Did any of you keep your maiden name?

ArcticFox · March 2011

I did, but I do realize that I will probably get called by my daughter's last name. No big deal, but once in a while I wonder if I should change it.

I didn't change it because I love my last name, and my mom passed away a couple weeks after my wedding so we thought it would be nice to keep it, and honestly doing the paperwork was really the last thing on my mind.

I guess I could hyphenate too.. I don't know. Any suggestions one way or another? Experience?

taurus424 · March 2011

I hyphenated....in hindsight....I would either change it or leave it....but i wouldnt hyphenate again....for some reason there is always a problem with the hyphen. My son took my DH last name.

lmdbww · March 2011

I made my maiden name my middle name and have no regrets.

franciscaz · March 2011

I hyphenate my name. If it is like at church or Harm's school I go by DH's last name. At work I go by my Maiden name or I hyphenate. It really hasn't ever been a big deal for me. The only problem I've had is that one time DH put plane tickets for me with his last name and my passport/DL/etc. still said my last name. Now I have both names on my DL.

Max'smom · March 2011

I wanted to hyphenate and almost did but my full married name already had 27 letters. I thought about making my maiden name my middle but my middle name is my family name and means a lot to my mom and grandmother. I work with several ladies that took their husbands name but professionally use their maiden name. I thought about doing that too but my husband and I work at the same company and that would be werid I thought.

So I went tradtional and took his name.

bubbs147 · March 2011

I kept my maiden name. We mostly get stuff in the mail addressed to the [DH's name] family, which doesn't really bother me. I'm about the last in my really big family to have my last name, and I really wanted it to show up in genealogy, but now since the girls have DH's name, it doesn't really matter. Now it's more trouble to change it than anything else, so I'll keep it.

STP2006 · March 2011

I did this weird hybrid that I thought was a good idea at the time, and it sort of is, and sort of isn't. My name is First Middle Mine His (no hyphen) and professionally I'm known as Mine (I was well established in career before I was married, and I couldn't practice under the old name unless it was part of the new LEGAL last name(reflected on my license)--and not just a middle name) and personally as Mrs. His (same as DS's last name). It gives me a little privacy (clients can't look up my home info under my maiden name) and keeps them from trying to figure out whose mom I am at the preschool.

The hassle comes in when I do things like set up medical appts--my insurance (for legal reasons) has to be in the FULL name--so I get there, and I feel like an idiot when I give my name and it's under one of the other versions. I"m constantly saying things like "you might also try under Hisname" when they can't find my chart/information.

wow...that was more confusing than it needed to be. Oops.

thumper57 · March 2011

I kept my maiden name for a few years after being married.

My FIL asked me about it a few times (DH never commented or seemed to mind) . I ended up making my maiden name as my middle name, and taking DH's last name. It was a decision made just to please FIL and avoid any bad feelings. I don't mind , but it was a PITA to get it done.

KGsky · March 2011

I've kept mine. Sort of hard to give up one's identity, at least for me. I would be changing first, middle and last because I go by my middle name. So middle would become first, maiden would become middle and last would be DH's. Both kids have his last name. I don't mind having different last names, but I know my hubby would rather I change it. I will eventually, but it's taking me a while. Pluse it's a PITA...

rebus82 · March 2011

I kept my name. My son has my name as well. DH and I were married when he was born (and had been for years) but we both agreed it was better to keep my family's name going. DH's family has a lot of kids, grandkids, etc. to keep the name, my family has ... me. And now B. I know someday he may end up with a woman with similar thinking and the line will end anyway, but at least for now I have one more generation rocking my name.

DH occasionally gets called by my last name, and it doesn't bother him. I think it amuses him more than anything.

MG7 · March 2011

I kept my name and DS has my name as well. I told DH he was more than welcome to take my name if he wanted but he didn't want to go through all of the paperwork and thought it would be weird to explain to his 6 th grade students

Like pp said sometimes DH is called my my last name - I always reference him as Mr. MG7 in my classroom. He think's it's amusing as well.

MammaBear81 · March 2011

I changed my name to DH's name when we got married, but DS1 is from a previous relationship and had his fathers last name until DH officially adopted him. I got called Mrs. XYZ all the time, it was annoying to me, because that wasn't my name, but I really couldn't get mad at people for it. As PP said, I wouldn't hyphenate, either leave it or change it, just know you are in for a life time of correcting people if you have a different last name than your kids

Sassystace · March 2011

I made my maiden name my middle name and dropped my given middle name. I like it this way since I can use both when needed (sometimes professionally it helps establish continuity as to who I am so I use both middle + last name then). I've worked with other women who didn't change their names and it always seemed to cause confusion.

Jen&Len · March 2011

I kept mine. I've been called First name Last name my whole life since I have a very common first name, so I'm used to hearing both names used when being addressed. It's just my sister and I in our family, so there's no one to carry on the last name, even though it's a fairly common last name as well. (she didnt' change hers either), so we didn't mind having it around a little longer! Plus, I would have to pay extra money to have my professional license changed. The kids have DH's last name. It hasn't caused much confusion yet. I don't mind at all if people address me as Mrs. DH's Last Name although DH sometimes gets miffed when people call him Mr. My last name!