What's in a Name?

"Chrysanthemum did not think her name was absolutely perfect. She knew it."

The above quotation comes from one of my (many) very favorite children's books, Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. While it's true that I have many favorites in the children's literature category (c'mon, look at my profession), this one just stands out to me and I never fail to read it several times a school year to my big 4th graders. The first couple of times they hear it, they kind of giggle about it, but by the end of the year...they're usually asking me to reread it and have taken in some of the meaning of the story.

So...if it isn't obvious why I'm blogging about this, then here's why: We may not ever decide upon a boy name for this kicking, squirming, & growing child in my womb :) Okay, just kidding...I know that we will and we have quite a list (which is getting narrowed down faster & faster with each passing day), but it was just so easy with Nolan. With him, we had one boy name only without any other considerations. If he turned out to be a boy it was Nolan Alan. The first name came from just a name that I've always loved, and Brian agreed the second he heard it, and Alan is both of our father's middle names. The girl name even came relatively easy as well...it was between Avery & Paityn, and shortly before L & D we'd decided upon Avery for sure.

This time things are different.

We've had our girl name set since we basically had Nolan - and it's not even the names that we'd decided upon for him if he came out a girl. But, on the otherhand, a boy name is something else. So, I know many people's response is that I should have just found out what we're having, so then I'd know whether this heavy decision is even a valid one. BUT...I would simply have it no other way than a surprise. There are no words to explain that feeling of adrenaline rushing after delivery and the anticipation of waiting to hear your husband tell you what has just entered your life. It seems all too often the surprises we receive in life aren't necessarily good, hopeful ones...they're life altering and sometimes shattering. Of course, it's overwhelming happiness at the arrival of any new baby, but anymore it seems that the sex is determined, the name is set, & the only element of surprise left is the appearance of the new little one itself (and even that's starting to fade with the advances in technology like my last ultrasound, the 4-D ones...especially if you have one even later in pregnancy).

So, my question isn't what should we name our baby-to-be, but instead how did you decide upon your child's name? I know I have many people that read my blog without "following" it, and many that don't comment on here, but rather send me emails in response. However, I just thought it'd be interesting to get the story on how you were named or how you named your own. After all, it is quite a decision. I do think it's safe to say that we're probably 85% sure of our boy name as of last night, but we still have some pondering to do. Trust me, it's not easy when both parents are educators...with that field comes a handful of tainted names names that remind you of various children you've had year-to-year.

Go ahead, leave a comment and send some inspiration my way! :)