What's In a Name?

I never was the cheerleading type, so the name Missy never fit me. I pictured Missy to be a preppy name for girls who hung out with other girls named Buffy and Tiffany. But alas, this is the name my family has called me since birth.

My real name is Melissa. I did not discover this until I went to first grade, when there were two Missys in the class. The teacher decided I was to be called by my full name. I remember saying, “But that’s not my name!” My parents never told me my real name.  

Now, 33 years later my husband and I are faced with the important decision of naming our unborn daughter. We have two months to decide, which I think is plenty of time. But every day, I get at least one person asking me “Do you have any names?” I get this almost as often the touching of my belly (which I still don’t understand why total strangers feel the need to touch my pregnant belly – do they think they’re rubbing Buddha’s belly?).

Most pregnant women I know have their baby’s name picked out before they’re halfway through the pregnancy. I’ve seen many baby registries with the unborn baby’s name. But of course, party pooper me always has those “What if?” questions. What if you advertise a boy’s name to every one and it comes out a girl? What if the baby is born and it doesn’t “look like” the name you’ve picked out for it?  

One thing I want to avoid is giving her a name everyone else has. In the last five years, Emily, Madison, Ava and Olivia have dominated the top 10 baby girl names. I could follow the trend of naming her after a city – Brooklyn, Savannah and London have been gaining popularity. Or, I could go the route of the celebrity baby name trend. It seems celebrities are always looking for their next big PR move. We have Ashley Simpson and Pete Wentz’s son Bronx Mowgli, Jason Lee’s baby Pilot Inspektor, and comedian Penn Jilette’s baby Moxie Crimefighter. What ever happened to names like Mary, Elizabeth, and Caroline?  

Fourteen years ago, I named my daughter Simone. I thought it was (and still do) think it is a nice name with a French flair – something that was both sophisticated and exotic without being too unusual. I never dreamed this name would cause my daughter so much heartache. Substitute teachers often botch up the pronunciation, calling her “Simon” in class. I can’t tell you how many times the nurse at the doctor’s office comes out to call “Simon” back into the exam room. Now, she complains to me about her name on a daily basis. I am sure one day she will grow to accept the name and relish the fact that she’s not a Madison, Emily or Ava.  

So this time, I will give the baby book to my husband. He has never had a child before, so he can take on this responsibility for the next two months. For now, I don’t mind having a question mark in my belly. We have time.