I've taken to calling the baby "He Who Shall Not Be Named." Despite what you may believe, naming a child is not easy. Names that you have loved since you were seven have suddenly become immensely popular. You have a partner who you have to reach some sort of agreement with or risk alienation. Naming suddenly becomes serious business once you actually get to/have to do it. Really, you are helping decide that child's future and such decisions can not be made lightly.
We named Linus the day we found out we were having a boy. We went out to dinner at a Greek restaurant on Phinney Ridge and had made the decision by dessert. His middle name took a little longer. Eileen was named probably within two weeks of the gender reveal. Her middle name changed as we walked into labor and delivery. I will be 30 weeks on Tuesday and don't feel like we are even close to having a name.
Linus has named the baby Search Helicopter. Eileen thinks Strawberry Shortcake would be a better choice but is willing to defer to Linus. When it comes to names I prefer more classical ones, but that are also less common (no top ten names for me). The name needs to have character, personality. Ideally, I would like it to be a saint's name. If the first name isn't a saint name, then I'll try to make sure the middle name is. Believe it or not, there is a Saint Linus. He was the second pope. I give bonus points for names that have songs attached.
I feel like we did such a good job naming the first two that we have increased the pressure on ourselves to come up with another perfect name. If we name him Jacob (a top ten name on the social security website and not under consideration), I may as well start apologizing to our third now. Sorry kid, we just got tired and lost creativity, ie sending the implicit message from the start that he doesn't matter as much.
Right now Dave has a list of names, none of which I like although some are mildly tolerable. And none of them feel like the baby's name. I say this as the person who feels the baby all day and all night long. I have a list of names, with a top 3. None of which I am married to but strongly prefer to any on Dave's list. Unfortunately, I think Dave is just as strongly opposed to my names as I am to his.
Yes, yes, I know. The baby will be born, we will look at him, and then know his name. I am skeptical of this since we are so far apart on names. Additionally, I am a planner. It will bring me so much peace to know his name. If we come up with a name, he's born, and I say, "No way, he can't possibly be a McGillicuddy," then that's one thing. I can deal with that. Having him born and saying, "Sorry kid, I got bupkiss" seems so wrong.
Dave and I are going away next weekend and having a little babymoon. I am hoping that during this time of uninterrupted bliss (we get to sleep in past 5:30 am!!) we will come up with a name. But for now the baby is "He Who Shall Not Be Named."
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