My list v his list - help us find a happy medium or suggestions, please?

[Babymakesthree]

Hiya all, first post, first baby, first discussion with fiancée this evening re our daughter's name. (Due date is September 9th). I've been canvassing these boards for a while and it has been suggested before that both parties make a list of eg. ten and then see what common ground you have.

It appears I like popular, vintagey pretty girl's names and DP likes more stoic, classic solid names (this is not a criticism at all, an observation on the both of us...)

I would be grateful if you could assess both our name lists and help us find that happy medium we clearly need.... :) Thanks in advance.

HIS LIST

Elizabeth / Sarah/ Eleanor / Michelle / Victoria / Olivia / Emmeline / Harriet

MY LIST

Phoebe/ Isobel / Romilly/ Florence/ Georgia/ Thea/ Polly / Alice

From his list I could 'bear' Olivia at a push and perhaps Elizabeth, but with the nn Betty or something like that. From my list he says he could only tolerate Alice - but that he would think of the song everytime.

Perhaps I am being selfish by not saying 'problem solved- she'll be an Olivia' but fiancée has suggested that we will have to start again from the beginning and pick a name that makes us both smile :)

HELP!! :)

Maybe Alicia or Emma?

Elizabeth with the nn Betsy!

Eliza
Elise
Livia
Zara
Eloise
Evangeline
Olive
Etta
Evelyn
Emily
Amelie
Imogen
Annabel
Flora
Martha
Mabel
Maud

Could you choose one of each? First name and middle name?

Olive

I think both lists are lovely. I do know several Alices and I have to say my neandertahl DH does sing that dreadful song every time!
If I was pushed, I would choose Harriet off his list. I wouldn't chose Phoebe because of the dreadful woman of the same name on Made In Chelsea. I know a precocious Georgia so wouldn't choose that. But seriously, they are all lovely names.

Harriet is lovely.

What about
Margot

Annabel

Rosanna

Christobel

Marianne

Lara

Lucy

I actually like both your lists! I'm sure you can find a name you both love. A couple of ideas:
Sadie
Nancy
Esme
Connie
Caroline

I prefer your husbands list particularly elizabeth nn bessie or victoria. how about francesca.. lots of nickname potential.

Elizabeth, Sarah and Georgia are lovely the rest are yuk imo.

I have seen lists that are further apart. I think there are names that you just haven't thought of yet that you both could like.

He is not put off by a dated name (michelle /Victoria), but on the whole his names are fairly classic and so are yours. I'd guess he dislikes Romilly and Thea the most from your list?

I'd suggest some names that have been around long enough to sound familiar to him (but have never been exhausted like Michelle or Victoria)

What about

Juliet
Julia
Louisa
Rachel
Susannah
Jillian
Melanie

I like the suggestions of Marianne, Caroline, Annabel. They might sound familiar enough to him.

I think you will find a name you both like! Your tastes aren't totally polarised.

Anna
Bethany
Clara
Jane
Naomi
Grace
Sophia
Rebecca
Abigail
Lydia
Jessica
Cassia
Charlotte
Felicity
Jasmine
Louisa
Christina
Ruby
Larissa
Miranda
Penelope/Penny

The only ones I really like are Olivia and Georgia. Thea is ok.
Certainly not keen on Michelle, Florence, Harriet, Polly or Romilly.

Sorry for any reapeats but how about:
Charlotte / Lottie
Sofia / Sophie
Anna / Hannah
Bethan / Bethany
Julia / Juliette
Caroline / Carolyn
Cara / Cora / Clara / Carla
Rosalie / Rosa
Isla
Amelia
Kirsten / Kirsty
Madeline
Margot
Helena
Mia / Maya

I think your tastes are very similar!
Bit classic / old fashioned, bit flowery.

I am sure you will find something you both like easily by September. :)

Before I found out I was having a boy this time, my favourite names for a second DD were:

Clara
Emmeline (on your list!)
Ottillie
Sophia
Beatix

A mix of old fashioned and feminine I guess!

If DH doesn't like Georgia, what about Georgiana. I've always loved that and it's in the same vein as Victoria and Elizabeth.

Your lists don't seem that far apart to me.

In the Olivia and Alice vein, how about:

Annabel, Alexandra, Abigail, Amy, Bethany, Bryony, Charlotte, Catherine, Emily, Emma, Erin, Esther, Francesca, Felicity, Grace, Georgina, Hannah, Imogen, Jessica, Joanna, Julia, Katie, Laura, Leah, Lydia, Mary, Madeleine, Melissa, Matilda, Natalie, Natasha, Naomi, Rebecca, Rachel, Rhiannon, Robyn, Sophie, Sylvia, Tabitha, Violet, Xanthe, Zoe, Zara.

I think Elizabeth with Betty or Betsy would be a good compromise. Otherwise my first thoughts on overlap names were:

Beatrice
Rose or a variation of (eg Rosa or Rosalie)
Marianne
Cora
Violet
Lois
Louisa
Josephine
Faye
Nina
Penelope

Any good?

I think your issue here is that he likes names he is familiar with, and has therefore chosen names he recognises from his generation, and your names probably sound quite alien or old-fashioned to him.
Harriet is lovely, as is Emmeline, but Michelle? far too dated.

I don't think you should go with Olivia if you don't love it. The final decision should be yours, men don't understand babynames

I agree with your OH- you both need a name/names that you both really like. As you said, he could tolerate a name off of your list and you could go with a few off of his but it doesn't sound like any of them are a "yes!" name for either of you. (though Alice is beautiful )

From looking at both your lists it seems like you have a lot of common ground (at least one of you isn't traditional and the other ultra-modern) so I don't think it will be hard for you to draw up a short list together of your favourites.

Elizabeth will get called Liz...

I agree with FetaCheeny - he's picked names from his generation, DH did the same when discussing names for DC1, by the time i was pregnant with DC2, he'd had 3 years of metting little DCs with the "old fashioned" names and was more open to less dull 80's sounding names. Do you habe friends with small DCs? Start introducing him to the more current sounding names. I'd also give him a link to the most popular names for 2012, let him see how 'normal' your name choices are...

From your list, I like Alice, from his, Harriet (particularly with the nickname Hattie). But agree, keep looking for a name you both love.

Yes, my children's father did that. Both of our children have names that were used (but not popular) in the 70s. Anything like romilly or Thea would have met a very blank face. In the end, I am happy with the choices, but new names that weren't used at all in my childhood were what appealed to me!

Natalie
Samantha
Stella
Laura
Sophie
Danielle
Emma
Hannah
Freya
Elena
Catherine
Rebecca

Oh and we solved the problem of DH's love of 80's names by having a DS for our first DC, we'd agreed on a 'solid, traditional' boy name (one good thing with boys names, there does seem to be less 'fashion' so it's easier to get a name that would work for someone in their 80s, 40s, 20s or a toddler) - we were arguing about girls names on the drive to the hospital. With DC2, our DD, he'd been convinced we were having a second DS so was happy to pick a name off my list for a girl having no suggestions of his own had time to come round to my way of thinking.

Thanks so far guys...

Well he totally threw me for a loop after coming home this evening and announcing that he ''loved'' Penelope and Lydia. I asked what bought on this sudden change - apparently work were discussing things you used to watch when you were a child...

Penelope Pitstop
Lydia from Beatlejuice

ahem

I like both - this could be the start of the end :)