Name Watch

Ok, I am officially watching for these "celebs" to announce the birth of their babes and even more their names! Here are my guesses:

~ Jill and Derick Dillard: Henry Richard, Noah Richard, or Asher Richard. I'm assuming that Richard is his dad's name (think I read that somewhere).

~ Duke and Duchess of Cambridge: I hope it's a GIRL! Alice Mary Diana. How adorable will a little Princess Alice be??? If it's a boy my guess is Arthur Philip Leopold. 

~ Back to the Duggars. Josh and Anna Duggar: They are expecting their 4th child, a girl. They have a "M" theme with Mackynzie, Michael, and Marcus. I think Mallory would be so sweet!

The Parenthood Series Finale and Braverman Names

     Last Thursday was the series finale of the NBC series Parenthood. I enjoyed watching the Braverman family week in and week out and will miss the show. 
     As you know, I have a deep interest in all things names :) One of the characters, Amber, has been expecting all season long. So of course, I couldn't wait to find out if she was going to have a little girl or a little boy, and most importantly, what was she going to name him/her! Well, in the next to last episode, she gave birth to a beautiful little boy who she named Zeek---after her great grandfather and one of the main characters on the show. I thought that was very fitting, since he is the patriarch of the family, the one they all look up to and respect and love. He also was facing significant health issues, and it was a nice way for her to honor him. 
     Fast forward a week later to the series finale. The very last episode. One of the couples, Joel and Julia, were offered the opportunity to adopt a little girl-the sister of their adopted son. And they took the opportunity! So of course, I'm like, "Oooh, what are they going to name her?!" But, it is never mentioned. Instead, the ending took a different approach. Zeek the patriarch passed away, and as the Braverman family scattered his ashes on the baseball field and then played a game, we see an overview of several important moments in each of the characters' lives: Max's graduation; Christmas morning with the adopted daughter AND another baby---a boy; Crosby and Jasmine who is obviously expecting another baby working in the studio; family dinner with Amber and her husband and a daughter. Basically, it was showing that everyone's life carried on as you would expect. It was a wonderful ending to a great show. But I can't help but wonder---what would those new Braverman children be named? And so, here is what I would like to think those unnamed characters would be named if the show had continued. (Let my fun begin!)

A Quick Review of the Family:

~Zeek and Camille Braverman
     Adam, Sarah, Crosby, and Julia

~Adam and Kristina Braverman
     Haddie, Max, and Nora

~Sarah Braverman
      Amber and Drew
         -Amber: Zeek and daughter

~Crosby and Jasmine Braverman
       Jabbar, Aida, and brother or sister

~Joel and Julia Graham
        Sydney, Victor, adopted daughter, and baby son


Ok, so Amber is a really cool girl. So, I think she would pick a pretty cool name for her daughter. Something that fits with Zeek. Hazel. Yep. I think Hazel fits perfectly!

Now, on to Crosby and Jasmine's baby. She was pregnant in the overview, so we don't know the gender. But, we do know that their children, Jabbar and Aida, have names of Arabic origin with great meanings. Jabbar means powerful, mighty, and Aida means happy. So, they would likely choose a name of similar origin with a nice meaning. Maybe something like Kahlil for a boy- meaning friend or Nadira for a girl- meaning precious, rare. Ah! The more I think about it, those are such perfect fitting names for their family!

And lastly, Joel and Julia. We know they adopted Victor's half-sister. But, what did they name her? This family is the trickiest. I'm not exactly sure what their name style is, lol. I can see them naming her Abigail. As for their son, I imagine his name being Nolan. Sydney, Vicor, Abigail, and Nolan make a great sibset! 

Whew! That was fun! :) I should be a name consultant for writers hahaha.

I Am a Nerd

     Attention: I AM A NERD. A name nerd. I have an unusual interest in all things names. It is not uncommon for me to ask friends, family members, or strangers what they are going to name their babies whether or not they are expecting. It is also not unusual for me to know meanings of random names, lol. I love encountering rare and unusual names. Not a day goes by that I don't think about the perfect name combination. I wish I could be the official baby namer for some hospital or village, lol. Oh what a glorious job that would be! Better yet, I could be Candace, the Baby-Naming Fairy, complete with a set of butterfly wings to fly me to and fro across the world visiting parents struggling with finding the right name. I would wave my magic wand and dub children of the world beautiful appellations like Francesca, Milo, Atticus, Arden, Rowan, Betsy, Hugo and Juniper! The possibilities are absolutely endless!:! I know you think I've lost it now, lol.  Anyway, back to what I was saying. For all you non-name-nerds out there, last week the social security administration released the baby name data from 2013. They release the data each year and have since 1880. I LOVE poring over these lists and rankings. I completely nerded out over this data, lol. This probably sounds so weird, but trust me, I am not alone! I have discovered tons of other name nerds out there. Bloggers, vloggers, and instagrammers, all who love names just as much and probably more than me! So, join us in all the fun and discover a new passion! :) 

Royal Baby Name: My Choices

     Have I ever mentioned that I love names?? ;)  Well, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate, are expecting their first child. The royal baby is expected to arrive any day now. There are reports that there are bets on everything from the baby's gender and name to when the baby will be born. I thought it would be fun to make my prediction for the names. Just for fun, lol. So, here goes nothing! Royal baby will be

Alice Caroline Diana Victoria

or

George Arthur Philip William

I personally think it is a girl. I think it would be so cute if they have a little princess Alice! I guess we will all have to wait and see........

Family Tree and "Jewells" of Names

     About a year ago, my Aunt Dianne asked me to redraw a family tree for the annual family reunion. This reunion is on my dad's mother's side of the family. I think I have been once, right after I graduated from high school. I really don't know very many of the people that attend simply because they are such distant relatives. Nevertheless, I felt I should attempt to draw this family tree. Let me just say, it is a huge family! My grandmother was one of nine children! And she alone had seven children, so you can imagine how big and complicated this tree is. There are roughly 281 names on it. Whoa! Something interesting I discovered is that my great-grandmother got married when she was 14 years old!!! She had her first child at age 15 and her last one at age 33. I could not even imagine. Here I am 29 years old and single as ever, lol! What a different life it must have been 100 years ago. My own grandmother got married at age 25, which I find interesting because I thought most people got married really young back then. I never met my biological grandfather, but have seen pictures of him. He was a handsome fella! I would have loved to hear how they met and fell in love. 

The top is the original; the bottom is my version-couldn't resist putting a swing on the tree and a bird nest in the tree! :)

     Anyone who really knows me well, knows that I have an obsession interest in names. :) I just love to discover unique or interesting names. As I was working on this project, I discovered some "Jewells" of names. Jewell was one of my dad's uncles. I like the name Jewel, but have to say I definitely picture it more on a girl this day in age. Other interesting names that caught my eye:

Shelby-the patriarch of the family

Lula-matriarch of the family

Estelle

Ruth-had to include this as it is my grandmother!

Vanessa

Millie-love this name!

Genell-yet another lovely

Royal-how cool

Delphine-loving this for some reason

Ophelia

Dorinda (Dorie)

Mariela-very pretty

Pearlie-believe it or not, this was a man!

There were lots and lots of the following as first and middle names:

Lloyd

Elzey

Shelby

Jewell

Elma