How much / little did you ponder/ agonise over names?

I had LOADS of names for each but dh is a fussy bugger so he said no to most of them.

It was hard work, I'm a bit geeky about names so I'm very picky but I managed to make a list. I did have a family name I loved for a long time but ex hated it and he hated everything except one name on the list and even then he didn't like the full name just the nickname which he would have been happy to use so we went with that.

Boys names, no problem.

Always wanted to call any son I had his name. ds2 is called s short version of "Tobias" as it means "gift from god" and we are very blessed to have him

Girls names were a bit more problematic...we really struggled to agree but came up with;

Ds1 would have been Caitlin Rose

Ds2 would have been Lucy Elinor

I looked through one baby book of names from about 28 weeks onward (didn't want to look before because of bizarre superstition it would make something go wrong with pregnancy). Found i spent ages reading up on the meanings of bizarre would never use names, and started to worry when i'd only reached the "D"s by about 32 weeks!

Eventually made up a shortlist of about 10-15 names but dh and i struggled to agree a top 2/3/5. I was utterly convinced ds was a boy and didn't even bother much with girls names. I was right thank goodness.

So when ds was born we really weren't much further forward than we started. Fortunately my mum had said not to worry, just wait till you see the baby and the name will fit. She was so right. 24 hours after ds birth, a name just kept coming into my head for him, was on shortlist but was worried cos it is very popular (apparently). I told dh when he came in to visit that morning, and he agreed and said it was the name he had first thought when he woke up that morning! It suits ds down to the ground, and despite its popularity, have only met one other boy with the same name here (scotland) - must be more popular down south i think.

so don't worry, wait till you meet your baby and the name will come!

DS (Leo) was super easy - not even sure which if us suggested it as it was obvious to both of us what he would be. Liked the meaning and the history of it. Never had a girl's name agreed for him as we couldn't find any we both loved so they just hung around on a shortlist.

DD (Genevieve) - had boy's name in an instant again but struggled again with girls - most of shortlist from DC1 had been discarded!. We didn't discuss it endlessly but towards the end of pregnancy did start trawling the name books in panic. Her name came to us only a week or two before she was born - turns out it was a name we both really liked but for some reason hadn't thought about in previous discussions. It was only agreed when she was born and she was obviously none of the other shortlisted names and this just seemed to suit her more.

Middle names are family ones so no problems pickig those at least!

We clearly are completely in sync on boys' names but poles apart on girls!

We have 3 dc, none of whom had a name at 5 weeks. They all got names in the end but we realy struggled.

As we were surprised by DD's conception, we hadn't discussed names prior to me becoming pregnant. My only stipulation was that we didn't have a family name (DH called after his uncle, I am after my dad, grandad, great grandad........) or a religious name. DD was duly born and we had her name in place, when I went to register her the woman in the hospital kept asking me for more names. After four I said that was enough. DH was moderately surprised that I hadn't consulted him but agreed with what I had chosen.
MIL wanted to know why DD wasn't either called after her or had the name Mary somewhere in her line up.

Quite a bit - Looked through baby name books and thought about name meanings, had a look at both family trees for inspiration,checked the Office for National statistics site to make sure it was the right balance of well known but not too popular, searched MN for previous threads about the name, googled the chosen name with our surname and discussed it between ourselves at least once a day in the time between BFP to birth.

My friend told me recently that she didn't even know what her DD's name meant. I called her a wierdo

We looked at a few books and lists and spent the whole time finding names we'd never dream of calling a child. We were certain we were having a boy, because my husband's side of the family is all boys and really couldn't find any boys names we liked.

DD then arrived 13 weeks early. When we found she was a girl we looked at each other in shock (like we weren't shocked enough, having a baby at 27 weeks) and said 'How did we manage that?!'

However, we had a holiday booked for my maternity leave which we couldn't go on due to the premature birth, and luckily it wasn't to Bognor or similar, and so we called DD Skye (Which was a name we'd discussed and quite liked)! Middle name is my middle name and my late MIL's name.

Very little! My wife had already had a good think about names before each of our three, and we kinda discussed them over various meals, she just listed them and I said whether I liked them or not.

It was a bit like:

"Jack?"
"Na"
"William?"
"Yeah that's OK"
"Harvey?"
"Na"

"Tyler?"
"Yeah"
"Yeah I really like that one too."
"Tyler it is then."

Pretty simple really, I envisaged spending months writing out lists but it just kind of came to us. Actually with DS3 we asked DS1 and DS2 what names they liked, and they came up with Oscar, so we called him that :)

Girl's name was easy as we have both loved it for years. Luckily we had a DD. Eventually there was a name for a DS but it took tonnes of discussion.

Before I was pg with DD DH and I were talking about names and I said a girls name that I particularly liked. When I fell pregnant and we found out we were having a girl DH decided that the name I had suggested was the name he wanted to use. I couldn't drag him away from it - not that I wanted to - I love the name! DD has that name.

Ages before this pregnancy, before ttc even, I did the same and mentioned another girls name I liked "should we ever have another." Since getting pregnant again DH has, again, decided that that is the name he wants to use. I couldn't change my mind even if I wanted to.

Boys names are more difficult for us. Until the 20 week scan we argued and argued about boys names. Fortunately we're having another little girl so by March we will have 2 DDs whose names were chosen before each of them were even conceived!

DH and I mulled over a shortlist for a few months before DD was born. The instant she was born we both knew which name was hers.

DC2 now cooking and we're nowhere near a shortlist. This one may be 'baby' for a few weeks after arrival! Particularly if a boy, I just don't like any boys names at all...

Boy's name was easy and decided before we even conceived. Girl's name has been agonizing and we haven't even reached a decision yet. We have quite different tastes so it's hard finding a name we both like and even then I am not sure which is my favourite. We have managed to get to a shortlist now though but I still keep looking, just in case! I'm 37 weeks.

I agonized. DH did not. For DD1, I went over and over baby name books, internet, etc & did a whole list of names. DH refused to look until we knew if it was a girl or boy. Then he vetoed everything I suggested. Finally I tried an old favourite of mine that I thought he'd never go for--and he went for it!! Really suits DD1.

Same with DD2, only he just wouldn't agree to anything. In the end I told him that if he couldn't come up with something we both liked, I would name her Margaret (I loved, he hated) and about 2 seconds later he suggested her name and that was that. Why he couldn't have done it weeks ago!!

DH and I are horribly indecisive usually. But with baby names we decided on a girl and boy's name for our first at 5 weeks over a pub lunch in 5 mins and stuck to the boy's name. And probably less time for DS2 as it was a name we liked during our first 5min discussion over boys names! Kinda weird to be so quick and decisive - but its like finding the house you like - it was just what instinctively felt right and we both knew immediately.

I had one name (a boy's name) in mind (first name and 2 middle names). Had wanted the fist name all my life. DH didn't know. We found out sex at 20 week scan, and fortunately baby was a DS. On way home I said "So that'll be XXX YYY ZZZ" and DH agreed (v traditional names, inc PIL's). A few weeks later we tried to agree on girl's names just in case, and git nowhere. DS has the name XXX YYY ZZZ.

DD we had a shortlist of 3 names we had agreed on through a process of elimination. She got one of those instantly. Within minutes of her brth we turned to each other and both said the same name.

DS1 got the only boys name we could both agree on. Not a favourite of either but at least we agreed. Of course I now love it because I love him.

DS2 didn't have a name for 5 days. We had agreed on just one boys name, but when he appeared it just didn't suit him. So that was us stumped! In the end the mw (we were in hopsital awhile as baby was ill) suggested a name. I thought um yes that's nice. I told DH when he came in to visit he said yes that's good and so that was it! The mw named him! LOL

Sorry, just reread the OP. It took us about 5 minutes each time. We more or less decided on the 1st name we both liked.It's not rocket science after all.
They also all have middle names, chosen after family members, chosen from both sides so no one felt left out.

About 5 minutes.

We called my DS2 'baby bear' for weeks.. Then i, my DS1, my mum, best friend ,XP and his 2 daughters had a tea party, drew up a shortlist and voted.. it was fun!

So far...10 years...but suppose I need to get pregnant first haha

DH and I looked at books, made lists but didn't spend very long. He said what about X? I said okay and that was that.

Loads of books, websites. It was really important to me. My name v important to me.

DD was 12 days early, by then we had a shortlist of about 30-40 names, when she was 3 days old we managed to sit down and got it down to five including a totally new one inspired by a midwife.

Next day, hid the list as dp's parents visiting, and didn't want to know what they though! Day after; dp came to hospital in morning and we very shyly told each other that we'd fallen in love with one of the names. Luckily we'd both gone for the same name!

I would probably have won the day I think, esp. as dp was getting the surname! but I'm glad it was mutual.

I really struggled and dithered, particularly with girls' names. Did have names I loved when I was younger, but I'm not 16 anymore and had long gone off calling my children Waterfall or Serenade! Thank goodness.... We had girl and boy first and middle names decided at the end, but only after lots of indecision. I ended up calling DS a name I'd loved for a long time but blacklisted till a the last minute because it's so popular now.