The Art of Naming

Way back in January 2015, I began a little series on Instagram that featured the two-letter abbreviations of states within the USA. I started with Delaware, the very first state that was given official statehood, and then I continued on from there. This has been a very long and slow series, but finally, two years later, we've reached the halfway point. With each post, I would ask you to name a boy and a girl using those initials as the basis. And each time, I would also post my name choices for those letters. Let's take a look back and see how my impulse naming panned out. Over time, did I actually create a family tree of names that might match nicely? Or did those names vary greatly with each state? How many times might I have repeated a name? I'm willing to bet that my general naming style fluctuated greatly, but, if you've followed my blog since the beginning, perhaps you'd find me somewhat predictable. If you'd like to play along with this name game,

We've explored letters A-D so far in this "ends with -y" series. Today's list is perhaps one of the most plentiful. It was difficult to narrow it down to only the best options that end with the letters "-ey". The names below all have their endings in common, but they differ greatly in terms of style and popularity. Let's play a little game with these names. Let's suppose that you are having triplets and you have your heart set on cutesy rhyming names for them. Choose three that you like most, and give them their own middle names. You can choose either the gender combinations.  Have fun! Girls: Adley Abbey Ainsley Ansley Ashley Aubrey Audrey Bailey Briley Brinley Britney Carley Casey Courtney Delaney Destiney Finley Gracey Greenley Hadley Hailey Haley Harley Hayley Jacey Journey Kailey Kaley Karley Kasey Kayley Kelsey Kenley Kiley Kinley Kinsley Lacey Lainey Laney Lindsey Linley Macey Marley McKinle

Birth announcements are a great way to discover what names other parents are using. You can use this knowledge for your own baby naming efforts and let yourself be inspired! Whether you view these as names that you'd never use or names that you'd love to use, lists like these can be helpful in the naming process. If you were expecting a baby today and had to choose a name from this list, which would it be? Tell me your one favorite girl name and one favorite boy name from the following list. Share your picks in the comment section below! My choices are at the bottom of the page! Girls:  Ada June Adalyn Ruth Amira Renee Annelise Elizabeth Ansley Michelle Ashlyn Olivia Ava Chelsea Aviana Rose Cassidy Olivia Ciara Elizabeth Emma Grace Evelyn Fae Jessica Ann Juliana Deborah Kaitlyn Sophia Kelly Lee Khloe Marianne Lauren Elizabeth Lauryn Elaine Lolah Marie Luz Isabella Morgan Serenity Norah Eve Olivia Faith Paige Marie Paislee Margaret Rose Riley

Today is National Haiku Poetry Day! It falls on April 17th every year to celebrate this fun, beloved style of poetry. You most likely wrote a few of these in your school years. I know I did and they're my favorite!  I thought it would be exceptionally fun to write some "name haikus" to celebrate! How does a name haiku work? Well, traditionally, a haiku poem consists of three lines. The first line is 5 syllables, the second is 7 and the third is 5 again. So it is a poem with a syllable count of 5-7-5. For the purpose of our little game here today, we will be making sibsets of 3.  Name three children. The first one will have a first and middle name combination that amounts to 5 syllables. The second's first and middle names will add up to 7 syllables, and the third child will have 5 syllables. Does that make sense? I'll provide a format below and an example in the photo. Have fun with this! Try to use different naming styles for a themed sibset, or make t

What do you think about when you look at a list of birth announcements? Of course you'd remember that these all belong to an actual child somewhere in this country, but if you were take a step back and look at these names at face value, do you picture anything in your mind? Do you automatically start to rate the names? Would you borrow one of the pairings and add it to your own name list? Sure, why not? These are meant as inspiration for those in the process of finding a name, and to enlighten the rest of us as to what sort of names are actually being used. Most of all, since these are anonymous, you're meant to enjoy the names and have a bit of fun. So what would you say if I asked you to pick and choose your favorite first/middle combinations as they are and create a sibset with them? Using the following names, share with us in the comment section what you would name twins: girl/girl, boy/boy and boy/girl. I'll share my picks below!  Girls: Adara Helaina Alanna

Birth announcements are always fun to read. This time, I wanted to find a group of names that did not have a single duplicate. Remember, these names come from real babies!! Which do you like best? For fun, pretend you have triplets to name and you can only use one of the following first/middle combinations as they are. You can choose any gender combination or do all of them. What will you pick? Check out my choices at the bottom of the page. Be sure to share your sibsets in the comments below! Girls: Adalynn Skye Alivia Alessandra Allison Kate Angelina Luz Aria Rose Arielle Jade Avery Marie Avia Isabel Brielle Immani Eleanor Elizabeth Evelyn Lilia Gabriella Sophia Gianna Lynn Hannah Joy Julianna Violet Layla Michelle Lilly Alice Lucy Ruth Mary Charlotte Melody Raine Michaela Joan Miranda James Natalie Ann Olivia Louise Paris Alexandria Penelope Jane Samantha Abigail Taylor Grace Valentina Pearl Viviana Leigh Boys: Alexander Donovan Anthony August

To conclude this starry, starry couple of weeks we've had, I propose a little baby naming challenge. It is a simple initial related game that should bring about a good variety of name options and fun combinations. Take a look at the three sibling sets below and decide for yourself which names you'd choose. I added my choices at the bottom. Have fun! Set of Twins: STAR Boy's initials are ST Girl's initials are AR What are their names? Set of Twins: MOON Girl's initials are MO Girl's initials are ON What are their names? Set of Triplets: PLANET Boy's initials are PL Boy's initials are AN Girl's initials are ET What are their names? My choices: Set 1: Sebastian Theodore & Aveline Ramona Set 2: Mabel Olivia & Odette Nova Set 3: Philip Lucas, Arthur Nathaniel & Ella Tamsin Which names would you go with? Share your choices in the comment section or join the chatter on Facebook!

This game will follow a "name bank" format. You will be given a set of names to choose from. Create a first and middle name combination for three children. These children will all have a unisex first name based on the list of unisex names that I posted earlier this week! 1A. Your first child is a boy. Choose from one of the following unisex names for his first name: Alexis, Armani, Carter, Dakota, Drew, Elliot, Ellison, Finley, Haven, Jamie, Jordan, Kendall, Lyric, Morgan, Payton, Quinn, Remy, Rory, Sage, Skyler, Taylor 1B. Choose from the following vintage names for his middle name: Arthur, Barnaby, Chester, Edmund, Franklin, George, Howard, Irving, Jasper, Louis, Milton, Oscar, Percy, Raymond, Samuel, Theodore, Virgil, Walter And baby boy number one's name is.....? 2A. Your second child is a boy. Choose from one of the following unisex names for his first name: Amari, Avery, Casey, Dallas, Dylan, Elliott, Emerson, Harley, Hayden, Jaylin, Justice, Lennon

For your challenge today, you will be naming three hypothetical siblings! This past Tuesday, we saw a list of baby names stolen by big car companies and we learned all about the name Ford a couple days ago. In honor of "car week," I want you to think about your vehicle history when choosing the names for the challenge. If that sounds crazy, just bear with me a moment. As a visual aid, here's a short breakdown of vehicle makes and models just in case you're not sure: Make = Name of Company (Ford, GMC, Toyota, Nissan, Dodge etc) Model = The "brand" of the car. Sometimes this is just a letter or number, or a word or name. If you've never owned your own car, use that of your parents or partner.  Okay, here we go: Baby #1  If the make of your first car starts with A-L, you're having a boy! If it starts with M-Z it's a girl!  Take the first letter of the make of your car and use it for the first name of the baby. If the model of your c

This is the ultimate initial challenge! I do have to admit that I borrowed the idea from my friend over at nameddict.   I came across it at the perfect time since I was just about to post Tuesday's blog about month names. I found this challenge to be a genius idea that I hadn't seen before, and it is fun!  Imagine you have twelve babies to name and give it a try! Using the three-letter abbreviations for each month, come up with the perfect baby name using those letters as a first/middle/middle combo. There's a Y and 3 U's that will make it a bit tricky!  I will post my names below. Feel free to share yours in the comment section or on Facebook! My names: JAN: Johanna Adelaide Nell FEB: Frederick Evan Benedict MAR: Marius Alexander Rafferty APR: Amabel Penelope Rose MAY: Matilda Alice Yvonne JUN: Julius Ulrich Nathaniel JUL: Josephine Uma Lenore AUG: Alistair Ulysses George SEP: Sebastian Evander Paul OCT: Octavia Claire Tamsin NOV: Nadia Olive Valent

This is essentially a game. Just for fun, try to come up with some amazing names for the following four hypothetical children: Boy/Girl Twins: Girl's first name starts with either A, C, E, or G. Girl's middle name is either a botanical name or a quirky and unusual name. Boy's first name starts with either B, D, F or H. Boy's middle name is either an old-fashioned, vintage name or a  literary name. Girl: Her first name starts with either I, K, M, or O. Her middle name is either an ancient name  or something virtuous. Boy: His first name starts with either J, L, N, or P. His middle name is either an occupational surname  or a colonial choice. Feel free to post your names in the comment section below, on our Facebook page or just smile about them to yourself. :) My names: Alice Magnolia Damian Barnaby Isla Melisent Jack Thaddeus Have fun! Thanks for playing!

I thought I would issue you a naming challenge! Just for fun, of course. Should you choose to accept, here are my terms: You will be naming three hypothetical babies. Siblings but not triplets. Use the links for help! Here are the rules: Baby #1 - A boy:  First name: It has an X in it Middle name: A Presidential Surname Baby #2 - A girl: First name: A flower or tree name Middle name: Vintage "old lady" name Baby #3 - A girl: First name: It is 4-letters long Middle name: An Ancient name Post the names that you came up with in the comment section for all to enjoy! You may even write what their ages are and come up with a last name for them if you wish. Here are my names: 1. Phoenix Harrison 2. Magnolia Ruth 3. June Minerva Thanks for playing! And remember that there are more baby-name-games like this one in the forum section on the blog! 

Alexandra Kinova STANISLAV ZBYNEK/CTK/AP This past Sunday, a Czech woman, Alexandra Kinova, 23, gave birth to quintuplets! This is the first recorded quint birth in the country! They were conceived naturally and were born at 31 weeks without any complications. Their weights ranged from 2.3 lbs to 3 lbs. She delivered them by Cesarean section. The mother was originally told that she was expecting twins. She did wind up having identical twin boys, as well as a girl and two more boys. They have chosen the following names: Tereza Michael and Deniel (Twins) Alex Martin Their father, Antonin Kroscen, 26, told reporters that he is very happy to welcome these five little ones into the world. "I was crying all the way since I feared I would not manage it," he said. He was held up by a late train but made it on-time to be present for the birth of his children! The couple already had a young son together as well.  We want to congratulate these new parents and wis