We've got it down to 4 for each - honest opinions if you please

[blueberryink]

Boys

Zebedee James
Zebedee Andrew
Zephyr Andrew
Zeno Eddy

Girls

Iona Mary
Ida Mary
Ines Catherine
Iona Catherine

Love Zebedee and Ida! I don't see why Zebedee is any more strange than Florence, Brian or Dylan (all other Magic Roundabout characters). Also, I don't see why a child would be teased due to the Magic Roundabout which finished in the late 70s!

Oh, it finished in the 1970s - no wonder I'd not heard of it .

PMSL at "oh it finished in the 1970s" - it's been back on in new and improved format for some time, and even has a full length feature film.

Have you thought about all 3 initials? ZE or ZA could produce something weird depending on what your surname is. I'd play it safe with Andrew James instead.

Oh jesus no, think of the children, won't somebody PLEASE think of the children

I like Zeno and Zeb (not zebedee even on birth cert)
Then for a girl I like Iona.

<a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=zebedee&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7ADBS_en&tbm=isch&tbnid=9YihEo7gTgmVcM:&imgrefurl=www.virginmedia.com/homefamily/kids/magicroundabout/meet-the-characters.php%3Fssid%3D6&docid=GKCCwAgpR5HU2M&w=358&h=500&ei=TQ99TpqyBISy8gPm1fiOAQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=84&vpy=138&dur=219&hovh=265&hovw=190&tx=84&ty=128&page=1&tbnh=115&tbnw=82&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0&biw=1024&bih=600" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">zebedee

I know lots of children called Zak or Zach or Zack. I have never ever met anyone called Zebedee, so by dfefinition it is more unusual. Maybe children haven't heard of Magic Roundabout. Adults have tho.

Florence has many other associations (eg Nightingale). Dylan is Bob Dylan. Dougal is not a name I have heard for a child for a fair old while...

Ines Catherine is v sweet. The boys' names are hideous imho.

I like Zebedee as a name! But couldn't name a boy like that, so we've named our cat Zebedee! He gets called Zeb or Zebbie, most of the time! Zebedee when we're angry at him

I like Zebedee James and Ida Mary

I never normally intervene in these sorts of threads but if you introduced your DS to me as Zebedee I would try to look serious but then I would keel over laughing the minute you had left the room.
So would everyone I know.

Round us too, state and private, a boy called Zebedee (in full) would get lots of pretty unpleasant teasing, and Zephyr too. I like all the girls names.

How about Zebediah rather than Zebedee, still got great potential for shortening but without the small red ball on a spring connatations.