This was a big park weekend for us. Three visits in three days. Just one of the benefits of living super close, I guess. During one of our park visits, I met a woman pregnant with twins. As we were talking, she mentioned her difficulty in coming up with a name for her first child and now she has to go through the same thing for two. Of course, I told her I knew all about naming troubles. Goen was almost seven weeks old before we found his name. But I think naming twins would be more than twice as hard as naming one because you also have to consider how the names will sound together. I mean, you wouldn't really want to name them Jack and Jill or something. So I shared a little of my naming advice with her. Rather than think about all the possible names in the world, make a list of preferences that allow you to rule out names by the hundreds. Here is a list that I used when I had to name my little one:
- It must have two syllables
- It can't start with a vowel
- It can't start with certain consonants (my "no" list included z, q, v, and others)
- It must sound good when said with the parents' names
- It must flow well with his last name
- It must not have a nickname I don't like
This list made it so much easier to find a name. When I looked through all those baby name books for ideas I could skip over entire letters without wondering if I would like one. I knew I wouldn't. Even so, the task was a difficult one. But, in the end, we found one that fit just right.
All you mamas and papas out there, what did you find helpful when it came to naming? Did you find your baby's name in a book? On the internet? Or was your naming task made easier by choosing a family name? What advice would you give a parent trying to name a new baby?