AbbyMN needs your "things to consider when choosing a baby's name" advice...

Make sure it does not rhyme.

If you are going for a foreign name, use one that the majority of your friends/neighbours can pronounce. We knew a German/American family who named their DS Ethan, the German MIL pronounced her GS's name "Eeezzzan".

There are some sounds that are difficult to pronounce in a different language, for the Germans "th", for the Brits "-e" such as Ute or Renate.

Don't make your child go through life being called Oooty because noone can pronounce Ute properly

don't be so scared of what other people will think, it is only a name and there are plenty of other opportunities for judging.

although i suppose if you are worried about that then maybe your children will be too and it is self-fulfilling. hmm.

I agree with FrannyandZooey. Tell NO-ONE your choice of name as there will always be someone who hates it/ had a cat named it/ thinks it sounds like furniture polish etc, etc, etc. And don't cave in when you do choose something unusual. My Mum hated my DS's name (told me it was unlucky WTF?) and even on the morning of his birth told me she thought it was horrible. Be prepared to consistantly correct those people in your family who don't like the name and abbreviate/ change it. My GMIL called my 1st DN a different name til she died as she didn't like the one he had .

I strongly agree with not telling anyone your referred names beforehand. We made that mistake and our 1st daughter isn't what she should have been due to MIL and her big mouth, and our boys name was pilfered from under our very noses by someone in my family! (Not that we have a boy, but we could have...)

If you have a long surname, then choose shorter first names so that fitting their name onto forms is less of a problem.

Think about greeting your bank manager/GP/MP with your chosen name - it might be cute to call a baby Apple, but its not going to help their image if they choose a serious career.

If you want a really unusual name (DS has one) then its nice to choose something that can be shortened to sound more "normal" and to give them a conventional middle name that they could choose to use instead

I'm repeating things, but always with the initials.

Also try to avoid aliteration - it can be rather naff.
Pick a name that will suit your child whatever he/she ends up doing for a living.

Use a full name, not a nickname. 'Danny' is nice, but 'Daniel' may be preferable in certain circumstances. Give them the option.

DO not give all your kids the same initial. As well as the post issue, it shows lack of imagination.

Do NOT tell ANYONE what name you are planning in advance
someone will always say they don't like it, which will probably upset you and may well embarrass them later when you still go with that name
announce it when baby is born instead
someone would have to be seriously rude to say they don't approve at that point

I would also advise having a 1000 post thread to ask for ideas
worked for me

and if you go for a unisex name try to give a middle name that is gender specific. Saves embarrassment on class lists. I have an old family friend whose child is called Robin Ashley. Now I assume it's a boy but could be either (we haven't seen them for years)

When you are saying it out loud don't just say the whole lovely beautiful name middle name surname combo. Try it just as first name surname, which is the usual way people will use it.

if you are going to give an unusual first name, go for a "sensible" middle name

DS has a name which isn't mega unusual but not that common and also unisex!

i assume she married so its all ok!

I still think candy a lovely name

bitoffun My brother actually went to school with a Peter Ness. He had a brother named Robert.

• did she marry Mr Albicans?

I used to attend drama class with a Candida Beavers and no this is not a joke

lovely girl

delightful

i never thought her name odd until much later in life

Abby - my last three children have relatively different names

however much i LOVE LOVE LOVE tem - it is very hard introducing them to the world

out on the street - in boots - checkout in tesco etc - my names may sound fine within the confines of my home but amongst ordinary people i often find it hard to 'spit them out' so to speak

a deathly hush falls upon us when asked their names

I look at dp and await his input

this is usually nothing compared to the hush that follows the announcement but this bit i am used to...!!

a few years on i can holler R or M with the best of them ....4 months into baby N - I am still very

AND think of diseases eg Candida - oh yes.

Oh yes the initials

Myself my dad and my mum all have the same first initial (me and mum have same first and second).

My brother got away with it as they couldn't think of a name they liked with our initial

Does the name suit the child?
I knew of a little girl named Zephyr who was more akin to a hurricane.

Go for different initial for ds and dh, it will save LOTS of embarassment when ds is older and also is known as Mr (same initials as dad)

Never become a teacher; the chances of you finding a name that has not forever been tarnished by some little s**t that you once taught will be dramatically reduced.

Think about shouting it up the street or in the supermarket. If you're too embarassed, it isn't good!

No you just spend hours searching all the gift shops in teh resort hoping that 1 is spelt correctly.

Or you can find DC1 and DC3 but not DC2 so DC2 gets upset because they are not popular. DC1 and DC3 get upset because they can see theirs but you won't let them have it.

Not only that...but as a child my own father bought me a mug with my name on it...but it was spelt wrong He didn't think it would matter .