Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Show and Tell Tuesday: What's In A Name

For today's Show and Tell Tuesday I thought it would be fun to share "What's In  A Name" and talk about how we picked our kids names and/or how we were given our names!

First off - I feel like I should tell y'all that I'm a fairly decisive person.  Once I make my mind up, I typically don't waiver.... and I also stop looking at other options :)  I tried on three wedding dresses, loved the third one and didn't try on anymore.  If we're planning a vacation and I find a location that we like, we book it and then stop looking. We don't make big decisions lightly, but we also don't stress and dwell on them.  

Picking all three of our children's names was actually a really fun, easy and enjoyable process for us!  We shared our names with friends and family beforehand and involved them in the selection process as well.  I would ask my parents and closer friends for their opinion on any big decision and so, obviously, we valued their opinions on these decisions as well.  

There were a few names on our list that people voiced "concerns" about and I was appreciative of hearing the rhyming words, future nicknames, etc. that came along with some of the names on our list.  ;)  Not everyone loved the names we chose, but WE love them and so when other's voiced a dissenting opinion it didn't sway us away from what we felt was the right decision.  ("Wait.... I thought you said you were having a girl!  Griffin???" hahaha) 

 Not only did we tell our friends/family, but I told my students what names we were thinking of and got their thoughts as well. If you want an HONEST opinion, ask a 13 year old boy. ;)

Luke Buchanan McAnally
When we found out we were pregnant with Luke, we decided not to find out his gender.  I just KNEW that he was going to be a girl :)  So much so that I agreed to let Dave pick the name IF the baby was a boy.  I picked out Landyn Grace for a girl and Dave picked Luke for a boy.  I knew that if the baby was a boy we wanted Buchanan (my maiden name) as the middle name and Dave was on board with that choice.  I VIVIDLY remember when Luke was born that the doctor let Dave tell the room that "it's a boy!!!"  And I replied with, "really???" hahaha  I can't imagine a more perfect name for our firstborn!


Mason West McAnally
When we were talking about having our second baby, baby names were on the TOP of my priority list.  I LOVED the name Mason for a boy or a girl and so it was decided that his/her name would be Mason West or Mason Joy.  Since Luke has my maiden name as his middle name, we wanted something to honor my mom's side of the family so Joy was for my mom's name (Joyce) and West was for her maiden name (Westervelt).  As soon as I told my middle schoolers that the baby's name was going to be Mason West they dubbed it a "cool guy name" :)  If you ask Mason what his name is, he'll tell you it's "Mason West McAnally West"


Griffin Joy McAnally
Griffin was a TOTAL surprise and so I had zero baby names "on file" when it came to naming her, but that didn't stop Shay and I from naming her on the day I found out I was pregnant.




Griffin is Dave's mom's maiden name and we settled on it early since it fit with Luke having my maiden name (Buchanan) and Mason having my mom's maiden name (West).  We decided on Griffin Henry if she was a boy (Henry was my maternal grandfather's name) and Griffin Joy (for my mom's name Joyce) if she was a girl.  Even though Griffin was one of my top choices, Scout was also at the TOP TOP TOP of my list for her as well.  Ultimately we settled on Griffin and I can't imagine her being a Scout now. 


Just for fun, a few other names that we tossed around for our kiddos were:

Girl Names:
Scout
Greer
Posy 
Darby 
Fallon
Mia
Georgia
Rory

Boy Names
Lennon
Gage
Tate
Keaton

Names are so much fun and I can't wait to read about the meanings/stories behind all of yours!
   
   

50 comments :

  1. Using family names is such a sweet way to honor those you respect and love. Great names!

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    1. Thank you! And we're grateful we had some good ones to work with :)

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  2. Your kiddos names fit them perfectly!! I wonder where you got Rory? :). Ha!

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    1. Right?!?!?! How cute would a Rory McAnally be?!?!?! :)

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  3. I love reading how you chose your names!!! I still can't believe your boy name for Griffin was Griffin Henry...so crazy! I linked up and shared how we named our G and my other boys too : )

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  4. Things I love about your pregnancies:
    1. I typically know you're pregnant before Dave does.
    2. I love that we start naming your baby before it's even conceived.
    3. I love that we may or may not buy monogrammed stuff for said baby...before it is conceived.
    4. I love that you share my genuine passion for naming babies.

    You need at least one more, so that we can go through this process again!!

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    1. 1) If I'm to ever pregnant again, you'll be the first to know... because I'll be on my way to have a "Come to Jesus meeting" with a certain urologist :)
      2) AGREED!
      3) Hey... when Whitney English has a sale, you jump on it!
      4) YES!!! I have a list for Jeni's twins. hahaha

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  5. I just love your kiddos' names! They are perfect for them, and I love the family significance for each!

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    1. Thanks, girly!!! It's funny how all kids end up totally "fiting" their names :)

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  6. Love hearing how people picked their kiddos names! So fun

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  7. Your kiddos have great names, and the fact that they are family names is definitely the cherry on top :)

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  8. Aww! So fun. Loved this. I have a Landyn. My daughter is Landyn Elizabeth!! :)

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  9. Love love love this link up! I adore each of your kid's names. My Maddox was almost Mason, we even had it on the top of our list at our gender reveal. And it's nice to see our girl name "Mia" was on your radar. It's such a popular name but with our last name being Moore, we just HAD to do it! Thanks for hosting!
    Mandi
    Best Little Moore House in Texas

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  10. I love the name Scout! It's my niece's name and it just fits her so well!

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  11. Loved reading your stories behind the names! And I still remember the day you ordered personalized stationary for Griffin when she was merely a fetus. :)

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  12. I think you are my name picking twin. I LOVE LOVE LOVED the name Scout. My whole life I wanted to name a daughter Scout so very badly. My older two children are black, and I worried that naming my youngest Scout might be too To Kill a Mockingbird. But really, I love your whole list. And I ADORE the 3 names you picked for your kiddos.

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  13. I love love love when names have family ties. I also love when girls get names that are traditionally boy names.

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  14. I love their names!!! My middle name is Buchanan ( my grandmother's maiden name). So excited to hear of someone else with the same middle name!!!!!!!:)

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  15. I love how you tied their names to your family! We did give Xavier the middle name Michael after my husband and his dad. IF (and that is a BIG IF) we would be so lucky to have another child and it was a girl, she would get my and my mom's middle name of LeOta :)

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    1. Leota is gorgeous! Fingers crossed you get a girl! :)

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  16. So much fun! I love how people decide on names...it was one of my favorite parts of having a baby

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  17. It's so fun that you included Buchanan and West to your boys' names!!
    I wish I could give one of my kids my maiden name as a middle name, but it's a Scandinavian name that doesn't quite work :)

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    1. Westervelt didn't quite work either so we took some "creative liberties" and shortened it to West. hahaha

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  18. Love that you use family names - me too! My son is Calvin Grey (Grey is my maiden name) and my daughter is Liliana Linda (my fave aunt that passed away was Linda) - we call her Lily or Lil for short.

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    1. LOVE Grey - what an awesome family name to use! And Lily is adorable :)

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  19. I love that you used your maiden name as a middle name. I just can't make mine work in a name that I have found so far. Something Paxson Hudspeth doesn't have a very good ring to it. womp womp. I love how unique your list of names at the end were.

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    1. Thank you!!! I would love to name more babies :) hahaha

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  20. I had always been curious how you came up with Mason's middle name. My maternal Grandmother's maiden name is West. :) Love your blog!

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  21. When I was pregnant we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl. For a girl, I suggested naming the baby after my grandmothers -- Helen and Mary. Hubby was more or less on board. I came to find out that my grandma Helen had hated her name so I had to come up with another way to honor her. She always wore Halston perfume -- whenever anyone in the family smells it they recognize it as 'hers'. So, we decided on Halston Mary for our baby -- who did end up being a girl. We looooove the name; it's unique but easy to spell and pronounce, and has a ton of meaning for me.

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  22. I love the story behind all your names. They are all so traditional and strong. We too used family names as our kiddo's middle names (my maiden name is one!). I also LOVE that you chose Griffin for your girl. We have three boys but if we have a girl, the choice (which as been the same since we found out with our first pregnancy) is definitely not a traditional girl name!

    Our boys:
    Hudson Andrew (Andrew is my hubby's name)
    Beau Maxwell (Maxwell is my maiden name)
    Gabe Samuel (Samuel is my FIL)

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  23. Such cute stories. (and cute babies!) Has anyone ever mentioned that Luke literally looks EXACTLY the same as a newborn? Every time I see his little baby pictures I am shocked that he hasn't changed one bit! It's almost like his little face was photoshopped on- it's uncanny! he was and is such a cute little guy! :)

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  24. My mom wanted to name me after one of her former teachers back in Ghana, Maureen. But, at the time my dad had a coworker named Maureen so he suggested Doreen instead! I'm soo thankful for that coworker because I like the name Doreen a whole lot better haha. My middle name is the same as my dad's, Addo, and is also Ghanaian

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  25. Andrea,
    Love this post!! I linked up for the first time and plan to do all the rest too! What a great idea! It's always fun to read the meaningful stories behind the unique names.
    Melissa
    Follow the Yellow Brick Road to Our Wonderland

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  26. Love, love, love the meanings behind your sweet babies names! They are sooo perfect for them and so meaningful- I bet your family loves them as well since they are named after them! xoxo

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  27. I LOVE your kids' names and the meanings! You have some great family names. My son's name is Reid Preston. Reid is just a name we liked and Preston was my maiden name. Our daughter's name is Georgia Kate. There is not a special meaning behind it, but there is a fun story! She happened to be born on the same day as Prince George, but he wasn't named until a couple of days later. Everyone assumed we named her Georgia Kate (Georgia for George and Kate for Princess Kate) because they shared a birthday. :) Greer is one of my other favorite girl names and I saw that Georgia and Greer were both on your list! Fun!

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  28. My Hope would have been Landon had she been a boy! :) I LOVE that name (and I love this post!)!

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  29. Absolutely love your kids names! Love how you incorporate family names in their names. My little boy's name is Tate McCoy :) my husband picked out the name Tate and I knew that was it the first time he said it!

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  30. I love all your kiddos name!!! Griffin is so cute for a girl! I love names!!! I have a Greer!!' Her first name is Anna, after my grandmother who was so very special to us & Greer just because I loved it!! If we are ever blessed to have another girl, I too love the names Scout, Fallon, Blythe & Rowan!!! I will have to holler @ you & Shay to help😊

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