Narrowing it down!

[greyer]

So, berries… you did an awesome job coming up with sister names for [name]Donald[/name]! I really liked a lot of the suggestions. I’m impressed that you were able to get a sense of my style using only four or five names off my list… wow!

These are the names that are absolutely NOT on the list, for various reasons:
[name]Lydia[/name] - I love this name and am SO SAD to see it go… but hubby can’t get over his associations.
[name]Dorothy[/name] - I had a friend named this in HS who backstabbed me.
[name]Sarah[/name] - Ditto [name]Dorothy[/name], although I like [name]Sadie[/name].
[name]Helen[/name] - this is the name of a grandmother that hubby hates.
[name]Rebecca[/name] - the name of a close mutual friend.
[name]Elizabeth[/name] - SO’s mom’s name. He has no intention of honoring her which is just fine with me, believe me!!!
[name]Judith[/name] - this is my grandmother’s name! [name]Donald[/name] [name]Paul[/name]'s wife, in other words. I feel like that’s weird… like naming twins [name]Romeo[/name] & [name]Juliet[/name].
[name]Tanya[/name] - the name of my ex fiance’s new girlfriend.

The names I’m unsure of:
[name]Susannah[/name] - mostly because of the length.
[name]Caroline[/name] - can I use this without my step-mom [name]Carolyn[/name] thinking I named my daughter after her? Because, uh, NO [name]WAY[/name].
[name]Miranda[/name] - another high school friend who backstabbed me… but I think I can get over that because the name is so beautiful.

The names I like:
[name]Alice[/name] - is it too plain? I would call her Elkie, which is an old NN for [name]Alice[/name].
[name]Julia[/name] - I’ve always liked this, but I can’t think of a good middle.
[name]Iris[/name] - I like it, but it’s the name of my best friend’s cat… is that too weird?
[name]Josephine[/name] - seems so frilly next to [name]Donald[/name], but I like it.
[name]Genevieve[/name] - ditto [name]Josephine[/name].
[name]Linnea[/name] - I like that it honors my mom, [name]Lynn[/name], but I don’t like it enough for the FN spot, I think.
[name]Rose[/name] ([name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Rosemary[/name]) - I love almost all the [name]Rose[/name]- names. Is [name]Rose[/name] good enough on its own?
[name]Viola[/name] - SO prefers [name]Violet[/name], but I like [name]Viola[/name]. They both kind of make me think violent/violate, though.
[name]Cordelia[/name] - I really like this. I would call her [name]Delia[/name], but could I avoid NN [name]Cordy[/name]?
[name]Beatrice[/name] - I love the NN [name]Bea[/name], but not sure about [name]Beatrice[/name].
[name]Ruth[/name] - Does [name]Ruth[/name] Hoagland slur together too much?
[name]Lucy[/name] - I like it with full name [name]Lucia[/name] (LOO-sha) or [name]Lucinda[/name].
[name]Estelle[/name]/a - I really like both [name]Estelle[/name] and [name]Estella[/name]. Could you get NN [name]Elsa[/name] out of this, or is that a stretch?
[name]Agnes[/name] - I like it, but is it TOO old?
[name]Edith[/name] - ditto [name]Agnes[/name]. This could be a throw-back to my grandma, [name]Judith[/name], too. What about [name]Meredith[/name]?
[name]Constance[/name] - But, I hate the nn [name]Connie[/name]. Also, [name]Don[/name] and [name]Constance[/name]? Seeing a pattern…
[name]Esther[/name] - [name]Love[/name] it with NN [name]Etta[/name].
[name]Audrey[/name] - I like this, but I fear it’s too common for me.
[name]Clara[/name] - [name]LOVE[/name]. Combo would be [name]Clara[/name] [name]Eugenia[/name].
[name]Florence[/name] - The name of both my great-grandmas, but I’m afraid it’s too long.
[name]Jessamine[/name] - Length?
[name]Marguerite[/name] - Ditto [name]Jessamine[/name]. NN would be [name]Meg[/name] (I had a cat named [name]Maggie[/name]).
[name]Sophie[/name] - But soooo common.
[name]Susan[/name] - Prefer [name]Susannah[/name] for sound and look, but prefer this for length.
[name]Joan[/name] - I find [name]Don[/name] and [name]Joan[/name] hard to say, but I like this.
[name]June[/name] - [name]LOVE[/name]. [name]Don[/name] and [name]June[/name] sounds great together.
[name]Molly[/name] - [name]Just[/name] okay for me.
[name]Beverly[/name] - I’ve always had a soft spot for this, but is it too outdated?
[name]Clementine[/name] - [name]LOVE[/name] this, but the length… LN is Hoagland. [name]Clementine[/name] Hoagland is 18 letters long.

WDYT? [name]Will[/name] I ever narrow this list down? Help!

[rachel_youngnamer]

[name]Alice[/name] - [name]Love[/name] this! I don’t find it plain at all, it’s at the top of my list:)
[name]Julia[/name] - I like it too. Maybe [name]Simone[/name](just because I like it) or [name]Iris[/name], [name]Florence[/name], [name]Rose[/name], or [name]Violet[/name] from your list would work as mns?
[name]Iris[/name] - Hm, as long as she knows you aren’t naming the baby after her cat, I think it’s fine.
[name]Josephine[/name] - [name]Love[/name] this name too, but I can see your dilema…
[name]Genevieve[/name] - see [name]Josephine[/name].
[name]Linnea[/name] - great for the honoring, but if you don’t completely like it then don’t use it.
[name]Rose[/name] ([name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Rosemary[/name]) - [name]Rose[/name] definitely works by itself! cute!
[name]Viola[/name] - I wouldn’t worry about the violent/violate associations much. [name]Both[/name] [name]Viola[/name] and [name]Violet[/name] are great~
[name]Cordelia[/name] - Very nice. [name]Don[/name]'t worry about the nn [name]Cordy[/name], it’s avoidable. Her close friends might start calling her that or something so if it would bother you too much don’t use that name.
[name]Beatrice[/name] - What about [name]Beatrix[/name]?
[name]Ruth[/name] - Sweet and simple:) and I think [name]Ruth[/name] sounds fine with your ln~
[name]Lucy[/name] - I like this too
[name]Estelle[/name]/a - I think you could definitely get [name]Elsa[/name] out of these
[name]Agnes[/name] - Well, this isn’t my style. Most people would find it too old, [name]IMO[/name].
[name]Edith[/name] - I like [name]Meredith[/name]. [name]Edith[/name] is alright… just not my style. a little less “old” than [name]Agnes[/name] [name]IMO[/name].
[name]Constance[/name] - Doesn’t sound good next to [name]Don[/name].
[name]Esther[/name] - Cute
[name]Audrey[/name] - As long as you love it, I don’t think the popularity matters
[name]Clara[/name] - pretty!
[name]Florence[/name] - Great name! don’t worry about length… I know a girl with 18 letters in her name ([name]Samantha[/name] A________t) and she gets along fine:)
[name]Jessamine[/name] - see [name]Florence[/name]
[name]Marguerite[/name] - Pretty!
[name]Sophie[/name] - [name]Love[/name] it! but it is pretty common…
[name]Susan[/name] - I would go with [name]Susannah[/name] since you seem to prefer it.
[name]Joan[/name] - Yeah… not good with [name]Don[/name]
[name]June[/name] - Nice!
[name]Molly[/name] - [name]Don[/name]'t settle for just okay!
[name]Beverly[/name] - Adorable! I don’t think it’s outdated
[name]Clementine[/name] - I love this too! and see [name]Florence[/name] about the length issue

[name]Hope[/name] I helped!

[cecily]

[name]Alice[/name]* - is it too plain? I would call her Elkie, which is an old NN for [name]Alice[/name]. - I don’t think that [name]Alice[/name] is too plain at all! It’s one of my favorite classics, and I can easily see [name]Donald[/name] and [name]Alice[/name] as siblings.
[name]Julia[/name] - I’ve always liked this, but I can’t think of a good middle. - [name]Julia[/name] is lovely, but it doesn’t thrill me. For combos, what about [name]Julia[/name] [name]Josephine[/name], [name]Julia[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name], [name]Julia[/name] [name]Florence[/name], [name]Julia[/name] [name]Jessamine[/name], or [name]Julia[/name] [name]Clementine[/name]?
[name]Iris[/name] - I like it, but it’s the name of my best friend’s cat… is that too weird? - I love [name]Iris[/name], too, but I would probably use it as a middle in your case…
[name]Josephine[/name]* - seems so frilly next to [name]Donald[/name], but I like it. - I think that [name]Josephine[/name] is great with [name]Donald[/name]! It’s a bit frilly, but [name]Josephine[/name] has many nicknames ([name]Josie[/name], [name]Posy[/name], [name]Effie[/name], etc.) that might solve that problem.
[name]Genevieve[/name] - ditto [name]Josephine[/name]. - I like [name]Genevieve[/name], too, though I think that [name]Josephine[/name] is a bit better with [name]Donald[/name]. Again, there are many nicknames you can choose from ([name]Evie[/name], [name]Viv[/name], [name]Vivi[/name], [name]Neve[/name], even [name]Gen[/name]/[name]Jen[/name] and [name]Genny[/name]/[name]Jenny[/name]).
[name]Linnea[/name] - I like that it honors my mom, [name]Lynn[/name], but I don’t like it enough for the FN spot, I think. - [name]Linnea[/name] is lovely, and I think it’s great that this would honor your mom, but I’m not completely sure about it with [name]Donald[/name].
[name]Rose[/name] ([name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Rosemary[/name]) - I love almost all the [name]Rose[/name]- names. Is [name]Rose[/name] good enough on its own? - I love [name]Rose[/name] names, too! [name]Rosemary[/name] is best with [name]Donald[/name], I think, but you could use [name]Rosa[/name]lind to honor your mom.
[name]Viola[/name] - SO prefers [name]Violet[/name], but I like [name]Viola[/name]. They both kind of make me think violent/violate, though. - I love [name]Viola[/name]! [name]Violet[/name] is pretty, too, and I wouldn’t worry too much about the “violent”/“violate” thing…
[name]Cordelia[/name]* - I really like this. I would call her [name]Delia[/name], but could I avoid NN [name]Cordy[/name]? - I think that [name]Cordelia[/name] is very nice, too, and I also like the [name]Delia[/name] nickname ([name]Cora[/name], too).
[name]Beatrice[/name]* - I love the NN [name]Bea[/name], but not sure about [name]Beatrice[/name]. - [name]Beatrice[/name] is lovely! For the [name]Bea[/name] nickname, I think you could use [name]Phoebe[/name] or pretty much anything that starts with B.
[name]Ruth[/name] - Does [name]Ruth[/name] Hoagland slur together too much? - No, I don’t think that [name]Ruth[/name] Hoagland slurs too much. I have a soft spot for [name]Ruth[/name], but it’s not my very favorite from your list.
[name]Lucy[/name] - I like it with full name [name]Lucia[/name] (LOO-sha) or [name]Lucinda[/name]. - I think that [name]Donald[/name] and [name]Lucinda[/name] are great together, and [name]Lucy[/name] is a cute nickname.
[name]Estelle[/name]/a - I really like both [name]Estelle[/name] and [name]Estella[/name]. Could you get NN [name]Elsa[/name] out of this, or is that a stretch? -I prefer [name]Estella[/name], and think that [name]Estella[/name] with [name]Elsa[/name] as the nickname is less of a stretch.
[name]Agnes[/name] - I like it, but is it TOO old? - [name]Agnes[/name] has been growing on me since Despicable Me, but most people still find it too old.
[name]Edith[/name] - ditto [name]Agnes[/name]. This could be a throw-back to my grandma, [name]Judith[/name], too. What about [name]Meredith[/name]? - I think that [name]Edith[/name] could be in for a comeback - it’s close to [name]Eden[/name], which is getting more popular, and shortens to [name]Edie[/name], a nickname that a lot of people seem to like.
[name]Constance[/name] - But, I hate the nn [name]Connie[/name]. Also, [name]Don[/name] and [name]Constance[/name]? Seeing a pattern… - [name]Constance[/name] is only two syllables, so I don’t think it necessarily has to be shortened to [name]Connie[/name] (you could also try [name]Tansy[/name] for a nickname, though…). I probably wouldn’t use [name]Con[/name]stance with [name]Don[/name]ald, though.
[name]Esther[/name] - [name]Love[/name] it with NN [name]Etta[/name]. - [name]Esther[/name] wouldn’t be my first choice from your list, but I do see the appeal, and it works well with [name]Donald[/name].
[name]Audrey[/name] - I like this, but I fear it’s too common for me. - [name]Lovely[/name], but I do think it’s pretty common.
[name]Clara[/name]* - [name]LOVE[/name]. Combo would be [name]Clara[/name] [name]Eugenia[/name]. - I love [name]Clara[/name], too, and [name]Clara[/name] [name]Eugenia[/name] is a lovely combo.
[name]Florence[/name]* - The name of both my great-grandmas, but I’m afraid it’s too long. - While [name]Florence[/name] is eight letters, it’s only two syllables, so I don’t think it’s too long, but you could try [name]Flora[/name] if the length bothers you.
[name]Jessamine[/name] - Length? - Not my favorite with [name]Donald[/name], but [name]Jessamine[/name]'s lovely.
[name]Marguerite[/name]* - Ditto [name]Jessamine[/name]. NN would be [name]Meg[/name] (I had a cat named [name]Maggie[/name]). - [name]Marguerite[/name] is pretty, too, and again, I don’t think the length is too much of an issue, especially with the short nickname [name]Meg[/name].
[name]Sophie[/name] - But soooo common. - I like [name]Sophie[/name], but it is pretty popular ([name]Sophia[/name], too). [name]Sylvie[/name] and [name]Sylvia[/name] could be alternatives…
[name]Susan[/name] - Prefer [name]Susannah[/name]* for sound and look, but prefer this for length. - I also prefer [name]Susannah[/name] (I don’t think that length is too much of an issue, but you could drop the “h” and make it [name]Susanna[/name], which is also a legit spelling), but [name]Susan[/name] is also nice, and great with [name]Donald[/name].
[name]Joan[/name] - I find [name]Don[/name] and [name]Joan[/name] hard to say, but I like this. - I agree that “[name]Don[/name] and [name]Joan[/name]” doesn’t sound so good, and [name]Joan[/name] Hoagland is a bit O heavy, I think.
[name]June[/name] - [name]LOVE[/name]. [name]Don[/name] and [name]June[/name] sounds great together. - [name]June[/name] is pretty, and it fits well with [name]Don[/name], also. It’s a great middle name option, too.
[name]Molly[/name] - [name]Just[/name] okay for me. - Cute, but if it’s “just okay” for you, it’s not your best option!
[name]Beverly[/name] - I’ve always had a soft spot for this, but is it too outdated? - [name]Beverly[/name] has a nice sound, now that I think of it, but it’s still a bit dated.
[name]Clementine[/name]* - [name]LOVE[/name] this, but the length… LN is Hoagland. [name]Clementine[/name] Hoagland is 18 letters long. - I wouldn’t worry too much of the length (it’s long on paper, but only five syllables when you say it out loud), and unless she’s one of several Clementines in her school (which I think is fairly unlikely), I don’t think she’ll go by her first and last name all the time.

You have a fantastic list! I starred my favorites with [name]Donald[/name] and by themselves…