I daresay that there are few that are not familiar with this famous quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet... Juliet's effort to address the fact that it is more important what something actually is and not what it is called. The statement of course, holds a profound truth to it, but right now the question has been for us... what IS in a name? As the time draws closer and closer, the fact still remains that we are not 100% settled on a name for the baby. We have had a boy's first name pretty much since the very beginning, but only just this last week did we find a middle name that we liked... and now "plan B" (or is it "plan G", should it be a girl) is to take "our list" of girl's names that we like to the hospital with us and simply see which name fits. Since we only have three weeks left, needless to say, I am a little frustrated.
Those of you who have had the task of naming a "little one" might be very well acquainted with the pursuit of finding "the perfect name". If my husband and I were having serious disagreements, that would be one thing, but we generally have the same tastes and opinions about names. Our challenge seems to be finding a name that works in Germany, but one that I (and my family) can still pronounce.
As you can see, it is not as if we haven't been looking... these are just a few. Cover to cover, our weekends and evenings have been consumed with what I consider to be one of the most important decisions we have had to make so far... finding "that name" that we will say everyday for the rest of our lives.
I was wondering if you had any tricks on how to get through this German/American hurdle. It's made worse by the fact that my husband and I have different tastes in names! We have often thought about this and have only ever managed to come up with a boy's middle name!
ReplyDeleteBest of luck on this one, I know it's not easy! I like the idea of taking the list with you. I've had a few friends tell me that as soon as they've seen their baby, they knew they had to pick a different name, as the one they had just didn't fit somehow. =)
oddly enough, my word verification for this comment is a girl's name "Tatianne"! so weird!
Naming a person is the toughest thing we had to decide on - 3 times over. And although we had a boys name each time, it was a girls name that had to be decided on - 3 times.
ReplyDeleteThe first 2 we did exactly what you are doing. Take our list with us and name the child after seeing. It works well.
Good luck with your naming adventure!
Not unlike you, we had to satisfy two sets of tribal leaders! Our children's name are many and I still call them by their different names depending on what language and mode I am in.
ReplyDeleteChildren's names are their parents prayers. Remember that and all the best.
I guess it can only be fitting that we have had three boys because the boy names come easy for us, but had we had girls we might have ended up in the same situation with no name at the hospital. I loved reading the book from Jennifer to Jason. It really explained the importance of a name, popularity of names, meaning, and how people interpret those names. For example, you never want to give a boy a really far out there name because he will get teased and I guess there is a higher amount of men in jail with strange names. While giving a girl a frilly name or silly name such as muffy or buffy and so forth it will be hard for her to be taken seriously in the business world. While some people had rules about naming their children we didn't. However, while we did'nt pick German names and not because we don't live in Germany we did pick names that were easy to pronounce because our last name is a hard one. Wishing you all the best of luck! I am sure you will know once you see your baby.
ReplyDeleteSaw you on Diana's and know Juliette too, so I figured I may want to stop by.
ReplyDeleteI am not pregnant nor am sure how soon it will be, but I have been thumbing through family records and books trying to find the right name. I know, a bit zonkers!
I think, though, that naming is a very personal, creative process that helps you the parents grow. Think about it, you two have to think about what's important to you as a couple and within your family and their history. How will you "make" this creature represent the perfect blend of you both? I suppose that's why I'm fascinated by names;-)
Good luck to you as you near the due date!
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI've been reading your blog for some time, and now that I see this subject about names I feel I have to tell my little anecdote !
When I was pregnant with girl #2, I always had this very strong "Gaëlle" feeling. Of course with my husband we went through the individual list making, keeping only those we had in common and discussing over the ones we both really liked but the other didn't want to hear about.
So for a while, out of the list of 5 remaining names, Gaëlle was the one that stood out. But when she was born, and I looked at her, then all of a sudden it didn't match anymore. She didn't have a Gaëlle's face, she simply wasn't one and when the nurse asked "So shall she be Gaëlle ?" my husband, seeing the look on my face, required a few more minutes to think. He did well, because I looked at him in dismay and said "She is not a Gaëlle, she is a Laure !" Somehow I didn't dare to change it but he said that I should go with my "inner gut" feeling. (maybe the hormones, or what ? now I wonder why it didn't seem natural to change if it didn't suit her). So long story short, she was named Laure and she really IS one, and of course it was the right thing to do ! She really bears her name well and she already told us that she likes it.
Good luck for the remaining days, and looking forward to "meet" the new baby soon !