Unpleasant comments you have received when revealing baby name

[Polkadotfanatic]

My friend has just had a daughter (Monday morning, all new and pink and fresh and gorgeous). She has chosen Alice Elizabeth, (imo) a timeless classic name which wont age.

Her mother's comment:

''Oh. Playing it safe are you?''
''Well I suppose someone has to use the boring names so the braver people can use the nicer ones...''

I mean as comments go, it's not the nastiest, but the timing (Alice was about four hours old and friend was in blissed out baby loveness) wasn't great.

Just wondered what, if any negative comments you had when announcing baby name...

cabbage - I must have been asked about a dozen times if I'm a big Knight Rider fan

We have an Esme, Bruno and Queenie and have been asked on a few occasions why we never gave our children "normal" names. To that I just reply that "normal" is a setting on the washing machine and I never intended to name my children after washing machines. Folk can be so hurtful....!

Someone I work with asked if I was going to train dtd1 to yodle - her name's Heidi. A good friend also made the chlamydia Lydia comment when I was pg with dd1 - we ignored him and called her Lydia... he tends to call her Lydi or Lyds. I love my 3 girls' names so couldn't care less what people think. Love Alice Elizabeth - wonderfully classic.

I actually expected comment on dtd2s name - Kitty - but haven't had any so far.

I was convinced I was having a boy and so we'd finalised boys names but not girls. Sure enough, DD arrived and we made the mistake of telling parents-in-law that we were trialling our DD's name whilst we decided. MIL then proceeded to come up with long list of other names, despite us having told her that DD's name was from our shortlist. Alice Elizabeth is a lovely name.

"Oh so there's no way you can change it now?" -MIL on hearing we'd registered our DD's name.

"Oh don't call the second one William! It's sooo boring! There's been loads in the family already!" MIL yet again when we made the stupid mistake of talking about names with her. Poor DP. He thougth she'd have been thrilled as it's her family there are loads of Williams including her dad. She then went on to suggest Sam (which rhymes with my name!) Finley and James instead of William. You know, really unusual names...

BTW Alice Elizabeth is a lovely name. Good, strong and traditional.

My DD was called Alice Elizabeth Cecilia (she shared my 2 middle names) so I think they are great names. Very rude to comment on someones choice of names if not positive. Better to stay silent and give encouraging smile.

I have to admit when I found out the name of my SIL's firstborn I said 'are you serious??' Both my parents disliked it too.

I was a bit 'o-kaaaaay' about their second child's name too. Very American.

I don't know the sex of my baby yet, but we've settled on a girl's name and middle name and we're holding firm to it (if she IS a girl) and in fact the reason I'm visiting this board is to get some ideas for a boys name.

We've told our families about the name we've chosen for a girl and neither of them commented on whether they liked it or not, so I've taken that to mean they need to get used to it.

Wait til we are MIL's. I am sure we'll be completely insensitive and judgemental. I know I'l be first in the queue to make HUGE cock ups! We'll all log onto MIL's net.com to seek advice and ask "Am I being unreasonable to think that my DiL is call her child cabbage&beans to hurt my feelings?". Every time we do something in this life it is for the first time. Being a MIL may come naturally to some and not so to others.

A neighbour on DD's name [Isobel]: oh [face of disdain].... well, I suppose at least it can be shortened. Is she named after somebody?

Me: no, we just liked it. Her middle name is Edith after her great grandmother.

Neighbour: Oh [raised eyebrow]. Well, it takes all sorts!

LOL.

"Oh... well I suppose you can call her Ellie."

Well we could, but that's not her name is it.

"I like Frances."

Bully for you?

DD's name is neither Ellie nor Frances.

My dad was expecting me to give ds a name from the country where my dad was born for some reason. When I didn't, he actually stopped talking to me for 2 weeks.

Don't listen. It is a beautiful name!

On returning home from hospital with my perfect baby i called my mum for a chat and to tell her the name and she said "what was your second choice?"

When we announced DS's name - Cooper - my aunt emailed to say
"Did I know that Cooper is a barrel maker?" and that it clashed with our surname (which begins with a P), but that the middle name we'd chosen was "OK."
We replied to say that we'd sent them an naming announcement, not a RSVP.

I'm not exactly guiltless though. I always thought that Ogg, the middle name of one of the babies in my NCT group was rather odd. I just noticed on Facebook that her it's her father's surname!

A colleague said of our new DS: "Why did you call him X????" in tones of great amazement. Er, because we liked it?

I met a friend from yesteryear who I had not seen for years whilst I was still in hospital. She wanted to know what I had named my new baby, and also the two of my sister, and when I told her she gasped dramatically and cried, "I LOVE all those names!"

No doubt she didn't really, but I've decided for myself that this is the only correct response to hearing new babies' names. What does someone else's personal taste matter over the parents' feelings, after all...

I also know an Alice Elizabeth. Beautiful name (and darling girl)

My mum wasn't thrilled with DSs name (it happens to be the name of an old boyfriend of hers 40 years ago) and did the "I'll call him by his middle name" thing too.
My Dsis and I had unusual names for our generation, and had the piss taken when we were at school, but these days primary schools seem to be stuffed to the rafters with really unusual names, it's really not such a big deal anymore. When I ran DSs shortlist of names by my niece and nephews for the playground check, they said they were all fine, and then randomly said "Ethan! That's a funny name!" Riiiight.... There's a boy called Jango in his class, and he thinks Ethan is weird!

Meadow Penny??? Hilarious! Alice Elizabeth is a lovely name. MILs are all old bags anyway.

Guilty as charged.. When DD had No.4 her DH choose the name.

It just didn't seem to "go" with the other 3.

DD's middle name is Rose and I said can't I just call her Rose?

Promise I was only joking.

She's now 2.5 and she looks like a little rose petal.

When DGD was born I said in passing. Why don't you call her after your Nan.

Not tht I was all that taken with MIL but I loved her name.

Grace Victoria.

Sadly MIL passed away today and I'm hoping if DS ever has any DC he will consider his Nan's name.

Firstly, balls to em all we earn the right to name our babies!!! Secondly my baby was Freja Evangeline and just the usual "she will get picked on at school" comments although that was mainly about her initials FEWC. X

DD had just been born and dh rang his parents in Ireland to tell them.
Mil on the phone"Oh ...(muffled conversation with fil) oh no,we don't like that at all"
Oh fuck off you pair of insensitive twats

I asked my DM what she thought of our DTs names (Roderick -Roddy for short, and Eliza). She said Eliza is lovely, but as you haven't registered the names yet why not change to Robbie instead!?!