I started thinking about this because I went to check on our neglected old friend, babiesonline.com, and found a link to section called "Tips For Choosing Baby Names". I was intrigued. There are two kinds of advice on the internet: 1) good advice; 2) advice to be ridiculed. I hoped that there would be some of both. Actually, it was fairly decent. Here's the headings from each of their five tips:
1. Don't rush
2. Talk about it
3. Say it out loud
4. Spell it out
5. Make it meaningful
When you take away the paragraphs of information that went with each tip, you have to guess at the meaning -- which is more fun. Here are the paragraphs that I would write:
1. Don't rush: Unless your baby becomes a pop icon or a hollywood star and adopts a new name like "Pink" or "Brangelina", this name is going to have to last for 80 years. You've got 9 months, so ease yourself into a name you think your child can live with. However, you should remember that you are dealing with a firm deadline (birth), so you shouldn't leave it until it's time to fill out the birth certificate. Asking the clerk for ideas is considered poor form.
2. Talk about it: Speaking is essential for meaningful discussion. Yes, you should certainly talk about it at some point. Using a combination of Scrabble tiles and grunting is considered less-effective.
3. Say it out loud: See #2 above. Talking is generally done out loud.
4. Spell it out: Spelling is key. You can do one of two things: 1) make it painfully easy (Fox); or 2) impossibly difficult (Caleigh). If it's moderately difficult, people will misspell it anyway, and then they'll feel bad. You might as well go big.5. Make it meaningful: Load that name with meaning, the more the better. Try something powerful like "Thunder", "Warrior-Princess", or "Larry".
You can read the real advice (which is good), or you can just settle for my flippant interpretation. We'll probably start mulling over some names in the near future, so we welcome any additional advice or suggestions. Now that we're in week 12, I think we can safely begin to count our chicks: one.
5 comments:
I loved your advice. Quality laughs there, my friend. Since you are inviting name suggestions, I submit the one you always pressed us to use -- Throckmorton. Besides being unique, it's lots of fun to say.
Names! YaY!
So personally i think another thing to consider when picking a name for your baby is the "flow factor" that is that it needs to flow well with your last name. I think this may have been a afactor that my own parents neglected. though amusing it has left me at the centre of a joke at the beginning of the school year many times. this should be quite simple as you have a solid last name but still I would suggest saying the whole name aloud as you think of differnet names.
there's always D jr. for a boy or mini R for a girl.
We also considered "syllables." Since our last name is one syllable we thought each of you should have a first name that was at least two syllables.
My mom always loved to say "Shaganappi" but I am guessing it is out of running for possibles.
Just don't make it so ridicules that when you open your door and call him/her to dinner it should sound pleasant. I was watching a "soap opera" before Nancy was born. The heroine was named "April" and I loved it. But then I silently tried to call it out the door, and decided against it.
Well, I'm back on line. Our computer was down for a week and then I got out of the habit of reading, and so I just called Rachelle to see how she was doing. But it's fun to get back on line, except for the backlog of reading I had to catch up on.
Only one comment about the castor oil. I knew not to do that, but when Karla was 2 weeks overdue and my last one, I went out on the tramp and started jumping to see what that would do. My neighbor got nervous I would have the baby then and there and she would have to help deliver, but they come when they're ready for it still took a few days even after that treatment for Karla to decide to come out. Helen
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