The Name Game

I trust all of you out there had a (are continuing to have a) fantastic holiday, and many goodies were given and received. Corrie and I had a blast for our part, but that isn’t really what this post is about. It’s supposed to be an apology of sorts, and an attempt to lay out some ground rules to avoid any hard feelings.

The first, last, and ever present question seems to be centered on the name of our child. We’ve had tremendous fun trying out different ways to go with it, test drove every famous, and quite a few not so common names, and for the most part have settled on one we like (and a back up just in case she turns out to be a he). It’s been a hoot, and I certainly don’t want to forbid anybody else this kind of fun.

That being said, our early attempts to include our friends/family in this game didn’t work out so well. Everybody has their own associations, bullies from their childhood, unrequited high school crushes, etc. More often than not names we might like are quickly and ferociously trashed, while names we wouldn’t consider for a pet gerbil seem to be quite popular. So we decided to stop talking about it in public.

This approach has it’s own risks. Another couple we met went the same route, keeping a tight lid until the actual day came. A crowded waiting room in the hospital waited expectantly until the proud father bursts through the swinging doors to announce, “It’s a boy and his name is Gallagher”.

Well you cold have heard a pin drop.

Since announcing that we’re holding our cards close, it’s become somewhat of a challenge people have undertaken to figure out the mystery. In a number of settings, we’ve found ourselves besieged with possible names, as people look for any reaction on which to base a guess. For a while we would play along. “Nope, that’s not the name”, “wrong again”, “Keep trying.” Before I realized there really are only a finite number of names out there, and with another 2 months to go, it was just a matter of time before the jig would be in effect up.

All this is a lead up to an apology for what I said over Christmas dinner to the people we care most about. In the midst of one such conversation, while Corrie and I tried on our best poker faces, I came down perhaps a bit too hard on our family in announcing that this game was now officially over, and no, we aren’t joking this time.

So, certainly, feel free to discuss among yourselves what names you’d like, dislike, will disown us for. Lay bets if it makes you feel better. In fact, save a receipt from anything you buy today (with a date on it) and write down the name you think she’ll get. All I ask is, not to try to squeeze it out of us. It’s hard enough not to shout it from the rooftops.