that too. I don’t know what it is, but they just don’t have the same appeal anymore. If H and I can’t agree on anything else, I definitely will have to go back to these.
@EErin86, Yes! That totally could work! I probably would use Amelia at home/Work more anyway. My husband liked Mila and his Russian family would use that. I liked both, but Amelia more
I'm lucky that my husband is Hindu and they choose names based on astrology. So once we know the exact time baby was born, we'll have a letter or syllable that the name has to begin with along with a list of significant names (i.e. names of Gods or holy words, etc). Narrows it down a lot! He's lucky I'm happy to go with the flow.
This baby is our 3rd.. and we had names for the first two by like 8 weeks preg if not sooner... we are at a total loss this time. The one name we both like for a boy (cole...that seems to go with our other boys names) did not get a good response from my mom... which is so irritating! Ha. Cant let her sway us. So annoying. Anyway.. I guess we have time but we are team green so we need to come up with two names. I love some of these ideas though!
@Aab7114 definitely don't worry avout coworkers. We named DS Nolan even though BIL's son is Noah. I didn't care how similar the names were. They will rarely see one another (BIL passed away and rarely saw him anyway as he lives in FL with his mom, we are in MA).
We always figure out names really early. For a girl she will be Willow and for a boy he will be Dashiell but we will call him Dash. Current kiddos are Xander and Quinn
@jaylii. I like Nell! I knew two in high school, so maybe that's why? One was Ellen, but we called her Nellen, and the other I'm honestly not sure, but she went by Nell. Go for it!
@ashh2018 We needed an R middle name for DS in memory of my father and we used his actual name, Richard. I love it—it’s not such a common name anymore but it’s very strong and I liked it with our boy name options. If this one is a boy, we will probably use my uncle’s name in his memory (I want all my kids to have R middle names for my dad) and if it’s a girl, we’re leaning toward Rae as a middle name.
@jaylii We have a last name issue too! Ours is super long so there are some names that I like (ex. Benjamin) that we end up taking off the list because it makes the baby’s name look like a novel!
Names are so complicated! Did anyone ever read Freakonomics? There’s a whole chapter on names which a family friend had me read with my first - it made me think about things I never thought of before! When I was driving home a couple weeks ago the name Nathan (Nate) came to me like a flash which was weird because it was never even on my list for my first. It would be Nate and Noah then - which another thing that never crossed my mind - having all N names. I have no idea about a girl, I just feel like I’m destined to be surrounded by boys so maybe I’m superstitious about even picking a girl name out so I don’t get disappointed.
@shellso923 I didn't read it, but I saw a movie/show/YouTube thing (I don't remember which) about it and it was really interesting. Definitely lots of food for thought.
We didn’t share our name until after our daughter was born and it was on the birth certificate with our first, and I’m sure we’ll do the same thing this time. I feel like everyone has an opinion on a name, and before it’s official people feel free to share those opinions...but after it’s said and done the worst someone will say (unless they’re a total @ss) is something like “oh, that’s....different” LOL.
@nlc8424 first name is James (DH’s grandfather). I’ve been struggling to find an r middle name that I love, and DH suggested that. I guess it just came up on a list and he liked it!
@ashh2018I personally just don't care for odd spelling for names. I don't mind James Ray, depending on how it flows with your last name. I'm preferable to James Robert since I have a couple males in my family with both/either of those names. You and your DH have to love it though!
@marym94, I have a Cole (our oldest) and still love it as much now as when we picked it out.
@ashh2018, I also tend to get a more feminine feel from the Rey spelling (probably because of Star Wars), but if you like it better, why not. I looked up the meaning, and it means King, so I think it's certainly defensible as a boy name (which it originally was).
As for me, my DH and I have not really even discussed names yet. I've put together a short list of maybes that my DH hasn't vetoed, and hopefully, one of them will either grow on me between now and September or I'll get a feeling about a particular name before then. My main hope is that we actually know what we are going to name the baby before delivery (unlike with our last two boys).
We picked out DS name before I was prego based on civil rights leaders from a show we were watching. Since then I've insisted on picking names with a purpose. We are Team Green so we come up with both...
Girl name (we didn't get to use the first time) is after environmentalists: Abbey Lee
Boy name we are about 70% settled on is after scientists: Henry Mason
We haven't started talking names at all. We didn't do much with DS until we found out he was a boy and it was actually a pretty easy decision from there. I found a name I liked, and MH liked it too.
Choosing a name is one of the reasons I'm not sure I could do Team Green. I want to have something picked and it seems easier to only be looking for one name instead of one for each sex. We did keep DS's name to ourselves until birth and we'll definitely do the same this time.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks DS born 9/13/16 BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
@marym94, I have a Cole (our oldest) and still love it as much now as when we picked it out.
@ashh2018, I also tend to get a more feminine feel from the Rey spelling (probably because of Star Wars), but if you like it better, why not. I looked up the meaning, and it means King, so I think it's certainly defensible as a boy name (which it originally was).
As for me, my DH and I have not really even discussed names yet. I've put together a short list of maybes that my DH hasn't vetoed, and hopefully, one of them will either grow on me between now and September or I'll get a feeling about a particular name before then. My main hope is that we actually know what we are going to name the baby before delivery (unlike with our last two boys).
Yay! Ha - thank you! We have always had it on our short list and now we feel like it is the right time (if it is a boy). We love it.
Rey doesn’t seem strange or like a made up/yooneek spelling to me but I live in Texas so I often see it as a shortened version of a few Hispanic first names. Other than the fact that he might have to spell it out for people because they’re likely to assume Rey is Ray based on sound. Ultimately not a huge inconvenience IMO!
AFM- we waited until we saw our LO’s face to finalize his name and didn’t even share our short list with anyone. Naming is SO stressful! I can’t even think about top name picks for this one yet. Maybe learning the sex will light a fire under me. All I know is we’ll probably avoid names that start with A so that it’s not too matchy-matchy with DS.
LFAF Awards
me: 27 | husband: 35 IR PCOS dx Sept. 2014
married May 2015 --> started NTNP BFP 6.28.15 - EDD 3.6.16 baby #1born 2.19.16
@fwtx5815 we didn't even share the short list either. But we did share our "rules" we were going by...nothing too popular, something reasonably easy to spell/pronounce, something with an obvious nickname, more than one syllable, and nothing that would be butchered by the local accent. I assume we'll use the same rules this time!
@marym94 not that you should change the name to purely please your mother but I’m curious if she would like Colton better and he could have the nickname of Cole.
Me (29) + DH (30) | Dating 2003 | Married 2008 DS - 02/21/2016
@jaylii Fwiw in my daughter's gym class we came across two toddlers named Eleanor. If you're worried about popularity, that's my experience. But I do like the nn Nell. However, I've learned that you have to be persistent with nicknames. People will call your child whatever they want. I don't MIND the nickname Emmy for my daughter (Emily) but I never told anyone to call her that. A lot of people just do. To me working in television, Emmy is the award statue. I'd rather people call her Em Like James Bond's boss (M)
@jayliiMy daughter's name is Eleanor (she's 2) and we have a friend who's daughter is a month younger and also named Eleanor. They are the only two I know though!
We are officially team blue! Ah! We chose the name Thomas Henry -- Thomas after my dad and Henry after DH's grandfather.
@yankeeinthesouth@jaylii apparently Eleanor was the 60th most popular baby name in the United States in 2015, and the popularity has been rapidly increasing in the 2000's. I'm telling you, that website I linked above is amazing if you have ANY concerns over name popularity!
Eleanor jumped to #41 in 2016 and 5100 girls total were given that name in the U.S. in 2016. I don't want a top 10 name, but I think it will be hard for us to avoid a top 100 name.
I think names are like cars. You get a new car and suddenly you start seeing that same car everywhere. It happened to us with DS. We fell in love with a name, he was born, and then I found out 3 people in town chose that name for their boys. All within 3 months. So now there will be 4 of them in school at the same time. I didn't want my son to be called by his last name, but probably going to happen now
@prpl11butterfly just curious: did you look at any of the websites (like the one I posted, or the SSA one @jaylii posted) to investigate popularity before picking the name? I'm a huge data nerd, so sometimes it's hard for me to understand people who aren't. I think the psychology behind name trends is fascinating--like the reason you fell in the love with the name. Maybe you don't even know where you heard it, but so many people ended up falling in love with it too, and must have had the same experience where they heard it! And then if you look at characters in popular movies or soap operas, it's fascinating; often they're adults who have names that are usually just about to become the popular baby names in coming years. The writers pick something seemingly trendy, and then it actually causes it to become trendy, is how it seems!
My daughter's name is not popular--we still haven't met another kid with her name, but her nickname others have used as the name, and that's all over the place now. And there are definitely a few pop culture characters with her nickname.
@marym94 not that you should change the name to purely please your mother but I’m curious if she would like Colton better and he could have the nickname of Cole.
that is so funny! while we didn't discuss Colton, we did discuss Colt (which is basically the same)...
This time around we are struggling with girl names and have a solid boy name ready.
It’s so funny because girl names are usually so easy for us and I do have a long list but they are all kinda meh to me.
I’m in love with our boy name and we came up with it so quickly but I’m sure it will be a girl just because isn’t that how it usually works? Haha!
I do look at popularity but I don’t think it’s an issue like it was in the 80’s and 90’s. Names are so varied now that you rarely have multiple children with the same name.
Although, you do see similar names! It’s so funny in my daughter’s Kindergarten class they have a William, Will, Wilkes, and Warren.
DS is Alexander "Xander" Spencer DD is Elizabeth "Ellie" Hazel
Both kids middle names are family names on DH's side.
We're thinking if #3 is a boy, he'll be Charles "Charlie" James or Catherine "Cate or Catie" Jean. The boys name has no family ties but Jean is both DH's moms name and my moms middle name.
Married to DH for 6 years (together for 16) DS born 12.13.14 DD born 10.15.16 BFP 1.24.18, MC 3.13.18 BFP 4.25.19, EDD 12.31.19
Re: Names
@EErin86, Yes! That totally could work! I probably would use Amelia at home/Work more anyway. My husband liked Mila and his Russian family would use that. I liked both, but Amelia more
@srachilagani I love that custom!
If its a boy we have no idea
@jaylii We have a last name issue too! Ours is super long so there are some names that I like (ex. Benjamin) that we end up taking off the list because it makes the baby’s name look like a novel!
ETA maybe weird for a boy with the e?
@ashh2018, I also tend to get a more feminine feel from the Rey spelling (probably because of Star Wars), but if you like it better, why not. I looked up the meaning, and it means King, so I think it's certainly defensible as a boy name (which it originally was).
As for me, my DH and I have not really even discussed names yet. I've put together a short list of maybes that my DH hasn't vetoed, and hopefully, one of them will either grow on me between now and September or I'll get a feeling about a particular name before then. My main hope is that we actually know what we are going to name the baby before delivery (unlike with our last two boys).
Girl name (we didn't get to use the first time) is after environmentalists: Abbey Lee
Boy name we are about 70% settled on is after scientists: Henry Mason
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
Choosing a name is one of the reasons I'm not sure I could do Team Green. I want to have something picked and it seems easier to only be looking for one name instead of one for each sex. We did keep DS's name to ourselves until birth and we'll definitely do the same this time.
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
PS - we also have two boys now
AFM- we waited until we saw our LO’s face to finalize his name and didn’t even share our short list with anyone. Naming is SO stressful! I can’t even think about top name picks for this one yet. Maybe learning the sex will light a fire under me. All I know is we’ll probably avoid names that start with A so that it’s not too matchy-matchy with DS.
me: 27 | husband: 35
IR PCOS dx Sept. 2014
married May 2015 --> started NTNP
BFP 6.28.15 - EDD 3.6.16
baby #1 born 2.19.16
TTC #2 in April 2017
BFP 12.30.17 - EDD 9.6.18
Fertility Friend Chart
Even when not pregnant, and before I was even thinking of having a kid, I've been obsessed with this website: https://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager
DS - 02/21/2016
We are officially team blue! Ah! We chose the name Thomas Henry -- Thomas after my dad and Henry after DH's grandfather.
bfp#1-10/29/12,EDD: 7/3/13. nothing found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 12/10/12. "Bean"
bfp#2-5/10/13! EDD: 1/18/14. "Peanut" Arrived 1/13/14. Diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis
bfp#3- 9/26/14. EDD: 5/7/15. no heartbeat found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 10/23/14. "Little Bug"
**Psalm 139:16**
Eleanor jumped to #41 in 2016 and 5100 girls total were given that name in the U.S. in 2016. I don't want a top 10 name, but I think it will be hard for us to avoid a top 100 name.
My daughter's name is not popular--we still haven't met another kid with her name, but her nickname others have used as the name, and that's all over the place now. And there are definitely a few pop culture characters with her nickname.
i like your thinking!
It’s so funny because girl names are usually so easy for us and I do have a long list but they are all kinda meh to me.
I’m in love with our boy name and we came up with it so quickly but I’m sure it will be a girl just because isn’t that how it usually works? Haha!
I do look at popularity but I don’t think it’s an issue like it was in the 80’s and 90’s.
Names are so varied now that you rarely have multiple children with the same name.
Although, you do see similar names!
It’s so funny in my daughter’s Kindergarten class they have a William, Will, Wilkes, and Warren.
DD is Elizabeth "Ellie" Hazel
Both kids middle names are family names on DH's side.
We're thinking if #3 is a boy, he'll be Charles "Charlie" James or Catherine "Cate or Catie" Jean. The boys name has no family ties but Jean is both DH's moms name and my moms middle name.
Married to DH for 6 years (together for 16)
DS born 12.13.14
DD born 10.15.16
BFP 1.24.18, MC 3.13.18