Names

The topic of "baby names" has come up a lot this last month.  Why?  Check your Facebook.  Everyone and their dog is having babies right now.  Seriously, someone posted a pic of baby puppies on Facebook the other day.  Facebook is all like, "Congrats to all the new moms and even to the mommy dogs!! oh yeah, and BOOOOOO to all you who don't have babies and extra boo if you don't even have a puppy. pssht."  

Really though.

I don't have anything against babies.  In fact, I'm learning now (since Mason) that I kind of love them.  Parts of them.   The cute, non poopy, crying parts of them.  I told you that pretty much all of my best girl friends from Parma are having babies this year.  Two down (Norah and Rebecca) and two more to come..Baby "Yet to be named," Andrus and Baby A (not sure if we're telling people the name) Taylor.  It's so exciting and I'm so happy for them and for the pics to come of their children.  Because of course it's OK when it's pics of babies that you love.  haha.  I love it.  Things I don't really love, however, is how hard it must be when it comes to naming a child.  Names are important.

I've always been the person that's had the plain name.  Not that I hate my name, because I don't.  How could you when your dad named you because he just "liked the name Jennifer."  I get it.  It was a thing in the 80's.  I'm over it. But I would also love if there weren't so many of "me" around too.  No, I'm not wishing to have one of those names that NO one else has. That's a Utah thing, it's dumb and I hate that more than having a super common name.  What I'm saying is that Jennifer Nicole Hansen is literally the name of more that 100 people in the world.  I'm totally low ballin there too, I think.  To prove it, I googled my name.  Sure, on the first page a couple of things come up from blogs and stuff that are linked to the real me. However,  you'll also find a TON of other women by that exact name.  Like these three Gems who share my exact name:

Nice mug shots, Jenns ;) *Thumbs up*

And this was just on the first page of the Google search!  Apparently Jennifer Nicole Hansen is a classy name too.  So it's all good.  I fit right in, I feel. Especially with that last tatted beauty.

Choosing a name must be rough.  I realize that now that people close to me are having babies and working through the naming process.  I get it.  A person's name is what someone identifies themselves with for the rest of their life.  So I give my Dad credit for picking a normal name, I really do.  I just have to make up for the plain name with extra personality, which I feel I do just fine with ;)

Note to my future self though: If you ever have kids.. Be nice.  Think about nicknames too.  We don't need any "Queersten's" instead of Kiersten  or "YEASTINfection" for Easton,  or "VAjarna instead of Jarna. (actually that last one is a horrible yet funny example because it's a legit one from high school and Jarna is THE dumbest name.)  But really. People are clever. They will actually come up with other names or ways to poke fun no matter what...  

So basically I guess you have three options: 

1.) Teach your kids to have thick skin and not care about what people think

2.) Name them something simple and normal

 or 3.) Just name them Jennifer.  

The end.