Probably not, as my baby’s given name doesn’t have an accent. But I appreciate knowing that we are not alone in this, so thanks.

Thanks for the good advice—that’s our plan, in fact. Be flexible, be Zen, let her choose. Sometimes I worry, though, so thanks!

Our daughter is a planned only. I want her to have the advantages that my undivided attention can provide. We also want to concentrate our resources on her. One child can have most of the things my husband and I had—European travel, a car for her personal use, music lessons, etc—but we’re not sure two children could…

Hildy is an inconsiderate monster. I even liked some of her work, but she is a garbage human who doesn’t care about anyone but herself and her “art.”

EVERYTHING is part of being a mom. I was a top-tier nanny for years, and I’m telling you: the skill set is the same but the exhaustion is another level. It just never stops.

It’s okay to ask! I put it out there, and I am happy to help people who are interested. We chose surrogacy after we waited for an adoption for several years, but never got a baby. My mental health is such that I cannot stop my meds, and babies can’t have what I take. I also was eager to spare my child my genetic…

There is literally only one other person in the U.S. with her name—I feel like I can’t share it. But we call her Violet.

Thanks. I appreciate your kindness.

Ooo! Ooo! Years ago, I was a teacher, I had a student with the last name Dingus and a student with the last name Mingus. Just a weird coincidence in a very small Appalachian town. However, in a previous generation, the two families intermarried and a child was named—and I am not making this up—Dingus Mingus. He was…

I went to high school with a girl named Crystal Leer. Thing is, her middle name is Chanda. Crystal. Chanda. Leer. This sounds like a terrible lie, but I knew her, if only slightly, and she was quite real. Of course, my high school also had a student named Candy Stoher, pronounced “store.” Combined with the fact that a…

Thanks for sharing that! My daughter has two middle names and we hyphenated them for legal purposes. My husband is an attorney and said it will help her avoid tangles.

That’s very mature of you, and I envy that. I have always disliked my first name and very much blame my mother and her poor taste. My middle name was my father’s choice and I LOVE it—Elizabeth. It’s my very favorite girls’ name, and one of my daughter’s middle names.

That’s a great equivalency for what we’ve done. I feel like it’s going to get old for her. But we do love her name!

Sicilian, actually. :oP

Thanks for that link! Very interesting!

Absolutely! Her birthmother and I even talked about that eventuality, and I have a script to work with, and everything. Sometimes I worry, but mostly being a mother is an amazing experience for me, and every time my daughter makes a little gesture that I recognize as mine, or says, “Bitchin’!” like I do, I feel like…

I am committed to smashing the patriarchy and chose to take my husband’s name. His family is well-known in our area, and his career makes a name-change impractical. Further, my very unhappy childhood and a poor relationship with my own father made me eager for a new family name. It made sense to me. Also, I was always…

Her father lives in hope that someday our daughter will go into international law, and then her Italian name will be a gift. He is an attorney and we do plan to send her to a language immersion school, so maybe he will get his wish.

Her name in English is not uncommon (though not overplayed, YET), spelled the usual way, and considered very pretty. I’m hoping that will satisfy her. She also has two middle names and I plan to encourage her to go by any of her names she wishes.