Blake and I are very much of the "have the name ready long before the baby arrives" mindset. It never even really occurred to me that "Aurora" might not be an "Aurora." Of course she would! If she wasn't, than she could become one. In fact, we have our son's name all set, just waiting for his October arrival. What if he doesn't look like a __________? Whatever, he'll be all nice and pink and wrinkly, and ___________ will suit him just fine.
However, I realize many people take a different, more diplomatic approach at the hospital/birthing center/home: have some names in mind, but go in with no expectations. For instance, my sister (who's baby girl is due any day) and her husband have three full names selected. They plan on seeing their daughter before deciding on one. Lindsay hopes they'll take one look and just know, but she's practical enough to know this does not always happen. Their strategy? They have one name they classify as very "delicate and beautiful, quite feminine," which they'll use if she has very fine, pretty features. The next name is reserved for a "cute, chubby, smooshy" baby. And the last? Well, they just decided on the last a week or two ago, mainly because Lindsay strongly felt they should go in with three names, not two. The last is their least favorite, they admit, but they like the meaning of it the best. Supposedly if the other two names seem not to fit, this last will work for a wide variety of babies. I'm most partial to their smooshy name myself, but all three are lovely, and I can't wait to find out who she is!
I also know of several people who did indeed go to the hospital etc. with a name all good and chosen, only to cast eyes upon their offspring and know instantly that the name would never do.
Another option is having no idea whatsoever what to name the baby, until two days after its birth you have to sign the birth certificate before leaving the hospital, so you grudgingly agree to your husband's favorite name, only to regret it for the next two weeks before finally accepting it (I'm not naming names here...).
Ultimately this leads to the much-pondered question, "does the name grow to suit the person or the person suit the name?" That is a discussion for another day.
Certainly there is no right or wrong method here, and I'm curious as to your thoughts: Be set on a name prior to the birth, have several options, or wing it?
Now that the baby is born, can you tell us what were the other two names?
ReplyDeleteThe "cute, chubby, smooshy" name we had on our list was Flora Bailey. Flora because I love plants and the name is beautiful, and Bailey is my Grandma's maiden name so it would be special for her (there was a chance baby would be born on Grandma's birthday so we would definitely have chosen this name if that had been the case).
ReplyDeleteThe last name we considered was Abigail Morgan. Abigail means "her father's joy" which my husband and I love. And my husband really loves the name Morgan, which means "seashore". The thing we didn't love about this name is how popular it is right now, I think it's in the top 10 for girls.
The name we chose is Evelyn Brooke. This is the "delicate and beautiful, quite feminine" name that Brittany mentioned. Evelyn means "chestnut" or "life" and Brooke, obviously, means stream.
It took us about an hr after she was born to choose the name. We ruled out Abigail immediately, but it took us some time to determine if she was an Evelyn or a Flora. The thing that convinced me was that she ended up being born on my Granddad's birthday, so it would have been odd to give her a name with significance to my Grandma. We're very happy with the decision, she is definitely an Evelyn. :)
awww..thank you for the explanation. I love name Evelyn!
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