Pregnancy.org Members Speak Out: Choosing a Baby Name

by Jackie Hershwitz

As soon as you get that positive pregnancy test, names start bouncing around in your head! Your head is whirling with family names, special meanings, and your partner's preference. As soon as you spread the news, everyone else seems to have their own helpful "suggestions."

Choosing the perfect name for your child can either be a bonding experience or a battle. How did you work together naming your baby?

Did You...

• Pick a letter of the alphabet to name all your kids or maybe an alphabet pattern (Alice, Bradley, Cecelia...)?
• Write lists...lots and lots and lots of lists?
• Use a baby name book or popular name list?
• Name your tiny tot after a family member?
• Let the internet pick the name via web polls, online random name pickers or other tools?
• Name your child after a favorite character or famous person?
• Use some other method in your quest? (Tell us in the comments!)

We asked our members what helped them sift through all the possibilities. If you have a helpful tip, help other parents-to-be and put it in the comments!

Dream a Name

"I had a dream one night, and in it were two boys' names and one girl's name (including the middle names). I told my husband them and he loved them. At 15 weeks, I said to him that we should start thinking about baby names. He said, 'I thought they were already picked out? The ones you dreamt.' I laughed and said, 'Well it's a little presumptious of me to assume those would be the names without your say.' He really liked the names and picked the boys name out of the two that he liked the most." ~Jbaum2

Techie's Techniques

"My husband is a computer guy, and very methodical so our baby naming methods for both kids have been very methodical. We made spreadsheets, and had a rating system based on several factors, such as nicknames, popularity, how they sound with our last name, meaning, etc. Once we narrowed the names down to our top few, we selected from among them. The funny thing is, each time, we ended up with the names I wanted all along. I think we would have no matter what we'd done, but it makes him feel better to do it this way. It's cute!" ~Katie

"I admit that I have an Excel spreadsheet saved on my computer. Every time I hear a name I like, I add it to the list. I have columns for new ideas, husband-approved, -meh, and -rejected. I also have middle name ideas and the full names of relatives I'd be okay honoring with a namesake, along with derivations of their names (i.e. Henry for a relative named Henrietta)." ~indianajones

The Alphabet Rules

"We decided early on to go with all C or K names. We had our name picked out if he had been a girl from before we conceived, but had a harder time with boy names. I loved the name Corbin and my husband liked it but wasn't totally sold. Ultimately he couldn't come up with anything he liked better so we went with that. He totally loves the name now and is so glad it's what we named him." ~Caitlin

"My husband's family has been using the letter 'D' for names for two generations already so we were the third. Now that eliminated a lot of options right there! Not only did it have to begin with 'D' but it couldn't be any of the 'D' names that already riddled though both our families! ~julieanddanny

Famous Names

"The middle name was to be Scott because that is my husband's middle name and his father's middle name and so on. The first name came about while watching episodes of Battlestar Galactica...and, yes, I mean the sci-fi television series. There is a character named Colonel Saul Tigh and we just thought that Tigh was a great name and the fact that the spelling was a bit unusual sold us." ~Christine

Using the Computer

"We searched the internet randomly (shameful, I know) and settled on a name we both kind of liked and kept going back to. Then when my husband was out picking up a couple of things he came home with a little Christmas stocking button that read, 'Mason' on it. I guess that was that. I picked his middle name. I still carry that little button in my wallet, sentimenal fool that I am." ~Christina