Due in [name_u]August[/name_u] with baby girl #3 and am really struggling with picking another girl name. We have finally put together a short list, but I’m not fully convinced one of these is “the name.” My girls now are [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Rose[/name_f]. We like classic names that don’t need a nickname. The middle name will likely be [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] (family name) but we are a little flexible if necessary. Would love your thoughts on the names below, as well any new suggestions. Thank you in advance!
[name_f]Julia[/name_f]
[name_f]May[/name_f]
[name_u]Clare[/name_u]
I like [name_f]Julia[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] best as a combo from your list, but think that [name_f]May[/name_f] and [name_f]Claire[/name_f] work better with [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Rose[/name_f].
Some other possibilities:
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], and
[name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Avis[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Cleo[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Ellen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Fern[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Gail[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Greta[/name_f]/[name_f]Gretel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Gwen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Hazel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Helen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Hope[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Irene[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Jane[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_u]Joan[/name_u] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Laurel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Liza[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Martha[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Stella[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Susan[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Willa[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Zoe[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
I love [name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], and [name_u]Clare[/name_u] - swoon! [name_u]Clare[/name_u] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] is lovely, and the set goes together so beautifully! I like the other two as well, though with [name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], and [name_f]May[/name_f], it strikes me that [name_f]Nora[/name_f] is the odd one out for not being a word name (not that many people will notice this) and visually I find both names ending in -y distracting… Those both seem like small qualms, but [name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], and [name_f]Mae[/name_f] would technically solve both if you liked that spelling. [name_f]Julia[/name_f] is nice, but does frequently shorten to [name_u]Julie[/name_u]. I work with a [name_f]Julia[/name_f] who goes by her full name, so it’s not guaranteed, but some people will make assumptions (or your [name_f]Julia[/name_f] herself might declare she likes [name_u]Julie[/name_u] or [name_u]Jules[/name_u]) so I’d just make sure you’re ok with those possibilities if you go with [name_f]Julia[/name_f]. But seriously, [name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], and [name_u]Clare[/name_u] are GORGEOUS together.
Other ideas:
[name_f]Jane[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Lydia[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Tessa[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Willa[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Mabel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] (gets that [name_f]May[/name_f] sound?)
[name_f]Eliza[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Frances[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Alma[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Helen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] or [name_f]Ellen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Anne[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] or [name_f]Anna[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Etta[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Susan[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
If you didn’t use [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f], I’d throw in the following:
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & [name_f]Audrey[/name_f]
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & [name_f]Lucy[/name_f]
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & [name_f]Sadie[/name_f]
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & [name_f]Millie[/name_f]
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & [name_f]Sylvie[/name_f]
[name_f]Edit[/name_f]: Ha, davisellu and I seem to be on the same page with several of these suggestions!
[name_m]Hi[/name_m] there.
[name_f]Nora[/name_f] & [name_f]Rose[/name_f] are gorgeous. Here are my thoughts on your short list:
[name_f]Julia[/name_f]-I think this works. I don’t love it, but it’s nice. It’s feminine & ages well. Seems to fit okay w/[name_f]Nora[/name_f] & [name_f]Rose[/name_f].
[name_f]May[/name_f]-I really like this. It’s simple & not heard that often as a fn. Goes great w/[name_f]Nora[/name_f] & [name_f]Rose[/name_f] too.
[name_u]Clare[/name_u]-This is good. It fits w/your daughters’ names. I do really like this spelling more, but I think that [name_f]Claire[/name_f] is more common. It may get misspelled.
Suggestions:
[name_f]Alice[/name_f]
[name_f]Audrey[/name_f]
[name_f]Ada[/name_f]
[name_f]Belle[/name_f]
[name_f]Blythe[/name_f]
[name_f]Clara[/name_f]
[name_f]Celia[/name_f]
[name_f]Eve[/name_f]
[name_f]Fern[/name_f]
[name_f]Freya[/name_f]
[name_f]Gemma[/name_f]
[name_u]June[/name_u]
[name_f]Jane[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f]
[name_f]Maeve[/name_f]
[name_f]Pearl[/name_f]
[name_f]Phoebe[/name_f]
[name_f]Willa[/name_f]
[name_f]Hope[/name_f] this helps. 
I like [name_f]Julia[/name_f] best from your list with [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Rose[/name_f]. Some ideas:
[name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Eliza[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Cora[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Gwen[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Gemma[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Sarah[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Flora[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Anna[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
I love the previous posters’ suggestion of [name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] with your 2 girls!
[name_f]Julia[/name_f], [name_f]May[/name_f] and [name_u]Clare[/name_u] all fit wonderfully with your girls imo! And with [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f].
[name_u]Clare[/name_u] is my personal favourite.
Other ideas:
[name_f]Faye[/name_f]
[name_f]Celia[/name_f]
[name_u]June[/name_u]
[name_u]Ruby[/name_u]
[name_f]Marcy[/name_f]
[name_f]Martha[/name_f]
[name_f]Tilly[/name_f]
I think all of [name_f]Julia[/name_f], [name_f]May[/name_f] and [name_u]Clare[/name_u] are quite lovely and all work well with the sisters’ names. All work with [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] too. So it’s hard to choose, but coming down to personal favourite I would choose [name_f]Julia[/name_f] - but not much in it.
Thanks so much for all the thoughtful comments and ideas! [name_u]Love[/name_u] so many of these suggestions. Unfortunately my favorite ([name_f]Alice[/name_f]) just got used by my cousin. But many others you suggested are going on the list to show my husband. Thank you!
I really like [name_f]Claire[/name_f]/[name_f]Clara[/name_f] with your girls
Also love the suggestion of [name_f]Lydia[/name_f]
Other ideas
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], & _______:
[name_f]Miriam[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Mimi[/name_f]”
[name_f]Margo[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Hazel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Lula[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]
[name_f]Maren[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_u]Eloise[/name_u] [name_f]Dotty[/name_f]
[name_f]Sylvie[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]
[name_f]Paige[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Katherine[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]/[name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] "[name_u]Kit[/name_u]
[name_f]Lorraine[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Tabitha[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]
[name_f]Sylvie[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]
[name_f]Betsy[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]
[name_f]Elspeth[/name_f] [name_f]Dotty[/name_f] “[name_f]Elsie[/name_f]”
[name_f]Maisie[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f] “[name_f]Mae[/name_f]”
[name_f]Daphne[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f] “[name_f]Didi[/name_f]”
[name_f]Colette[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Etta[/name_f]”
[name_f]Edith[/name_f] [name_f]Dotty[/name_f]
[name_f]Josephine[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f] “[name_u]Josie[/name_u]”
[name_f]Vera[/name_f] [name_f]Dotty[/name_f]
[name_f]Bridget[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Etta[/name_f]” “[name_f]Birdie[/name_f]” “[name_f]Gidget[/name_f]”
[name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Trixie[/name_f]” “[name_f]Bea[/name_f]”
[name_f]Lucille[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f]/[name_f]Dotty[/name_f] “[name_f]Lucy[/name_f]”
[name_f]Georgia[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f] “[name_f]Gigi[/name_f]”
[name_f]Penelope[/name_f] [name_f]Dot[/name_f] “penny” “[name_f]Nell[/name_f]” “[name_f]Nellie[/name_f]”
[name_f]Pearl[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Stella[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Mabel[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Opal[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Priscilla[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Poppy[/name_f]”
[name_f]Adele[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] “[name_f]Della[/name_f]”
So I actually prefer [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] in the first name spot with [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and [name_f]Nora[/name_f]. However, from the three options I pick [name_f]May[/name_f], although [name_f]Julia[/name_f] has the best flow for me (but I wouldn’t use it just for that reason). [name_u]Clare[/name_u] doesn’t do it for me.
Also you seem to prefer zippy, one to two syllables so I pick [name_f]May[/name_f].
I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] the name [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f], but it’s a little long for me and [name_f]Dora[/name_f] rhymes with [name_f]Nora[/name_f]…so that won’t work…
Question for the group…if I went with [name_u]Clare[/name_u] (and spelled it that way), do you image she’d constantly have her name misspelled? I definitely prefer the [name_u]Clare[/name_u] spelling, but also don’t want to make the poor thing spell her name for everyone her whole life. Thoughts?
I like all three. I would vote [name_f]May[/name_f] or [name_f]Julia[/name_f] depending on flow with your last name. I do think [name_u]Clare[/name_u] would get misspelled and possibly misread as [name_f]Clara[/name_f] but that doesn’t seem like a huge deal. I know several [name_m]Julias[/name_m] and none go by [name_u]Julie[/name_u] so I wouldn’t worry about that. I slightly prefer the [name_f]Mae[/name_f] spelling especially with [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f].
[name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and [name_f]Julia[/name_f]
Also love the suggestion [name_f]Lydia[/name_f].
I also prefer the [name_u]Clare[/name_u] spelling. I wouldn’t worry too much about misspelling… it happens even with the most commonly spelled names! (My name is [name_f]Eileen[/name_f], and I get Eilene, Eilleen, Eillen, and [name_f]Ilene[/name_f]!!) Also, people who have names like Steven/Stephen, Stephanie/Stefanie, Erica/Erika, and Aidan/Aiden, both forms of which are commonly used, likely have to confirm their spelling at least once in their lives.
From your three, I like [name_u]Clare[/name_u] best.
Have you considered [name_f]Juliet[/name_f] instead of [name_f]Julia[/name_f]? [name_f]Juliet[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] sounds a bit better imo than [name_f]Julia[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f].
[name_f]May[/name_f] is my least favorite. It just seems so simple compared to her sister’s names. And [name_f]May[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] sounds a bit clunky to my ears.
Best of luck!
Your current daughters’ names are gorgeous, and I love your tailored but classic style! [name_u]Clare[/name_u] is definitely my favorite here, even though I do anticipate it will be misspelled often.
That’s the sort of thing you can’t control, though - my name is always misspelled, even (especially?) when it’s right there at the end of my email, or on official documents, etc. - I get [name_u]Jaime[/name_u], [name_u]Jaimie[/name_u], [name_u]Jayme[/name_u], you name it, anything but [name_u]Jamie[/name_u]. I have to spell it out all the time - I even have a credit card issued to me as [name_u]Jaime[/name_u]. Sadly, you can’t count on people to read or pay attention to what they’re doing, and even the most common, phonetic names are prone to butchering.
All this to say - I think the [name_u]Clare[/name_u] spelling is perfect with sisters [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and [name_f]Nora[/name_f]. It seems more sleek and modern than [name_f]Claire[/name_f], which would pair better with [name_f]Norah[/name_f] and, say, [name_f]Rosalie[/name_f]/[name_f]Rosamund[/name_f].
I worry about the misspelling issue, but I guess it’s true that everyone probably has that problem to some extent.
[name_f]Juliet[/name_f] is beautiful, but for whatever reason it feels like too much name compared to [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Rose[/name_f]. I do love it, though, and will definitely run it by my husband.
Thanks for the thoughtful feedback and suggestions everyone!
I like [name_f]May[/name_f] the best, but I would spell it [name_f]Mae[/name_f] instead. Mainly because the -y spelling seems more old fashioned to me.
My suggestions:
[name_f]Ava[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Eva[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Marie[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Elle[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Flora[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_u]Rae[/name_u] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Mia[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]Evie[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
I adore [name_u]Clare[/name_u]! I like this spelling way better than [name_f]Claire[/name_f], personally. [name_m]Even[/name_m] though, it might get misspelled often, you’re never safe with misspelling names. I have one of the ‘harder’ names to spell, but I wouldn’t say it’s an issue to spell it out for people when they don’t know how to. [name_u]Clare[/name_u] is a short name, it will only take her about 10 seconds to spell it out for someone who spelled [name_f]Claire[/name_f]. I wouldn’t stay away from a beautiful name just for that reason.
Also; [name_f]Nora[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and [name_u]Clare[/name_u] make a beautiful set of sisters!