My husband and I are expecting our first child, baby girl, in [name]July[/name]. We have battled over names for a while now, and are 99% sure the middle name will be [name]Kate[/name] (after his grandmother and mother). We have narrowed down to two names…
He likes [name]Maren[/name] [name]Kate[/name], and I like [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name]. [name]Shirley[/name] is after my grandmother that passed away years ago that I was extremely close to. She was a very special lady. My husband likes the name [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name], but doesn’t want her to be called just [name]Shirley[/name] (neither do I), and he doesn’t want her to have to deal with being doubled named. (I am doubled named.) We have tried and tried to come up with a shortened version of Shriley… not happening! If we named her [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name], I would like to call her “[name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name]”. And if she wanted to shorten eventually she could to either just [name]Kate[/name] or [name]Shirley[/name] if she prefers. I am not wild about the name [name]Maren[/name] [name]Kate[/name], but he has been calling her that since we found out she’s a girl. [name]Just[/name] wanted to get some opinions on these two names… Is [name]Shirley[/name] too old-fashioned? Oh and also we are considering spelling it “Shrileigh”, as [name]Leigh[/name] is my name and my mother’s middle name. Too much? And what do you think about [name]Maren[/name]?
I prefer [name]Maren[/name] [name]Kate[/name] myself. [name]Maren[/name] is soft, feminine and pretty and spunky [name]Kate[/name] goes well with it. [name]Shirley[/name] is a bit dated but it’s not too bad especially if you want to honour your grandmother. Please don’t change the spelling to [name]Shirleigh[/name] as it looks very trendy and somewhat odd to me. Have you considered [name]Maren[/name] [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name] or [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Maren[/name] [name]Kate[/name]?
I’m surprised how much I like [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name]! Yes, [name]Shirley[/name] can feel a little dusty, but its so infrequently used anymore that I kind of like it for that. [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is much more interesting than just [name]Shirley[/name], and a nice nod if you have a double name too.
[name]Shirleigh[/name] is a lot to take, without the backstory it just looks like you were trying kind of unsuccessfully to modernize [name]Shirley[/name].
[name]Shirley[/name] [name]Katherine[/name] [name]Leigh[/name] (nn [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name]) sounds lovely but [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name] [name]Leigh[/name] is a little choppy imo.
I disagree that [name]Shirley[/name] is dated. I think it has been on the shelf long enough that it feels vintagy and refreshing. [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is adorable. I think of a frilly little girl with curls and uber feminine dresses, like [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Temple[/name]. I also like [name]Maren[/name], but it just doesn’t hold a candle to [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name], [name]IMO[/name].
Nicknames for [name]Shirley[/name] can be [name]Shiri[/name] or [name]Shira[/name]. [name]Shira[/name] [name]Kate[/name] maybe?
I would not spell it [name]Shirleigh[/name]. Leave it as is. [name]Shirleigh[/name] looks butchered and tryndee.
I think if you call her [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name] from the get go, it will stick.
[name]Shirley[/name] is a tad old-fashioned, but what about [name]Cherie[/name]? It’s a little old too, but still really cute and sounds like [name]Shirley[/name]. And it flows well together- [name]Cherie[/name] [name]Kate[/name]. [name]Maren[/name]'s pretty, as well. If you want to throw in the [name]Leigh[/name], [name]Cherie[/name]-[name]Leigh[/name] [name]Kate[/name] sounds surprisingly sweet when said aloud.
Sorry, but I don’t really care for either names. [name]How[/name] about [name]Sally[/name] [name]Kate[/name]? You could kind of get that from [name]Shirley[/name].
I think [name]Shirley[/name] is due for a comeback. [name]Shirleigh[/name], however, is a big NO [name]WAY[/name]. In my opinion, [name]Maren[/name] [name]Kate[/name] has less personality than [name]Shirley[/name] [name]Kate[/name], although I do like [name]Maren[/name] [name]Leigh[/name].
Does your Grandma have a middle name or maiden name you could incorporate somehow? Like my Grandma is [name]Pearl[/name] which no one has used, but there is an Adelise (the French version of [name]Alice[/name], which is her middle name) and a [name]Dahlia[/name] since her maiden name was Dahl. You might find something you both like that would still honour her. Maybe another name that has the same meaning as [name]Shirley[/name], or something like that. The middle name [name]Kate[/name] will go with almost anything!