the name game

Nearing the home stretch, we're working down our baby name lists.  It's definitely a tricky process. I struggle with decision making at the best of times, and this decision feels BIG. What is most important to you when you're thinking of baby names? Some people prefer to name their baby after a valued family member. (My dad keeps campaigning for his name, Christopher).  Some new parents like the idea of choosing a popular name so their child doesn't have to worry about being teased. Then there are those lucky ones who just know their favourite name, have carried it with them in anticipation of having children one day, and do not sway from that decision. For others the meaning of the name plays a big part. My primary goal when choosing a name was to pick something a little more unique and something that didn't begin with the K sound because our family is already made up of : Karen, Kelsey, Craig, Claire, Carol, Chris, Kelly.....it gets a bit Crazy. I know that whatever name we choose might not please everyone and that's ok. It's human nature to associate names with those we encounter throughout our lives, some for better, some for worse. I thought I'd share with you our top ten names for boys and girls in random order.  We're going to try to narrow our choices down in the next few days and go to the hospital with a few top picks and then just see what suits the baby the most. I picked up a great baby naming book this weekend called A is for Atticus. It is full of more unique names based on characters from amazing works of literature. It's a great book for those looking for something off the beaten path.
Here's our girl's list in random order:

• stella
• audrey
• sophie
• ruby
• olivia
• hannah
• ava
• paige
• grace
• autumn

Here's our boy's list in random order: 

• parker
• ethan
• noah
• lucas
• ryan
• owen
• finn
• benjamin
• charlie
• logan