[name]Hi[/name] there! I’m going to be a new mommy in early [name]November[/name] and my husband and I are currently in the process of trying to figure out how best go to about naming the baby. First of all, we don’t know (and we don’t plan to find out) if we’re having a boy or girl. Also, I fear having a name picked out and then meeting the baby only to find that s/he doesn’t look like the name we decide on. I know some people have the baby and then decide, but I’m curious about how many name choices you think is prudent to go in with? Have any of you done this and run into problems, like say you have a top 3 and then you and your husband don’t agree on which name the baby looks most like? Or is this ridiculous and we should just pick out a name and go with it?
Hmm, well, that’s what we planned on doing… but the doctor knocked me out right after he was born and I didn’t see him for 5 hours, meanwhile [name]Chris[/name] was calling him [name]Dash[/name]… he didn’t let me have a say at that point, he was already named! If I had chosen by what I thought he looked like, he would have been [name]Collin[/name], which had never occurred to me before, but I still think he looks like!
So, I guess I’m saying to either pick it out for sure or just go in with a list of your favorites, however many that may be! I’d come up with some combos for all of the names you really love, though!
If I had named my babies what they looked like, my son would be E.T. and my daughter would be [name]Pinkie[/name].
For my son, my husband and I went to the hospital with one name for a boy and three names for a girl. For some reason, boys names are easier for us.
For my daughter, we went to the hospital with one name for a boy and two or three names for a girl. Right after our daughter was born, we knew what to name her.
Try each making a list of your favourite names for both genders (give a limit, say ten each). Swap lists and see if there are any names you both agree on, or similar names that you have both put down (e.g. [name]Jake[/name] and [name]Jacob[/name]). Use these asyour starting point. Go through each other’s lists and point out potential issues (sounds like a rude word, spells something unpleasant with your initials etc.).
Alternatively, you could think of characteristics which you would both like your child to have (e.g. caring) and then do a search, either on here or www.behindthename.com, which lets you search by meaning, for names with that meaning, and find one you both like.
End up with a list of two or three first and middle name combinations for each gender, and have them in mind when your baby is born. If one in particular comes to mind when you see him/her for the first time, use that. If you and your husband think different names suit the baby best, compromise - use the first name of one as the actual first name and the first name of the other as the mn. If you don’t think any of the names stands out as suiting the baby, just pick your favourite. (If you disagree, rock-paper-scissors is very underrated for sorting out these situations :D).
You can even leave your baby as [name]Baby[/name] for a couple of weeks after the birth, as you decide which name suits him/her best.
Good luck!
Thank you so much for your input! And thank you for your kind welcome!
It isn’t that I think we likey won’t agree, it is just that it is possible and I really don’t want to have that kind of discussion right after giving birth. Although based on your story, perhaps it will be a non-issue (the best laid plans, right??). [name]Rock[/name]/paper/scissors may be right on the money if it does come up though…compromise can sometimes lead to unfortunate results. For example, my husband’s name is [name]Edwin[/name] [name]Edgard[/name]. I thought he was kidding when we first started dating…I had to look at his driver’s license.
At any rate, thank you again for your help! I’ll post back for input once we have our “list”.
[name]Welcome[/name] again!
Good for you for not finding out your baby’s gender! It’s well worth the wait!!
Two things I want to point out:
Pretty much all babies look like squished red aliens when they are first born. Of course they are the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen, but they really do look funny for awhile!
[name]How[/name] your baby looks when they are born can change drastically in the first year. My son was born with a bunch of straight, nearly black hair and deep blue eyes. He now has wavy blonde hair and blue/green eyes.
I guess my recommendation would be to come up with a couple first and middle name combos that you and your hubby both love and bring them along to the hospital. If one of the names really takes a hold of your heart before your little one comes, you’ll be well prepared and you’ll still have some backup names just in case!
My experience was pretty limited because we had a definite girl’s name picked out and were waffling on boy’s names. It ended up that in the end there was only one boy’s name we could agree on so that made it a little simpler!
The only other name we had considered --once seeing him-- was [name]Thor[/name]: he was 9 pounds and 2 ounces!
I think having two or three choices would be fine. It’s very unlikely that you won’t be able to choose once the baby is born. Also I think a lot of times the child “becomes” the name, if you know what I mean. You’ll meet your baby and you’ll just “know.” Good luck!
[name]Welcome[/name] and congratulations on the new member soon to be joining your family! It looks like you have a lot of good advice here already! I think having a few options is a good idea and more likely than not you will both think your little baby should have the same name.
