Would you use a name you love, knowing there may be rolled eyes?

[CarTroubles]

The name is Willow.

Not particularly controversial!

But I know all our families will be a bit......eye rolly. They'll think it's hippie hilariousness. Possibly think its too silly a name to lumber a child with.

They probably won't say anything much to our faces, maybe the occasional "Oh, that's........ unusual.....why Willow?" with a fixed glassy smile.

But I'm cringing at the imagined snorts of derision that will happen behind our backs. What adds to it is that we have a ugly surname that doesn't really go with it AT ALL. So I can just imagine them all going "Willow ThatSurname???? Really??"

We love love love the name. But I don't want people to laugh at us! DH doesn't give a fuck, lol. But I don't have his confidence!

[5madthings]

It's a lovely name.

When we announced ds5's name we got asked if we were joking, we had already said if baby is a boy we really like this name but apparently people thought we were joking. Anyway after not liking it family now do like it.

Not sure why they thought it was a joke name. Unusual yes but not weird and a known name.

[FuzzyOwl]

People roll their eyes at all kinds of names so you can pick the most traditional, classic or popular name you can think of and some people won't like it. Luckily you don't need to please anyone else because she is your child and it's your choice of what name she has. My one bit of advice is to wait until she is born and then introduce her with the name as speaking from bitter experience some people are so rude about names you are considering when you are pregnant that you don't use them and regret it afterwards.

[whywonthedgehogssharethehedge]

It's your choice and it's not as out there as many names. It also doesn't have a wanky spelling. You get bonus points for that. Younique spellings piss me off far more.

Also as a girl she will get the choice later in life if she marries to change her surname so I wouldn't worry about that at all. I've now been married name for longer than any other surname (changed my name at 16 when my mum remarried) I love my married surname the best.

[CarTroubles]

Oh we have kept it firmly to ourselves. Its going to come as a massive WTF moment to them all, I suspect. We'll be well gossiped about till the novelty wears off.

[whywonthedgehogssharethehedge]

Also there will always be eye rollers because everyone has different taste. I know a couple who have twins with non common but traditional names, both quite old fashioned. I love them but I suspect they have a lot of eye rollers.

[raisedbyguineapigs]

It's a lovely name. It will just be get name. If you have an 'ugly' surname, then Willow will beautify it! One of my best friends said to my face that my DS's name was 'twattish'. It's a bit 'posh boy' but I love it. It just suits him so well (he's far from posh. I think it's the contrast )

[Ca55andraMortmain]

I love willow and couldn't use it because our surname starts with a w as well. When we named our DD we got a lot of 'erm...is that a family name?' but we don't care because we love her name (it's Thea, also not super out there but some people have no imagination!). I think you should definitely use it!

[rackhampearl]

Both mine and DH family hate the name of my youngest. We were met with cries of you 'you must be fucking joking' from DH parents. My sibling point blank refused to call her that and even said they would call her the name we had on our list before choosing that they much preferred. We had DH dad pretty much beg us not to call her it. Very controversial. I named her it, they all now love it.

[KERALA1]

Willow is lovely unless there is a tendency to largeness in your genes. There was a willow at school who was very large and dumpy it seemed almost cruel she was called willow. If you and Dh both skinny types should be fine.

[CarTroubles]

I am also starting to slowly realise this morning that no name would be universally approved of except a family name.

No one ever rolls eyes about a kid who is named after grandparents, do they? Even if the grandparents had hideous names!

So actually I suspect no matter what there'd be eye rolling. Its funny, but I met someone the other day who actually was eye rolling about Emma - about how there are 5 of them in each classroom nowadays and why doesnt anyone have any imagination???

So you're damned if you do, and you're damned if you dont, I guess.

[CarTroubles]

I know what you mean Kerala but no dumpy genes. No svelt gangly skinny elegant ones either, but average/tall enough to get away with the name, lol.

[CarTroubles]

rackham dying of curiosity!

[GeorgiePeachie]

is the surname Tree?

I think Willow is a lovely name.

[sausagefest]

Gorgeous name. Use it.

[rackhampearl]

Cartroubles. I probably should have said. Cue the eye rolling... She's named Andie. (Not short for anything)

[suzu1982]

There was a girl at my high school, all those years ago, called Willow. It's a really pretty name, and I think you should go for it.

[paddypants13]

Use it. I wanted to use an out there name for ds but chickened out.

I absolutely love the name we gave him (it's a classic biblical name) but half wish I had beenbraver.

I like Willow.

[Sugarpiehoneyeye]

Yes, you must call her Willow, if it's Willow Mills, it's lovely OP.
Can you keep her name a surprise, until she is born ?
She is your precious daughter, you get to choose her name 💐

[Latenightreader]

Willow is a beautiful name. There are some great fictional Willows for her to discover as she grows - Willow from Buffy, and I really recommend Jean Little's "Willow and Twig".

[chinlo]

You'll never please everyone, nor should you try to. Go with what you love. The novelty will wear off pretty quickly once they get to know her anyway.

Don't think the surname matters really. I love the name Willow btw. If we have a girl it's probably going to be her middle name (and only because OH already has a first name picked).

[rackhampearl]

Yes I agree with PPs OP, the name Willow is lovely, really charming. You'll never please everyone. She's YOUR precious daughter and you love the name. Let them roll their eyes, I'll be they'll soon love it. Babies seem to grown into their names the majority of the time. I love the name Willow.

[justpeachy74]

Willow is lovely.
We used an unusual, but not outlandish name - think flowers, for our DD. It's her middle name but my MIL who is lovely generally wasn't keen at all. She doesn't really acknowledge it. Most people were quite positive/polite about it but there was the odd person who "oh really, that's unusual ... " or "what made you think of that?" type reaction.
It made me a bit anxious quite soon after the birth in my hormonal, sleep deprived state. I wobbled a bit but in the end stuck with it and I do really love it. It goes well with her unusual (but not outlandish) first name.
I say go for it!

[Lancelottie]

I'm guessing OP is a Braithwaite. It sounds very solid and manufacturing-y to me.

(Totally off the point, but I knew a Christopher Braithwaite at school. Terrible speller. His mum remarried, and mine asked, half-jokingly, whether she was changing his name to something shorter and easier for the poor mite. No, they were changing it to Haythornthwaite...)

[RaspberryBeret34]

I think it's a lovely name - go for it! It's strong but feminine and easy for people to spell and pronounce but still unusual. It may get a few raised eyebrows but people quickly get used to names. My DS loves the name Willow as he met a little girl called Willow at softplay a few months ago and they played together all afternoon!

My DS has an unusual name and I'm sure there was some eye rolling behind my back at first but now everyone says it really suits him, I'm so glad we chose it. It's also handy to be able to put our names in christmas cards as everyone who it is without needing to add a surname (I have a common first name). It still gets "that's unusual, how did you choose it?" but more in an interested way than a horrible way and sometimes an envious way that they wish they'd gone for a less common name (not that I have anything against more used names and had several in top 20 on my list).

[Notso]

I love Willow. It's so pretty.

Going against the grain I would mention it to people to plant the seed. Not in a defiant 'We're calling the baby Willow' kind of way but in a list, add in a few outlandish names too that you won't actually use.
I did this with all my four, it was good to get people's real thoughts on my children's names and I found rather than putting me off every name disliked, it helped to make up our minds. Two names we used knowing they weren't loved but am truly happy with our decisions.