Thoughts on my favourites?

[MrsMongoose]

Getting carried away because I'm not pregnant yet...

But - these are my Top 10 lists at the minute. (Not sure if any would get past MrMongoose!)

What do you think? Do you have any similar suggestions (maybe more on the obscure side) that I might like? I generally don't like the names of anybody I've ever met in real life, so that rules out a lot!

Girls:

Briar
Claudia
Hillary
Ivy
Merle
Morgan
Olive
Nora
Pearl
Violet

Boys:

Aldous
Alistair
Cecil
Conrad
Edgar
Ezra
Laurence
Noel
Stellan
Valentine

[MrsMongoose]

it's in the Thomasina/Nigella vein.

I like both of those names :)

Thanks for your help everyone, plenty to think about. I suppose we'll have to get back to ttc ;)

[sleepingbeautiful]

Also suggest:
Xanthe
Athena
Allegra
Hermione

[itsnothingoriginal]

Love Claudia from your girls list

Laurence and Alistair from the boys list are both fab

[ZolaBuddleia]

Not keen on Leonora, for me it's in the Thomasina/Nigella vein.

[squoosh]

From your girls' list I like

Claudia
Merle
Nora
Violet

Not Briar though, in Ireland that's how you describe someone who's bad tempered.

I'm afraid I don't really like any of your boys' names. Noel is ugly, Cecil can only dream of being ugly. It's an abomination of a name. It may even be worse than that but I can't fully articulate the horror.

[sleepingbeautiful]

Based on the updated criteria, I agree none of the original girls names cut the mustard.
Really like Cassia from the new ones, and Leonora.
Also suggest:
Halcyon
Felicia
Zinnia
Perdita

For boys, I like Conrad, Stellan and Edwin (from your add on).
Also suggest:
Mortimer
Asher
Bartholemew
Julius

[AKissIsNotAContract]

Paloma and Clementina are lovely. How about Florentina?

[MrsMongoose]

How do we feel about Leonora?

[Nagoo]

LOVE Clement.

[Nagoo]

Bryony is nicer than Briar. Briar sounds all thorny and harsh.

[MrsMongoose]

Ooh Tenth these are right up my street!

Loving Paloma, Vita and Cassia - these are going straight on the list. And whilst I don't really like it for a girl, I'm dropping the 'ina' and sticking Clement on the boys list!

[TenthMuse]

Yes Mongoose I think Conrad Valentine works, and it does have the 'wow factor' you're after with the unusual middle name.

A few ideas for girls' choices:
Seraphina
Calypso
Clementina
Paloma
Vita
Cassia
Linnet
Olympia
Tanaquil
Lorelei
Morwenna

Agree with Mortified that Loveday would be a fab mn!

[valiumredhead]

I like all of them apart from Morgan and Valentine.

[ZolaBuddleia]

Only just absorbed that the Mongeese are Persephone and Gilbert. How brilliant, did you both refuse to date people with boring names?

I'd like to offer:

Lev
Beulah
Hepzibah
Ariadne
Astrid
Willoughby
Inigo

[ZolaBuddleia]

Briar - lovely
Claudia - also lovely
Hillary - hefty horsey girl
Ivy - too of the moment
Merle - gorgeous
Morgan - not for me (Amber, Bethany, Madison type name)
Olive - too of the moment
Nora - I prefer it rather pretentiously with an 'h' on the end
Pearl - lovely
Violet - lovely

Aldous - I know it's a name but it feels made up
Alistair - no, chinless wonder
Cecil - see above
Conrad - love it
Edgar - nope
Ezra - lovely
Laurence - a bit feminine
Noel - see above x 10
Stellan - fab
Valentine - see Noel x 20

[MortifiedAdams]

What about Loveday as a middle name? A traditional Cornish name with a wow.

[MrsMongoose]

I agree Tenth, I'm not so keen on goddess names as I feel they can be quite hard to live up to. I've always gone by Seffy - so my name doesn't feel as 'theatrical' if you know what I mean though. DH on the other hand!

My favourite would be Conrad Valentine Surname: All real names, but still with a nice 'wow' combination. I'd like the names to be on that theme, rather than focussing on making our family sound like characters from an ancient myth!

I find girls so much harder to name than boys!

[TenthMuse]

Quite like Claudia, Pearl and Violet from your girls' list, and Conrad and Laurence from the boys'. Valentine nice as a mn. Agree that none of them quite matches Persephone and Gilbert though - you need something bit more dramatic and 'theatrical', I think!

Greek goddess names good, but maybe a bit samey with Persephone?

[MortifiedAdams]

I am pregnant at the moment and if it is a girl, Olive is top of the shortlist (along with Evelyn and Lilian). Also like Norah and Pearl from your list but i couldnt use either (friends dd is Norah and my dds name means Pearl).

Boys, Alistair and Lawrence. IN fact I am considering Lawrence and Owen.

[MrsMongoose]

I wish my Surname was Mongoose Dawn! Sadly it is nowhere near as exciting and incredibly, incredibly common.

[Oriunda]

I so wanted to call any DD Persephone but i had a DS!

Agree none of the girls' names compare .... There was a recent poster looking for Greek goddess names and I'd go for one of those (Hebe, Ariadne, Artemis, Cassandra etc etc).

Ditto for boys .... Hector etc

[DawnOfTheDee]

So your full name is Persephone Mongoose then?

I need to be your friend....I'd love to know someone called Persephone Mongoose.....

[MrsMongoose]

Must try harder.

Like on a school report? ;) What would you suggest, Anything?

[Rhubarbgarden]

I like Edgar or Conrad from your boys list. All the girls names are nice except Merle and Morgan, which are a bit too unisex for me.