Monday, May 30, 2011

"What's in a name..."

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet".
-Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare

I'm sitting here, reading through my favorite blog, GirlsGoneChild and I noticed that Rebecca (who is pregnant with twin girls, yay!!) posted about baby names. I've followed Rebecca Woolfe, since she was pregnant with her second child, Fable, and I've admired her writing, pictures, and blog ever since.
When I was pregnant with Isla, I had a very hard time trying to decide what to name her. I had been dreaming about potential names for a child for years, but when it actually came down to naming a baby, I was LOST!!
Once I found out I was carrying a girl, I quickly narrowed down my names to a mere 15 or so. The middle name was easy! I knew that I was going to carry on the tradition of using Kay for a middle name, like my mother and I share. These are the top contending names that I had picked out.

Elsa
Mable
Esme
Estella
Olivia (Liv for short)
Elise/Ellsie
Cecilia (Cici for short) *This is actually the name that her dad and I decided on
Eleanore
Eleta or Aleta (Leta for short)
Ramona
Evelyn (Evie for short)
Gia
Marlo (my mom wanted to name me Marla)
Isabella
Lennon (Lennie for short)
Marley (because I <3 Bob Marley)
Vivienne
Sela
Sidda
Sofia
Harlowe
Isla
Nola
Zofia
Leah

Mom's #1 choice was for Sofia, her mom's middle name was Sophie, but in the end, I decided that it was too popular.
Jeff's #1 choice was actually Harlowe. I love that name, but it bothered me that it was Nicole Ritchie's daughter's name.
Dad's #1 choice was Addison...not even on my list, but he was determined to get a "normal" name in there. He actually put his name down for Gia, and Nola, on my list.

When it came to narrowing down a name or a few...I was at a loss. I knew what I wanted, but the fact that my daughter would carry this name with her, the rest of her life, scared the CRAP out of me! When I told people about my top pick, they weren't exactly optimistic about the choice. At one point, I sent a Facebook message to Rebecca of GirlsGoneChild, asking for her advice. **This was her response:

"I ADORE Isla. Adore. Tell everyone to fuck themselves. Isla Kay Rhoads. Is gorgeous perfection. Truly".

Her response made me feel very confident in my decision, a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Even then, I chose to wait until I met my daughter, before making it official. It's funny, the minute I saw her I knew she was an Isla. In my mind, Isla is strong, and stubborn and that's exactly who she was while making her entrance into the world (I had the stitches to prove it) and from that day forward. Only once, did I question whether or not I made the right choice, but I was still on drugs (pain meds) in the hospital. I cannot image her by any other name, nothing else fits quite like little miss Isla Kay.

That leads me to the point of this post...If you are a parent, how did you pick your child/children's name? Did you ever question your choice? Who, if anyone, influenced your decision?

**I have been reluctant to share Bec's response about Isla's name with the world, only because I felt that it was such an intimate convo between the two of us. It was hard for me to open up about it, even though I may have told other friends about it to begin with. Every body had their own opinions about names, and I always asked for input. Bec was the first person to say what I was trying to say to everyone all along...

2 comments:

  1. Because we don't know if we're having a boy or girl yet we've been discussing a plethora of names. It's hard. And that's on top of the idea that I'm in the middle of changing my name (so I completely understand not wanting to name your kid something they might hate).

    I love Rebecca, her attitude is always awesome.

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  2. Kalee, why are you changing your name??

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