To find it so difficult to choose a middle name for child

[Mummaacul]

Choosing the middle name of my second child... so difficult!
Charlotte Maeve Hughes
Charlotte Florence Hughes
Charlotte Jill Hughes
Charlotte winnicott Hughes

I actually really like this for a middle name!

I'm also in the no-middle-name camp. Many people don't seem to consider that as a option.

You don’t have to use the middle name unless you want to. I have one and I pick and choose when I write it on forms.

Do any of those names have a particular significance for you? My mum died while I was pregnant and we used her name. My first child has DH's gran's name as a middlename.

If Winnicott has a family
connection, that’s the one I’d pick.

Children need a middle name so they know they are in serious trouble. My mother used to say, “XYZ, who do you think you are?”
My ex had a middle name the eldest daughter had been given for five generations in her family.

I’d choose a name (or two) with family significance.

In my (Irish) family the kids mostly have Irish first names and then some good old fashioned saints names as middles, which I think is a throw back to when the Catholic Church insisted on that!

I’m liking the flow of three syllables, and possibly alliteration - so she can be C.C Hughes

Carmella
Camilla
Calista
Camellia
Cordelia

In your case I probably would just not give her a middle name, because it's not compulsory. I don't think you should give her a middle name you don't love or that doesn't have significance for you just because. My children have family names that are meaningful to us as their middle names, which also happen to sound really nice with their first names which we chose because we loved them.

We usually try to honour family members with middle names, my mum has her mums name as one of her middle names, I have a version of my dads name as my middle name, one of my sisters has my mums name as her middle name, my eldest son has a version of both his grandmothers names as his middle name (they had the same name luckily), my youngest has a version of both his great grandmothers names as his middle name (very similar names again). Where we are living it's actually very common to use middle names instead of first names, and my youngest was born in Germany where they don't actually do middle names so technically he has two first names instead.

I just used family names as my sons middle names ,didn't give it thal much thought as they are never really used

This won't help you decide, but made me remember a true story that always makes me smile when i remember -A good friend of mine has parents ( both teachers) who were in the we dont believe in middle names school of thought, one day, we were nine/ ten at school ( the one her mother worked at, but with older classes) we got a new teacher who was going through the role asked us about our names, asked about nicknames, who we were named after, etc I'm guessing this was an exercise for her to help her remember the 30 plus girls in front of her with 4 Michelles and 4 Jennifers . Anyway she gets to my friend who possibly feeling her name was a bit plain, announced that her name was Sarah Daffodil ..surname and teacher said that's unusual and she said her sister (class below us) was Lynn Tulip.. to this day I call her Daffodil on cards etc. Her sister had no idea why ,when she left that school almost ten years later and they gave her a scroll with Lynn Tulip surname on it - the records at the school- the one their mum was still working at, had somehow been updated.

Every middle name in my family, is a tribute to a family member. I don't understand giving middle names that have no meaning, just because they 'sound nice' It's very rare that middle names are even mentioned. It's just nice to use them as a family connection. Some of ours go back several generations. At the very least, it's nice for a middle name to have some meaning that's important to you. If you want to honour two family members, use two middle names. It's not a big deal.

Please don't go with Winnicot. There's always one kid with an embarrassing middle name who's too embarrased to say it at school. Don't let that be your child.

We went with family names. DS1 has my dads name as a middle name. DS2 has my DH name as a middle name

Do any of your choices have a family significance? If so, I’d go with that. Both my DDs have family names as middle names and they like the extra link to people they love.

My DDs have middle names that sound nice with their first names. Nothing out there or they might find embarrassing to say out loud.

DS is going to have my family surname as his middle name (it’s a male name) because it is nice to bring my family into his name. DH is Irish so all 3 children have Irish names (my choice as much as DH’s) and we’ve all got his surname (again, my choice as much as DH’s).

Your suggestions:

Charlotte Maeve Hughes - sounds nice
Charlotte Florence Hughes - this would be my second choice
Charlotte Jill Hughes - not a fan of Jill
Charlotte winnicott Hughes - dreadful!

Don't then. Noone ever uses it.

Our dc each have one of our names as their middle name.

Friends have mother's maiden name as middle name for all dc.

Also know someone who has her own and sibling's middle names for her dc.

Maeve is my favourite of the above options though @Mummaacul

Florence is a lovely name, very pretty!

I think I'm the odd one out here...

We purposely picked a middle name that isn't connected to anyone or anything, just a nice new name for a new life - and if they wish to make it a tradition themselves then lovely. Plus our last name is super common so I think it can be handy sometimes!

I like Maeve 😊

Maeve!

I have always been known by my middle name. My Mum was from a family of 4 girls and 4 boys, all the girls were/are known by their middle name.
I was told that my Mum and Dad chose a list of names each and then went their favourite from each list, my first name was my Dads choice but my Mum chose to call me by her choice every day whilst my Dad was at work so that’s the name that became known as. The reason for them being the way round they are is the flow of the names.

I don’t have one. It has never bothered me. I just gave my kids family names as middle names because I don’t otherwise see the point of them.

I think a one syllable second name, sounds better, when you have a longer first name. Personal choice.