names that friends have used - can i still use!?

[mlbear]

We have recently found out were having a ds :)
We are the first of our close friends to have a baby, but other friends &family friends already one or 2 & since we about to join baby club i think we'll become closer to this group...
But the names we love for boys have already been used by this group!
We already knew what names we liked before deciding we wanted to start a family&this group started having children!
Some have the names we love as first names &middle names!
Can we still use these names? Will we be accused of copying!?

Well the fact that more than one family have used these names show that they are currently popular or becoming more popular. So I am assuming they have names that would be familiar to many people. Therefore use the names you like. If you don't mind that your DC will be one of many with that/those name(s). I know a couple of different friends who regret not using a name they loved for those reasons. For example one had always wants to name a dd Anne-Marie and then it was used by a close friend or neighbor. They used a different version of Anne-something then the neighbor/friend moved and they never saw them again!

This will only be one group of people out of the very many you and your children will associate with, so don't let that influence you.

I want to use a name that one couple has used for a middle name. But dh isn't keen now because they've used it but how often are middle names used!? We've still got plenty of time to think about names & I might find a different name I love :)