Hello!
I am due in a couple weeks with a baby girl, and I am really stuck on a middle name. Baby girls first name is set, and will be Lorelei.
Originally I was pretty set on Maxine as the middle name in honor of my grandmother, and I loved the flow. Lately, though, I’ve really been wanting to honor my mother in law in her name, as she is such a huge part of all of our lives. The only problem is that her name is Karen, and unfortunately people have really ran with that one, regardless of how wonderful MIL is. I considered using her middle name as the middle for Lorelei, but it is Leone, and I feel like 2 L names run together. Is that just me?
Looking for possible Karen alternatives, and opinions on Leone as a middle bame!
Thank you for reading that novel, I appreciate any feedback!
Honestly I think you should just use [name_f]Karen[/name_f]. It’s only her middle name after all and everyone in your life will know why it is her middle name. By the time [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] is in school, there will probably be a different name that is scrutinized and no one will question it. Not like she’ll be called [name_f]Karen[/name_f] (or at least that’s the current plan).
However, if you’re adamant, I think the following could work:
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] Kari/Kary
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Katrina[/name_f]
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Maren[/name_f]
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] Ren/Wren
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] Carina/Karina
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] Caroline/Karoline (or Carolyn)
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Karmen[/name_f]
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Karis[/name_f]
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_m]Karlin[/name_m]
p.s. [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Leone[/name_u] is good too! It’s not too much L at all.
I completely sympathize on this as I have family members named [name_f]Karen[/name_f]. I think (i could be wrong but I believe I read this somewhere) that [name_f]Karen[/name_f] is based from [name_f]Katherine[/name_f] so you could do [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_f]Katharine[/name_f].
Other options:
[name_f]Carina[/name_f]
Karie/ Karianne
[name_f]Catalina[/name_f]
[name_f]Catarina[/name_f]
[name_f]Kate[/name_f]
[name_u]Or[/name_u] maybe [name_f]Kaley[/name_f] as a combo of [name_f]Karen[/name_f] and [name_u]Leone[/name_u].
Thank you for the input! I am definitely tempted to just throw all to the wind and use [name_f]Karen[/name_f]!
Thank you for the alternative suggestions as well!
I also saw that it was a diminutive of [name_f]Katherine[/name_f]! I’ve pitched that to my husband but he seemed lukewarm on it. I really like it, I may try and push a little harder for it lol!
Maybe [name_f]Katherine[/name_f] but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with [name_f]Karen[/name_f] for a middle.
karena!!! Looks like karen but pronounced more like ku ren uh
Personally, I think [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Leone[/name_u] is utterly gorgeous 
Not too much L at all — it’s flowy and impactful and full of character and flair. [name_m]Can[/name_m] you tell I’m a big fan?
I think if you really want to honour your MIL, using her actual first or middle name will have more impact than using a variant, although I think variant honour names do have their place.
[name_f]Karen[/name_f] is still usable IMO, certainly as a family middle, but [name_u]Leone[/name_u] avoids all the pitfalls while still honouring your MIL very directly, plus it’s such a wonderful family name to have and a match made in heaven with the first name you’ve chosen.
If you don’t like [name_f]Karen[/name_f] why don’t you have older [name_f]Karen[/name_f] pick the middle name? It’ll have more meaning than any alternative I could give you.
[name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Ren[/name_u]!
The [name_f]Karen[/name_f] drama will pass. If you want to use it, use it.
On [name_u]Leone[/name_u], I think the LL is ok. [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Leone[/name_u] works in my opinion!
I actually grew with a LL and her name was always so catchy.
You do make a lot of excellent points haha! [name_u]Leone[/name_u] is definitely growing on me as I’m saying it in my head!
Thank you for the input!
I agree with @katinka that [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Leone[/name_u] is truly lovely. They both begin with L but are quite different in sound and are complementary. For me, it’s a winner.
I don’t know exactly what I’d do in your position but there are lots of great suggestions so far. One I haven’t seen is, is your mother-in-law’s surname or maiden name usable as a middle name? I know surnames are used a lot for boys but I’m a proponent of using them for girls, too.
Hers is unfortunately not a usable maiden name, it is very very Norwegian and definitely doesn’t make for a good baby girl name haha! But thank you!
[name_f]Loralei[/name_f] [name_u]Wren[/name_u] is really pretty I hadn’t even thought of that for [name_f]Karen[/name_f] but its kind of brilliant!
[name_f]Kara[/name_f]? [name_f]Maren[/name_f]? For what it’s worth, I think [name_f]Karen[/name_f] on a little girl would be sweet and not a big deal in the middle name spot at all.
I absolutely love [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Leone[/name_u]! That’s got a gorgeous flow! As for honoring the name [name_f]Karen[/name_f], I think [name_f]Kara[/name_f] or [name_u]Kay[/name_u] would be really sweet. [name_f]Lorelei[/name_f] [name_u]Kay[/name_u] is darling! xx
[name_f]Karena[/name_f] pronounced ka-ree-na
Karene pronounced ka-reen
I would use Karen or Karina (Car-ree-na) or ask MIL Karen if there’s any girls names she really likes that you could get on board with.