Name List

Shannon and I have been talking about potential baby names for years, narrowing down to a short list of first and middle names we both love, so when baby pops out naming her should be no harder than a multiple choice question. I like our long incubation period, because a name is kind of like a tattoo--do you really want a mermaid on your butt cheek when you're 83?

Maybe.

But we're not discussing tattoo's here. Or my butt cheek, left or right.

Anyways, Shannon and I keep telling ourselves we're not settling on a single name before the birth because we know several people that have had to change their mind when they saw their baby. My brother just did it last spring and Shannon, bless her little bisyllabic self, was supposed to be a Jessica. Despite our best efforts though, one name is leading the nominations.

It's perfect. It sounds beautiful but shortens well. It's not too common and not too weird. It looks pretty on paper and feels good to write. It's versatile. It has a suitable manifestation for whatever life pursuit little *BEEP* pursues. Etc. Etc.

And we're not going to tell you, or anyone, what it is. It's too easy to criticize a name before it's a person. And we'd rather not spend the next four months defending, persuading, or second guessing.

But--to appease you ravenous vultures--I present you with a shortlist...

...of names we will NOT be naming our child:

1) Brianrietta - although a personal favorite, this one didn't pass Shannon's rigorous screening process.

2) Kwanesha - NB. that does NOT exclude its variant: Qwanesha.

3) Hairb - even though a new surname may be in her future, there were a few tangles to work out with this one.

4) ???

Feel free to make your own suggestions in the comments. The list is short but it's not closed.