Kelsie writes:

A friend of mine forwarded me your blog when I told her how much trouble we are having with a girl’s name for our little one due in March. My husband and I have pretty similar styles so it hasn’t been that hard to get a meeting of the minds, the only problem is we haven’t found any names that “wow” us. We have two that we are both okay with, but I really feel like my daughter’s name should be something that I just love. This is both of our first child, so we have no sibling names that we have to fit with.

I like traditional names but nothing too old-fashioned like Ruth, Pearl, or Jean. I think trendy names are okay as long as they aren’t too far out there. I don’t want an extremely common name like Jennifer or Stephanie, but if I fell in love with a common name I would probably go with it anyways. We have already decided on the middle name (which we want to keep as a middle name). Elizabeth has been a family name on my side for centuries. So we need ___ Elizabeth. Our last name is pretty common, it starts with an M and ends with a y, two syllables.

I like Mya and Mia, but neither one work with our last name. I loved the name Madeline, but I cannot deal with the nickname Maddy which my family is sure to use. So far we are stuck on Katelyn and Payton. Like I said, we both like the names but neither one of us love them. I keep thinking that it will come to me when I least expect it, but so far I’ve got nothing. I’m starting to worry that we will end up with a name that is “just ok.” I have searched the baby name books but they are not very helpful and too overwhelming. Can you help us??

I remember this stage of baby naming so well! Paul and I would have a short list and I’d be like, “Any of these would be FINE and I’d be happy ENOUGH, but….*SIGH*.” With one of my children, we went with FINE and I ended up loving the name. With one child, we went with a name we loved and I ended up having doubts about it. With one child, a name that was “fine” early in the pregnancy was “LOVE” by the end. And with two children, we went with LOVE names. The happy news, I think, is that NOW I’m happy with ALL the names.

Have you tried The Baby Name Wizard? (I’m linking to what appears to be the first edition because Amazon says they’re selling the first/second editions as the same book; I wanted to be sure of getting a second edition so I bought my copy at a Barnes & Noble store.) One of the things I like about the book is that you can look up the names you like and get suggestions for other names you might like. For example, you like Katelyn/Kaitlyn, and The Baby Name Wizard suggests Makayla, Hailey, Ashlyn, Kaylee, and Jordyn. For Peyton/Payton, it suggests Skylar, Addison, Parker, Carson, and Kendall. For Mya/Maya: Zoe, Ava, Jada, Chloe, Nadia. For Mia: Zoe, Jada, Ava, Sofia, Lily. For Madeline: Isabelle, Angelina, Caroline, Lily, Sophia.

Then if any of those suggestions seem ALMOST but NOT QUITE, you can go look up THOSE names and find suggestions. So let’s say you think, “Addison! YES…well, except for the nickname Addy.” Then you can go look up Addison and find the suggestions Reagan, Emerson, Parker, Aubrey, and Mckenna.

PLUS, each name is put in categories, and then you can go look up those entire categories and see if anything appeals. Kaitlyn is “Bell Tones” and “The -ens.” Payton is “Last Names First” and “Androgynous” and “The -ens.” Mia and Maya are both “Short and Sweet” and “Nickname-Proof,” and Mia is also “Nordic.” Madeline is “Antique Charm” and “Literary and Artistic.” If you look up “Nordic” you’ll find 57 girl names including Annika, Britt, Elsa, Karina, Linnea, Malin, Maren, Minna, Thora. If you look up “Bell Tones” you’ll find 60 girl names including Braelyn, Brinley, Cadence, Jaelyn, Kiley, Laney, Paisley, Tayla. If you look up “The -ens” you’ll find 68 girl names including Adelyn, Emlyn, Janson, Jillian, Keelin, Larkin, Linden, Tamsin, and Teagan. If you look up “Antique Charm” you’ll find 72 girl names including Annalise, Cecily, Genevieve, Georgia, Lucy, Molly, Nora, and Sadie.

I found that as I browsed the categories I pretty quickly found that I liked practically NO names in some of them and practically ALL the names in others. Finding your own naming style categories can help eliminate some of the overwhelmingness of the choices, and can also help make sure you use a name that will go well with names you may want to use for future children.

Name update 04-01-2010! Kelsie writes:

Well, like did turn into love for us with this name. Katelyn Elizabeth was born March 24, 2010, 7lbs2oz and 19 inches long. We had a backup list of names that we took to the delivery room with us, but didn’t need it. When we laid our eyes on her, we felt like she was a Katelyn. Thank you for your help and for all the suggestions!

Robyn writes:

I think we have picked our name, but wanted to write you and see what you (and your readers) think, or could possible give any other ideas for us! J

Our Son is Cameron Ashton Roland, will be 4 in February. Ashton was because we liked the name, but not enough to use it as his first name. Roland is after my dad.

We are now expecting our daughter in March and trying to decide on a name that we both like.

favorites are:
Grace (Gracie)
Scarlett
Charlotte
Kiera

other ideas were:
Olivia
Caitlin (originally didn’t like 2 C names, now we know a little girl with this name)
Madeline
Sidney

Middle name will be Joanna (or Joanne) after my mom – she wants it to be Joanna. And the question lies with, do we have 2 middle names with her as well???

We really like Old traditional names that will be a strong name when they grow up. Also don’t want there to be 5 of them in the same class! Didn’t think like that with Cameron, just liked the strong sounded aspect of it…

What we can’t figure out is what nicknames she might be called (we aren’t ones to shorten their name) or what possible bad names could come from it once teasing starts in school.

Really looking forward to your ideas! J

About two middle names: I think it depends in part on your family plans—but that it can still go either way. If you’re stopping at two children, I think it would be nice for them to both have two middle names. If you’re planning on more children (or even if you’re not), then I think you could say the two middle name thing was a firstborn thing, and not do it for the others. Well, OR you could keep going with two middle names. You have a nice pattern set up: one name you liked but not enough to use as a first name, and one family name. If you have enough of both kinds of names to go around, it might be fun to keep going with that. For example, this baby girl could be ____ Caitlin Joanna Price.

The four finalist names all look good to me, nickname/teasing-wise. A Charlotte could be nicknamed Char or Lottie; Charlotte was the name of the spider in Charlotte’s Web, so it’s possible there could be some teasing there. A Scarlett could be nicknamed Lettie; I suppose someone mean might bring up Scar or Scarlet Letter, although surely they won’t think of the Letter thing until high school English. Grace could get references to how her actual gracefulness fails to meet the expectations set by her name. A Kiera could be nicknamed Kiki.

If you want old, traditional, and strong, Charlotte and Grace are the best two on your list. If you’re trying to avoid common names, Grace was #21 in 2008 and Charlotte was #87; however, Grace seems to have leveled off and even seems to be slightly decreasing in commonness, whereas Charlotte is still steadily rising. (Source: Social Security Administration.)

If you don’t want two C names, Grace looks to me like the best bet, and Grace Joanna Price is a beautiful name. If you don’t mind having two C names, Charlotte Joanna Price is also wonderful. Or if you want to use two middle names, maybe Grace Caitlin Joanna Price or Charlotte Sidney Joanna Price. Looking at the options, I think I prefer the names with just one middle name.

Everyone else, please weigh in on your favorite options—and can you think of any more nicknames or potential teasings?

Name update 04-22-2010! Robyn writes:

Thanks again for your (and your readers!) help!

Erica Lee Joanna was born on March 22 – and did, in fact, remain nameless for about 5 days.. Once I decided on the name, I couldn’t decide on the spelling! LOL

Annie writes:

The babe is expected to arrive March 4. Since we didn’t find out if we’re having a boy or a girl, our list of potential names is pretty long. Our last name, while spelled differently, is pronounced Niles. We both tend to like somewhat uncommon names, but nothing too crazy.

Currently, our top boy contender is Oliver James (which I just saw another mom-to-be mention on the site TODAY). My husband’s father’s name is James and his own middle name is James and I just like it. Oliver is my husband’s best friend’s middle name. And I’ve always loved it. Some of the other boy names we like but have ruled out (for the most part): Mason, Elliot, Finn, Leif, Isaiah, Asher. Mostly we’re pretty solid on Oliver James, but still open to discussion.

Now, the girls names are a bit more up in the air. I’d like to use the middle name Lee–it’s my mother’s middle name and we are super close. But most of the names I choose with Lee as the middle name end up making the name sound like an adjective. For example, my favorite girls name at the moment is Hazel. But Hazel Lee sounds like “Hazily,” and I am not sure what that even means. Some other names we love: Amelia (Amelia Lee?), Mabel (Mabel Lee sounds like Maybeline), Sloane, Violet (we’ve canceled this one for it’s growing popularity, but I still love it), Wren, Pearl, Evangeline, Olive, and Harlow. My newest favorite name is Maizey. Some middle names I like in general are: Rose, Grace, Eden. His mother and sister’s middle names are Marie, which I like, but I’m not very close to them so that feels weird to me.

Some names my husband likes that I’ve canceled for various reasons: Zoe, Piper, Lily, and Matilda.

I can’t wait to hear your suggestions!

I am totally on board with Oliver James for a boy. It’s a great name and would be on my own list too.

When I look at your girl name list, I’m looking for names that go well with Oliver: a name you’ve settled on is a good measure of your naming style, but also if you have a girl this time you might later have a boy and want to name him Oliver. The name Olive brings you to a decision: which do you like better, Oliver or Olive?

I see what you mean about the Lee issue, but I think it’s okay: people are so accustomed to Lee as a middle name, there’s a natural pause. The only name it would rule out for me is Mabel, because I agree with you about Maybelline. Another issue with the middle name Lee is that it gives you a triple L sound: almost all your girl name possibilities have an L in them, and your surname has an L, too. Does your mom’s first name or maiden name have any middle-name-slot potential?

I looked up the name Hazel in The Baby Name Wizard, and I see that four of the five sister names are already on your list: Pearl, Violet, Mazie, Olive. The fifth is one you may want to consider: Millicent. I completely agree with The Baby Name Wizard’s assessment: “It’s hard to picture a Millicent in little girl’s pigtails instead of white hair…but if you manage, it’s a surprisingly adorable image.” YES. I can picture it! A sweet little Milly!

More possibilities:

Alice
Audra
Beatrix
Clementine
Clover
Elsa
Frances
Georgia
Harriet
Henrietta
Marley
Romy
Rosemary
Ruby
Ruth
Sadie
Stella
Sylvie
Willa
Winifred

Name update 04-14-2010! Annie writes:

I’ve been meaning to write you an update for Baby Nihls (Baby Niles on your site)–Amelia Lee was born on March 3 at home! She’s actually 6 weeks today and doing great!! (And we call her Millie.)

Thanks again for your help with the naming…I am definitely keeping Oliver James in mind for the next go-round (in the way future).

Siobhan writes:

I’m pregnant with baby number three, a boy. I’m due to be induced February 25th. I’m so upset about the whole naming thing that I’ve actually broken down in tears a couple times which is really unlike me. I’m the third born in my family and I have an unusual Gaelic name. Because of this I would like our third born to have a Gaelic name as well. When I was first pregnant I was set on the Kieran for a boy. When we found out that we were having a boy I discovered that my husband wasn’t too fond of it. He didn’t hate it exactly but he “pretends” that he can’t say it. He always pronounces it like “Karen” and he’s concerned that it sounds too much like a girl’s name. After a lot of discussion we had finally settled on the name Connor. It felt like a nice compromise because it was an Irish name but wasn’t too “weird” for my husband. I really liked it but still had a few reservations about how popular it might be. I tend to prefer names that are outside the top 100. Then on Christmas we discovered that my husband’s sister-in-law’s brother had recently had a baby boy and named him Connor. It didn’t bother me much cause these aren’t people that we see more than once a year, if that. The only real issue would be my neices and newphew having two cousins named Connor. But for some reason it has really soured my husband on the name so I feel like we’re back to square one.

The only thing we know for sure is the middle name has to be Leo or Clayton after my late grandfather. Both my other kids have family names from my dad’s side and my husband’s side so we want this baby to have a name from my mother. Naming the baby after her father is very important to me.
My two children are Seth (4) and Rose (2)

The other names I love are:

Kian
Callum
Patrick -worried that this one may be too common though

I don’t want anything popular so I’m against: Aiden, Liam, Collin, Brayden, etc.

Our last name is two syllables and starts with a “D” and ends with an “N” so while I love the names Declan and Desmond something like that just wouldn’t work cause it’s to cutesy.

I would so love any help or suggestions you could give. My first two children were so easy and their names are just perfect. I want to feel that way with this baby but right now it seems impossible.

Oh dear! Baby naming can be so fun, but it can also be so stressful! I THINK of it as one of my favorite parts of pregnancy, but then when I’m actually trying to CHOOSE I find I want it to be OVER.

It makes it harder when the name needs to satisfy a number of requirements: in this case, it needs to be Gaelic, it shouldn’t be common, it needs to work with Leo or Clayton, it needs to work with Seth and Rose, it needs to work with your D______n surname.

I THINK I might have the perfect name for you: Finn. It’s Gaelic; it was #368 in 2008 (source: Social Security Administration); it works fine with either Leo or Clayton (I prefer it with Leo); it’s great with Seth and Rose (one syllable, four letters); and I believe it works with your surname.

I find myself very tempted to find names that are the same one-syllable four-letter as Seth and Rose:

Cael
Reid
Rhys
Sean
Shea

Though if you’re considering more children, you may not want to paint yourself into a corner. And besides, Sean and Shea might be too close to Seth, and Reid and Rhys might be too close to Rose. Cael is good but doesn’t go very well with either Leo or Clayton.

Other possibilities, all picked from the Celtic section of The Baby Name Wizard:

Alistair
Angus
Broderick
Brogan
Bryce
Camden
Carrick
Casey
Cormac
Eamon
Ewan
Fergus
Finian
Finnegan
Garrett
Griffin
Ian
Keane
Keegan
Lachlan
Lorcan
Lyle
Malcolm
Niall
Rogan
Sullivan
Tiernan

I like Tiernan because it’s similar to Kieran but perhaps your husband would find himself able to pronounce it with that extra N in there. Keegan, too, might please both of you.

Cormac and Lachlan and Lorcan remind me of Declan, but without the D. D. problem.

Angus and Fergus both give you the cute nickname Gus.

Carrick is good because it’s so unusual and yet it’s almost Eric, which keeps it familiar. Same with Brogan and Rogan, which are similar to the more familiar Logan.

Niall and Lyle seem similar in style to Seth. Ian and Ewan, too.

Name update 03-28-2010! Siobhan writes:

Hello,
I just wanted to give you the update that our baby boy Callum Leo was born on March 1st. 8 lbs, 14 oz and 20.5 inches. So many of your suggestions were great and we talked it over quite a bit before deciding. The last couple weeks I just fell in love with Callum and when he was born with his auburn hair and blue eyes it just fit him perfectly. Most people have taken to calling him Cal for short which is just adorable. Thanks again for your help, it was really appreciated!

Natalie writes:

I need help! We are expecting our first child, a boy, Feb. 27, and we are nowhere near choosing the name. I’ve given my husband several choices, but he doesn’t really like any of them. I thought we had our list narrowed down to three, but I asked him about the names the other day, and he didn’t really seem too excited about any of them. First, a couple rules:
– No names that begin with N. Both our first names start with N, and I don’t want to be stuck using that letter with all our kids.
– Our last name is Hilton, so I don’t want any names that end with -ten, -tan, -ton. Nothing rhymey.
– Names I like but we won’t use for various reasons: Noah, Eli, Luke/Lucas, Max, Sam, Jack.

One problem I seem to keep having is I like the name until I say it with our last name. I don’t like the way anything sounds with Hilton! One day I thought, “I really like the name Harris Hilton.” But I couldn’t figure out why it sounded so familiar. Then I remembered Paris…

We had my list of names narrowed down to:
Oliver James or Oliver Hays
Sawyer James
Levi James

James does not have to be the middle name, but it is a family name that seems to go well with everything. Hays is my maiden name, so I’ve considered using that too. My husband wants to use Jaxon as a middle name (I don’t).

I had decided I liked Levi best of those names, but my husband tells me last night he doesn’t think it sounds like our baby’s name (with no other explanation). The only name he has suggested is Malachi. I like Malachi, but I think it’s too different for us.

Other names I’ve suggested, but he says no (or “I’ll think about it”) to:
Abram
Milo
Trace (I really like the way Trace Hilton sounds)
Jase
Theo
Leo

The thing with all these names is that I don’t know anyone named them, so I have a hard time imagining what the name will look like on an adult. Please help us, we are both so indecisive and hate making big decisions. I just feel like I need someone else’s opinion. Thanks!

 
If you both like Malachi but it seems too different to use, I wonder if you’d like Micah or Malcolm?

I like S-sound-ending names with Hilton: Bryce Hilton, Charles Hilton, Marcus Hilton, Miles Hilton, Rhys Hilton, Ross Hilton. But I’m worried that some of them sound a bit uppercrust.

Some more possibilities:

Dane Hilton
Gage Hilton
Joel Hilton
Reid Hilton
Seth Hilton
Wade Hilton
Wesley Hilton

I think my favorites are Charles (Charlie) Hilton, Wesley (Wes) Hilton, Joel Hilton, Ross Hilton, and Seth Hilton.

Name update!

So, it’s been almost five years since this:  https://www.swistle.com/babynames/2010/02/04/baby-boy-hilton/.  But I’m recommending your site to a friend, and realized I never sent an update!

Our son was born the next day after the blog post.  Many readers recommended Micah, but that was another name we couldn’t use – we have a niece named Myca.  Malachi and Eli were also both suggested, and we did go with an old testament name.  I also liked Trace and Chase, and we went in that direction for a middle name.

So I’m being induced and we have all day to sit in the hospital room, I have my Baby Name Wizard book in hand.  And it just hits me, I say, “I like Isaac.”  My husband says, “I do too.”  And that was that.  For the middle name we chose Jase.  Isaac Jase has worked out well for our little bundle of joy, I mean strong-willed preschooler.

And then, two years later, we had a girl.  There was no dilemma with her name; from early on we both agreed on Sarah Addison.  We call her Sadie.  And honestly, I wish I had just named her Sadie.  I worried about Sadie being too nicknamey and she might not like it when she’s older. But Sadie needs something after it.  She is always called Sadie May, Sadie Joe, Sadie Bug, Sadie Girl.  If she had a middle name after Sadie, it would make it easier to know what to call her:)

Thanks for your great blog!
Natalie

Kelly writes:

I am due with a baby girl in February (around 2/20/10) and we are having a heck of a time naming her! We seem to like a bunch of names but haven’t fallen in love with any. We already have one son, named Aiden Michael. I love the name Aiden but back then, I didn’t really understand how popular the name had become. Though I still love his name, I regret that it is so very common now. I don’t like really unusual or made-up names, but we are hoping to avoid a super-duper popular name for our baby girl. Hmm, what else? Our last name sounds like Foe-dell. Ideally, I would like to use the middle name “Anne” or “Anna” to honor our mothers, since they both share that middle name.

Some of our favorite names so far include:

Delaney (nickname Laney)
Leah
Natalie

We also like:

Lilah
Reese
Gianna
Charlotte (nn Charlie)
Emerson (nn Emmy)
Aubrey (nn Bree)
Jenna
Brianne (but my husband had an ex named Brianna… so… we’re not so sure about this)

I like the names Avery, Mia, Paige, and Harper, but my husband isn’t too crazy about those. We’d appreciate any ideas or advice!

Thanks!

Natalie is a popular name (#13 in 2008), and Lila/Lilah is shooting up so fast I would bet on it hitting the top ten before long. Charlotte, Leah, Emerson, Reese, Gianna, Aubrey, Avery, Mia, Harper—all rising in popularity. And it’s so hard to know which ones will just become pleasantly popular (i.e., everyone will know the name and not think it’s weird) and which ones will become regrettably popular.

There are a few on your list, though, that don’t follow the trends: Delaney had a surge in the early 1990s but now seems to have leveled off and may even be decreasing in popularity. Brianne is heading straight down, and Jenna and Paige seem to be going down in popularity as well. (Source for all the names up/down info: the Social Security Administration.)

From your list, I think your best bet is Delaney. It’s not super-popular but it’s not weird either, and it has a great nickname. It’s terrific as a sibling name for Aiden, and it’s great with your surname and with the middle name Anne. Delaney Anne Foedell—that’s my first choice.

Another possibility, similar to Jenna and Brianne, is Brenna. Brenna Anne Foedell is pretty, I think, and the name Brenna feels familiar but is not very common and seems to be decreasing in popularity.

Name update 05-10-2010! Kelly writes:

Our sweet girl was born February 20th and we just adore her. It took us 24 hours to finally settle on her name, but in the end, we just thought she was a Lilah, through and through! Lilah Anne was 8 pounds and 18 inches long, and she’s doing great! Thanks so much for the help and name suggestions.

Carla writes:

I never in a million years thought I’d have trouble coming up with names for my children but here I am, wanting the perfect name for our second child and not feeling anywhere close. I am due February 19 and feeling the crunch. My husband is very opinionated and I’m to the point where I don’t even know what to suggest for fear of his veto.

Our first child is a girl we named Sierra Mary. The name Sierra we simply just loved, and the name Mary was after several grandmothers. Ens is our very short, harsh German last name and a difficult name to compliment in my opinion.I recognize the flow of her name isn’t great but people almost never use their middle name anyway.

Baby number two is of the unknown gender. Our boys option for Sierra was Caleb Henry but I was never in love with it and Caleb is growing too much in popularity for our taste. We have since come up with Sawyer Henry if this one is a boy. Henry is, again, a family name that my husband insists on.

We have some names for a girl and currently like ‘Faith’ for the middle name…what do you think and what would you add? We tend to like softer, slightly different names, definitely not traditional for the most part.

Hailey (very common)
Kaitlyn (very common)
Mikayla (quite common)
Jaylynn
Kianna
Aralynn
Makaya
Annika (I like it my husband, not really)
Acacia (my husband likes this one, to me it’s a little too different or something)

Thanks!

Do you know, my favorite from your list is Acacia. I wouldn’t have thought of the name myself, but when I read it on your list I thought with pleasant surprise, “Hey! That’s a good name!” It’s very unusual but not hard to say, and the sounds are familiar. I think it’s a great sister name with Sierra, and I like the way the AY sound in it coordinates with the AY sound of Faith. Acacia Faith, very nice.

Because Acacia is a botanical name, it brings to mind another possibility: Juniper. Juniper Faith. Juniper Ens.

Which makes me think of Brierly, a very pretty name I think goes well with Sierra. Sierra and Brierly. Brierly Faith. Brierly Ens.

Or Willow. Willow Faith. Willow Ens.

Moving away from the botanical: Paisley. Paisley Faith. Paisley Ens. Adorable.

Braelyn. Braelyn Faith. Braelyn Ens. Sierra and Braelyn. Nice.

Keely. Keely Faith, Keely Ens, Sierra and Keely. Pretty.

Name update 02-26-2010! Carla writes:

Carla Ens here. I thought I’d let you know that I had a son February 23 and we named him Sawyer Henry as planned. I loved and appreciated everyone’s suggestions. Had Sawyer been a girl the name would be Kiana Faith. Although I really liked the ideas of Braelyn and Briarly my husband once again vetoed those! Thanks again.

Lyndsay writes:

Hi Swistle!
I’m hoping you and your readers can help us.. Our daughter’s name is Olyvia Ruth. Ruth is a family name that we were set on using. We rarely call her Olyvia, and use Lyv or Lyvie. I don’t ‘regret’ naming her Olyvia but I do wish I hadn’t sometimes. We didn’t know the sex and had 20 names for girls and 20 for boys (I made the list while in labor!) when she was born, we choose in the hospital the day she was born. Olivia was the only name on our list that was ‘popular’ and it made the list because I had loved that name ever since I saw Olivia Newton John in Greece when I was little! I really like just LYV or LIV but my husband wanted a ‘full’ name so we ended up throwing a ‘y’ in there to make it more unique. Plus Lyv Ruth sounds horrible together. My name is Lyndsay with two y’s so we thought having a y would be kind of a connection.

This time we have no middle name that we’re set on. My husband liked our method before and doesn’t want to even talk about names, whereas I would like to think it out a little more and at least have three to choose from or something so I don’t end up with a crazy ‘y’ to make a popular name seem less popular! Since we do have the ‘y’ going now we were thinking we should find a name with a y for a girl at least. Once again, we don’t know boy or girl. Due very soon so I’m getting nervous! Our last name is Shepherd. We’re Catholic and would like a Saints name for at least the first or middle name.

Some of the girl names I like are Carys or Cerys and Adelaide or Adelayde (is this a legitimate spelling?). I like Carys/Cerys because it has a lovely meaning and a legitimate ‘y’. We’re not sure if Carys Shephard has too much ‘s’ in it. Adelaide/Adelayde we thought we could use with the nn Ady which we think would be cute with Lyv. Adelaide was on our list when our daughter was born (in 2008) but we were talked out of it in the hospital by family! Our friends and family that we’ve asked all seem to think that Carys/Cerys is weird and Adelaide/Adelayde is too heavy.

My husband isn’t hot on either Carys or Adelaide and likes Lucy or Lucia which are both too popular for me, especially in our neighborhood where typically there’s three Lucy’s on the playground at once. He also likes Abigail but we nixed because it’s been taken in our family (plus the whole popularity thing). We also both kind of like Avery but it seems trendy. I was thinking that Lucia or Lucy would be a cute middle name. I personally like Eliza but my husband doesn’t and we wouldn’t want to end up with a Liz and Lyv. Other name options we’ve discussed are Jane, Calla, and Clara, but none of them seem right, maybe as middle names.

For boys, I like Rhys but we have good friends with a girl Reese and that might be too close. I also like Asher, Liam, and Eli which all seem to be rising in the popularity ranks. My husband doesn’t love any of those but doesn’t hate them. He likes Ethan and Luke, once again I think they’re too popular. I suggested Luca as an alternative and he thought that sounded girly. I also like Callum but my husband can’t stand it.

Any chance you can help? I think I’m the more ‘adventurous’ namer of the two of us and we’d love to find something we can agree on that is mainstream enough for him but unique enough for me.

I suggest Adelyn. Adelyn Shepherd. It’s lighter than Adelaide, it has a legitimate Y, and I think it’s good with Olyvia.

My second suggestion is Gwendolyn. It’s a beautiful name, unusual while still being familiar, with a legitimate Y. Gwendolyn Shepherd.

Ellery is reminiscent of Avery, but much less common. Ellery Shepherd.

Oh, or how about Emlyn or Emryn? Emlyn Shepherd, Emryn Shepherd.

Since you like Asher for a boy, perhaps Ashby for a girl? Ashby Shepherd.

Or Felicity, which I think goes particularly nicely with Olyvia. Felicity Shepherd.

I looked up the Saints section in The Baby Name Wizard and there are a lot of good ones. A few that pair nicely with the first name suggestions:

Adelyn Louisa Shepherd
Gwendolyn Daria Shepherd
Ellery Beatrix Shepherd
Emlyn Matilda Shepherd
Emryn Anastasia Shepherd
Ashby Josephine Shepherd

Felicity is already a saint’s name but would be nice with Lucia:

Felicity Lucia Shepherd.

Now, for a boy, do you like Calvin? The beginning is the same as Callum, but perhaps your husband would like it better with the -vin. Calvin Shepherd is great; I love it.

I think Rhys is a very good choice, but if you decide not to use it maybe you’d like Reid instead. Reid Shepherd.

Liam is popular; I wonder why Leon isn’t? It has such a similar sound. Leon Shepherd.

While I was in the R section for Rhys, I saw Rufus. Talk about underused, I never hear this name but I can’t think of any reason why not. Rufus Shepherd.

Eamon is another good name hardly anyone is using. Maybe it’s because it’s a little tricky to learn to pronounce? (It’s like AY-mon.) Eamon Shepherd.

I love Edmund, and it’s easier to pronounce. Edmund Shepherd.

Both Evan and Ethan are common, but Ivan much less so. Ivan Shepherd.

Back to The Baby Name Wizard to find saint names to use as middles:

Calvin Oliver Shepherd
Reid Xavier Shepherd
Leon Elias Shepherd
Rufus Quentin Shepherd
Eamon Brice Shepherd

Edmund and Ivan are already saint names, but I like:

Edmund Silas Shepherd
Ivan Darius Shepherd

Name update! Lyndsay writes:

We actually ended up naming her (another girl! I was pretty happy about this!) Carys Lucy. My husband looked at her and said Carys, so away we went! I do love Adelay, I have suggested it to other friends who are looking for an ‘A’ name!

Carys fits her perfectly, she’s the most affectionate little girl around!

Thanks again for all the great suggestions!

Rachel writes:

We’re expecting our second child, a boy on February 11th. Our older daughter is Audrey Josephine, initials AJK, a tradition from my husband’s side of the family for the first born to have those initials. She was super easy to name, my Grandmother had passed away before I was pregnant, and since her name was Josephine that was easy… and believe it or not I had a dream that I was having a daughter and that she would be named Audrey when I was about 20 weeks, and after that there was no question about it.

This time, it’s not been so easy. Boys seem much harder to name! I want to use my father’s name as a middle name, Randall, which (although my dad is great!) is not my favorite name. I really like James for a first name, my husband doesn’t. We both kind of like Daniel, but that sounds awful with Randall as a middle name. My husband likes Jonah, and I do, except that it reminds me of the Jonas Brothers. I’m not sure if that is a deal breaker or not. Other names that I’ve liked that my husband hasn’t been too excited about: Owen, Milo, Samuel, and Adam. He likes Eli and Atticus a lot, and I do not. It would be nice to get some other names in the mix for us to consider, any suggestions would help a lot!

To me, the Jonas Brothers wouldn’t be a deal-breaker for the name Jonah. I think it’s because the Jonas Brothers are more like Thejonasbrothers, as if it’s all one word—the way Mel Gibson is Melgibson and I don’t think of his name as actually being Mel.

The Baby Name Wizard lists Owen as a brother name for Eli, which makes me feel as if your tastes are very close together and we just need to find the one name that works. Other brother names for Eli: Noah (similar to Jonah but no Jonas Brothers association), Levi, Jake, and Caleb.

Oh, and look! The brother names for Jonah also include Eli and Noah and Caleb! The other two brother names are Micah and Asher.

Noah Randall K.
Levi Randall K.
Jacob Randall K.
Caleb Randall K.
Micah Randall K.
Asher Randall K.

Do any of those appeal?

Brother names for Noah are Eli, Owen, Jonah, and Caleb, and only one new option: Ethan. Caleb has an interesting brother option: Elijah. That’s sort of Eli merged with Jonah. And Elijah’s brother names include Isaiah and Josiah. Samuel’s brothers include Benjamin and Simon.

Ethan Randall K.
Elijah Randall K.
Isaiah Randall K.
Josiah Randall K.
Benjamin Randall K.
Simon Randall K.

I particularly like Simon with Audrey. I think Simon has the intellectual image of Atticus, and also improves the name Randall. So Simon would be my first choice. But I think a lot of the others work very well too: Audrey and Benjamin, Audrey and Ethan, Audrey and Caleb.

Name update 02-07-2010! Rachel writes:

Thanks for the advice and feedback!! Jonah Randall was born at 3:02am on February 4th. He was 8 lbs, 11 ounces, and he was 21 1/2 inches long. I think I just needed to hear from people who weren’t related to me!

Thanks again!

Erinn writes:

We are expecting our second child in January (the 25th). My name is Erinn, my husband is Mike and our son is 3 and his name is Griffin Michael. Our last name sounds like “March” but starts with a “b”. This time around we are having a girl and for some reason we are really having trouble coming up with a name.

I would like a name that is similar to Griffin…somewhat unusual but not bonkers, easy to pronounce and no creative spelling. I have suggested Hadley and Berit, which my husband has rejected, and he has suggested Samantha, which I don’t mind but I don’t love. We both think Hailey is OK but not great. I don’t want an extremely popular name (which sort of eliminates Hailey and Samantha), but I don’t want an invented name either. As for middle names, I was thinking of using Dayle, which is my middle name. That is not a requirement however, it would just depend on how it goes with the first name!

I realize this is a problem of too many possibilities, but I just feel like our baby’s name is out there somewhere, we just haven’t considered it yet. We need help!! My son has suggested Billy Chomper and that just doesn’t seem like a viable option.

Well, are you SURE? If we spelled it Billie Chomperr it would look more feminine. Here are some other suggestions:

Amabel
Bethan
Bridget
Bronwyn
Carys
Catriona
Elodie
Harper
Fiona
Imogen
Isla
Juniper
Karenna
Larkin
Laurel
Madigan
Merrin
Mirren
Olive
Penelope
Teagan
Tinsley
Waverly

Name update 01-10-2010! Erinn writes:

Well, I’m excited to see all the excellent suggestions…but Griffin’s little sister was born last Tuesday (three weeks early)! Once the pressure was on, we came up with Piper Dayle. Thanks so much for all your help!