So the baby name panic button kicked in yesterday. As a writer, it’s my job to come up with a clever name for my child. You would think I would be good at this, but given the debacle with my first child’s name, I’m gun-shy. (It turned out OK, but the fact that we announced her name as one thing, and then caved to the groans and changed it to a name that’s more common (albiet, beautiful) still smarts.)
(Our first-born’s name is Ava Isabel Frost. A nice name that rolls of the tongue, but there’s about a million Ava’s in Portland these days… Our original name was going to be Wilhelmina Marmalade Frost–it’s tough to tell whether Ava would have pulled it off, or hated us forever for that one, but it was certainly more bold.)
There is the added stress of us choosing not to find out whether it’s a boy or a girl, so I have to come up with TWO good names.
Adding to the grief, I discovered a website that has a forum in which some so-called baby experts will review your name. So, of course, I listed my names there. The first woman shot them all down. (Although, I took some comfort in reading her profile. She’s in her late forties, and her sons are named the rather generic Michael, Patrick and Robert)
Anyway, here are some of the names we are thinking about. Feel free to leave a comment with your suggestions. I’m a glutton for punishment…
GIRL NAMES:
Beatrix Riona (nickname Bee)
Marguerite ______ (nickname Maisie)
Zia or Zaida ______ (middle name?)
Astrid _______ (middle name?)
BOY NAMES:
Ezra Rainier
Atticus ______
Jasper Rainier