Naming Baby...What's in a Name?

It is an exciting time, making preparations for your new bundle of joy, and the most important project seems to be naming baby.

While it is a personal choice, parents need to take into consideration a few things when it comes to naming your child. Even though you may think it’s cute to name your child something weird, but let’s think about this for a moment.

I admit, I have four children with unusual names, however, their names are beautiful, and consist of four to five letters each. Their names have meaning, and they love their names because they are often complimented on them. However, I will not share them with you, because you too will be tempted to use the same name, just as an ex-friend did when she named her two daughter after my two older daughters…Disgusting.

We named our children based on one sentence, and it was how would their names sound if someone said to them, “I love you (Blank).” My husband and I decided, if it sounded beautiful, then it was considered. We also took into consideration that we both had E middle initials, so our children also have E middle initials.

But parents think it is all about them, and it isn’t. Parents traditionally tend to name their children based on deceased family members, or maybe a combination of family names, like the rich often do. They tend to name their sons and daughters, the last two names of both family’s, and then make those names, the first and last name for the new baby. Like Cooper Anderson.

Yet parents think naming their children something different shows how unique their child is suppose to be, but it doesn’t mean you have the right to stick your child with a messed up name. Children shouldn’t be named after liquor, cocktail drinks, inanimate objects, fruit, and countries, made up stuff, misspelled names, and cartoon characters or after famous people. It makes no sense, and people will not question your child about his name, but you the parents.

But one thing people will never name their children after, is Diseases. You’ll never meet a child name Mesothelioma, Diabetes or Polio. Now they are nice sounding words but they translates into something far different. People should choose a name that sounds good to the ear, easy for children to spell, and wouldn’t make them an outcast when your child is an adult.

But if you feel you have to make up a name, then do so, but make sure it doesn’t sound ridiculous, and it matches the last name and that it won’t take your child two years to learn how to learn to spell their name. Last names can’t be helped, but first names can.

If you find you are really confused, there is a wonderful book called “The Great Baby Name Book.’ It still should be in print. It gave origins of names, the derivatives of each culture’s naming process, the meanings and different variations of the same name. So before you settle on that cutesy name please do some research.

Parents remember your children will not be babies forever, and the name you choose should make them proud, and not cringe at the thought of their parents must have been drinking when they name them…