Not to want my daughter's initials to be 'S.H.A.G'

[NewUserNeedAdvice]

I'm not a troll, I promise. I just signed up today as I need some help. My husband is completely settled on the name Sophie for our baby. Our 2 middle names, Harriet and Anya are our parents middle names which we have to use as it's family tradition. However in the order that we thought of, it would spell SHA and our surname begins with a G Would our daughter be teased or would it be ok?

Good God swap it!

Oh god, yes change them. I'm a solicitor and initials are used for everything; references on client letters, court documents, cashier forms, part of email address, minutes of meetings.

I'm sure we can't be the only profession that does this.

Even assuming that she makes it through school without anyone realising, you're potentially lining her up for issues in the workplace in years to come.

People will notice, just swap them!

You have to swap them. Initials are used all the time (although I never reveal the existence of my much-hated middle name if I can avoid it). Your DD will seriously not thank you for the initials SHAG.

Also there's no "have to" about using family names. Your choice.

Very much in the change it camp

I've noticed you've put your husband is settled on the name Sophie. Are you happy with that too?

I think it'll get picked up on even if it were SAHG. And there's no law that you have to use parents' names as middle. Look forward to those teenage years when she is teased remorselessly and blames you.

And at work we use initials too!

There is a nearby school where the class is known by the teacher's initials ( so yr 6PJH etc) Can you imagine if your daughter became a teacher!!

In my job, I have to initial documents (including middle initial due to other staff members woth same first and last name) so yes, all initials are important!! I can't stress that enough!

I agree with abi - if you're set on Anya and Harriet then I'd change Sophie.

I can't imagine any reason why you wouldn't swap the middle names?

I never gave first letters of names any thought but this post make me think, my older boys first letters to the name comes out HMP lol sorry but it's too late I can't change it, my other sone is jap , I really wouldn't not worry about SHAG it can't be any worse then her mag prison . Not one person has ever said anything about my sons name not even my son. Now my question is should I point this out to him or take it to my grave. I'm sure he would of said something if he had thought about it.

And at my job it's your initials on every email.

[email protected]

My initials are S.A.S and it gets noticed occasionally, commented on sporadically. I would definitely swap the middle names.

zenna HMP is nothing compared to SHAG. I wouldn't even have known what HMP was without thinking about it.

[email protected]

Ask him how he would about being called Clive Unwin Neville Taylor, in honour of the two grandfathers.

Then just change the middle names around.

Is there a Daily Mail klaxon? I think this new poster's parenting problem would fly well in the press.

Yes, do not make her initials SHAG. I knew someone whose nickname was 'Digger', initials JCB.

I went to school with a "CRAP" and an ARSE - we were all vaguely amused by it (including them, they were my friends) - and we only knew because they told us, because middle name weren't on the register.

Also, yes, solicitors do use initials, but normally only the first and law unless someone in the office already had those then they add one extra, so it would be unlikely to be the legal catastrophe everyone is suggesting...

On the other hand, you could just swap them round! or not use Sophie, everyone is called bleeding Sophie

JAM or ARPG, as mentioned upthread are fairly innocuous (my DBro is JAM).

But SHAG is a different kind of word altogether. It will be an embarrassment to her, in her life, and your DH is putting his desire for that exact name above your DD's wellbeing.

I wouldn't even do it as an anagram. People are wrong when they say kids don'5 notice middle names. They go through a stage where they see what their names are like backwards, where they practice signatures, where (god help me) girls practice writing their names as if they are married to pop stars or fanciable boys in their school. They do fortune telling- all sorts of things where they use their whole name.

You don'5 have to do anything because it's a family tradition. Whose tradition is it anyway? Yours or his?

We use initials at our law firm too and lawyers are known by them so another no from me too.

Your DH needs to realise that family traditions were created in another era, before initials became so ubiquitous for EMs, memos, school, work etc

cauliflower