Meredith writes:
I finally found your site last night (remembered it from years ago) and spent hours looking through past posts. We would love you and your readers help naming our “Surprise” Third Baby. We do not know whether this baby is a boy or a girl.
Actual due date is March 31st but we may deliver closer to March 18th (we aren’t sure of conception, baby is measuring big, I’m measuring 4 weeks big, and have a history of early babies) But wanted to be honest about the actual due date but this baby will most likely come mid March.
Details: This baby was a complete and utter surprise but may end up our biggest blessing. I became pregnant when my 2nd baby was only 6 or 7 months old. Because of this it has been a totally different pregnancy than past, we don’t know the gender, don’t know the name, and are just kind of flying through the pregnancy trying to survive each day :) we would love to have a boy and girl name to bring us closer to this baby and help us enjoy this last month or two of pregnancy before meeting this newest blessing. PLEASE HELP us!
Parent Names: Meredith and Marshall
Sibling Names: Peyton (boy, 3) and Mallory (girl, 14 months)
Last name: one syllable, Rhymes with “Gates”I like a lot of names but my husband is picky. Here are some names that he has not vetoed but we are not super attached to any of these so we would love suggestions. I tend to like “Southern” and old fashioned names that are not too crazy or trendy but also not top 30. Our other kids were named because I loved the name Peyton for a girl after one of my good friends, so when the ultrasound showed a boy we just kept it. Mallory came into play because I always loved the names Madelyn and Lillian (my grandmother) but they were way too popular for our taste so my mom suggested Mallory as less popular blend of both.
We are trying to avoid an “M” name since we all have an M name except for my son. Don’t want to leave him out :)
Here are some names that haven’t been vetoed to give you an idea of our combined “taste”
Boy Names
Nolan
Patrick (but dont want nickname to be “Pat”)
Nathan
Benjamin
I really loved Bennett but he really doesn’t.Girl names
Sadie (my great-grandmother, so family name)
Audrey
Kathleen (my grandmother)
I like Amelia
Clara (but I’m seeing it on your blog a lot lately)
Girl names are harder because we feel like we just did this with baby number 2.Boy Potential Middle Names that have meaning: Austin, Hamilton, Christopher, William, Mark,
Girl Potential Middle Names that have meaning: Ann, Bailey, Judith, Rebecca, but should I just do Ann to keep with mine and Mallory’s?
Both Peyton and Mallory have “A” middle names, should we keep this trend?
THANK YOU, THANK YOU for any help. I have spent hours and hours and hours pouring through lists of baby names and have decided we need ya’lls professional help. :)
I think the trouble with some of the names on your boy list is that they’re a different style than Peyton. Peyton and Nolan make good brother names, I think, but Peyton and Benjamin are so very different, style-wise. Peyton and Patrick are just as different, and the matching initial P seems to draw even more attention to that; same with the almost-rhyme of Peyton and Nathan.
It’s not that “not matching in style” means you should toss the names out, but I think I would look for something more modern and/or surnamey:
Cason Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Cason
Corbin Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Corbin
Elliot Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Elliot
Ellis Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Ellis
Finlay Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Finlay
Grady Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Grady
Jameson Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Jameson
Keegan Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Keegan
Reid Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Reid
Sawyer Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Sawyer
Schuyler Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Schuyler
Spencer Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Spencer
Walker Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Walker
My own favorite is Elliot. It’s not very common (even combining the spellings Elliot, Elliott, and Eliot, it’s barely in the top 200), and it has the surname sound of Peyton while still having the classic first-name sound of Nathan and Patrick. I like Elliot Hamilton Gates.
…Hm. I am proofreading this just prior to posting it, and suddenly I’m not sure about those boy names. I think they go well in an “on paper” sense, but not with the rest of what you’ve told us about your style. I’m starting to think that your reasons for choosing Peyton make the name a different sort of choice than if you’d chosen it from the boy section of a baby name book. I think in that case Nolan is your best choice, because it goes with your style but it also goes with Peyton. I like Nolan Christopher and Nolan Mark. And I still like Elliot, too, and maybe Emmett and Everett and Garrett.
From your girl name list, I love Audrey: Peyton, Mallory, and Audrey sound like a wonderful sibling set. Aubrey would be nice too. And you know I love Clara!
I’d add Nola as a possibility since you like Nolan for a boy: Peyton, Mallory, and Nola.
If you like Clara but you’re nervous about popularity, I suggest Clarissa. It’s beautiful and much less common. Peyton, Mallory, and Clarissa.
More girl possibilities:
Bethany Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Bethany
Bianca Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Bianca
Bridget Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Bridget
Eliza Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Eliza
Emeline Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Emeline
Jocelyn Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Jocelyn
Laurel Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Laurel
Leslie Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Leslie
Lindsay Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Lindsay
Sabrina Gates; Peyton, Mallory, and Sabrina
On the middle name issues, I think you could go either way. If you like the idea of all three of you girls sharing a middle name, or of all three children having middle names that start with A, then by all means do it. But I don’t think there’s any reason to feel you OUGHT to do either one of those things: twice isn’t enough to make it feel awkward to break the theme. You have some very nice meaningful middle name options, and I think if I were you I’d take the opportunity to put another one of them into use.
Swistle, I don’t think Meredith wanted her last name published. She says: “Rhymes with “Gates”…
I really like Nolan and Nathan for you. And I like Swistle’s suggestion of Elliot, which I think goes great with the other names. I suggest Landon and Jasper.
For a girl I think Sadie would be a wonderful fit. Peyton, Mallory and Sadie; I love it so much!
I like all of your middle names, and I don’t think you need to stick with one that begins with A.
My favorite combinations are:
Nolan Christopher
Nathan William
Sadie Ann
Sadie Rebecca
Good luck!
Beyond- Thanks for catching that. I even thought I WAS writing “Baby Gates” (and did it that way through the entire post) but my fingers thought otherwise as I did the title!
I like Nolan best from your boy list. Nolan William Gates, Nolan Christopher Gates and Nolan Mark Gates all sound good to me.
The girl name I like best for you is actually in your middle names pool: Bailey. It seems to go well with Peyton and Mallory. And I don’t think you have to keep going with Ann, but Bailey Ann Gates is pretty. Bailey Kathleen is nice, too. And I like Swistle’s suggestion of Jocelyn for a first name, too.
Another vote here for Nolan.
For a girl, I would tweak Audrey and make it Aubrey. Aubrey goes so well with Mallory and has a similar sound to Audrey. Aubrey Ann Gates
Oh I am so excited about all of these suggestions! Thank you so much everyone and Swistle! Keep them coming! I’ll let you know what we decide as soon as we go through everything.
Thank you-
Meredith
I like Nolan or Carson for a boy,
and Emilia or Cora for a girl.
Let us know what you choose!
What about Kadee to honor Sadie and Kathleen? It reminds me of the actress, very pretty! Or, in that same vein, Kacey/Kacie or Katherine, nn Katie?
I like it because your other children´s names have personal meanings as well. Sadie Kathleen would also be really nice. Kacie Ann as well.
I think Audrey and Clara are very nice as well.
Additional ideas:
Hilary
Dorothy
Lydia
Evelyn
For boys, I think Nolan works well with Peyton. I immediately thought of Parker, but it might be too close. What about:
Spencer
Carter
Finley – keeps the y pattern! I think it seems more popular than it is. Finley Hamilton sounds very distinguished.
Kyran
Bryson
Ryan
Tyler
My only comment with Eliot or Ellis is that a logical nn could be Eli and with Peyton as a brother it might seem like you have named them after the Mannings. Not sure that means anything though.
Wow, I’m surprised I’m the only one to notice this. There is a very famous Hollywood director named Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, anyone?) and for that association, I’d nix that combo.
I also don’t care for Elliot. Aside from the fact that it is very common, I don’t like the double “L” sound following Mallory. It gives a weird rhythm.
I do like Sawyer, that flows well and gives the added advantage that all three kids have a y in their names.
Sawyer Hamilton Gates (and I’d vote heartily for Hamilton as a first name as well, LOVE it!)
For girls, Bethany is nice. Jocelyn is beautiful and I’d add Lydia to the mix.
Peyton, Mallory, and Lydia
Lydia Judith Gates is pretty, but Lydia Audrey Gates works as well.
And that’s more than enough from me! Good luck on your special little bundle of joy!
Aha! Christopher Nolan, the director, of course. That’s probably why I thought Nolan Christopher sounds so good… I still like Nolan for you. Nolan Mark, perhaps? Actually, Nolan Benjamin is my new ‘choice’, although I borrowed Benjamin from the first name list…
Good luck again!
Changelivlife- Thanks for pointing out the association! That’s the sort of thing it’s good to think of beforehand, even if it ends up not mattering (it’s a positive association, and in reverse order when people’s middle names aren’t often known).
Elliot and Sawyer are approximately the same commonness, even combining the spellings Elliot, Eliot, and Elliott: Elliot is just inside the top 200, and Sawyer is just outside it–but rising at a rate that leads me to predict it’ll be inside it when the 2010 stats come out.
Because of Christopher Nolan, I think Nolan Christopher sounds backwards. Not my favourite.
Elliot Hamilton Gates is my #1 for you. I don’t know that Elliot is a name that is frequently shortened (at least I’ve never heard it shortened), so I don’t think the Manning bros names would be super-apparent.
I like the idea of keeping the middles as different names all starting with A, but I think if you have a girl and her name doesn’t begin with M (like you and Mallory), then she might feel left out if her middle isn’t Ann.
Sadie Ann is adorable, and I even like Kathleen…although keeping the integrity of the name but changing it slightly or combining two names, like you did with Mallory, (ex: combining KAThleen and SadIE and naming her Katie Ann) might make the name sound a little fresher AND give her name a similar meaning to her big sister’s.
Since both your elder childrens names are more on the gender neutral side (Mallory used to be a boys name a long time ago didn’t it?), I’d suggest sticking with something neutral again this time around. Perhaps even just picking one name and using it whether you have a boy or a girl, kinda like you did with your first born.
With that in mind I would suggest Quinn for you. Peyton, Mallory and Quinn.
I also like Nolan, and like Swistle’s suggestion of using Nolan or Nola whether you have a boy or a girl.
I also like Sadie Amelia for a girl to keep the “A” theme going.
Congratulations on your little surprise. I’m sure it will be hard work to start with but will pay off when they’re all older. Good luck.
I have a soft spot for Sadie and think it works beautifully with your son and daughter’s name.
I’d also stay with middle names starting with ‘A’. It’s the kind of pattern that won’t be obvious to everyone but the siblings will know about and hopefully enjoy.
Hamilton Patrick or Hamilton Benjamin sound great! Peyton and Hamilton have the same rhythm, too.
And if you want to keep the middle name theme, Hamilton Aaron or Hamilton Andrew or Hamilton Austin sound good. As for a totally new suggestion: what about Lawrence (nickname ‘Law’) Andrew? Peyeton and Law…
As for a girl, Sadie and Clara together remind me of Sylvia. Leslie used to be a man’s name (like Mallory) long ago; they would be nice together (Mallory and Leslie). Sylvia Audrey or Leslie Amelia? How about Kelsey or Courtney or Lindsay? All would sound classic with Amelia as a middle name.
Best wishes to the five of you! Very excited to hear what you pick!
I love Nolan.
Other boy names that seem to fit: Gabriel (Gabe), Wyatt, Xander, Jonah.
Girl names: Ada, Claire, Olivia
What about Harrison for a boy?
I love Audrey for a girl, LOVE. I can hardly even consider anything else!
I think Sawyer is your best bet for a boy; you like Southern. Elliott doesn’t come across as fitting in with this style or the other kids’ names.
I LOVE Sadie for a girl! Also fits with the other names. Nola is also a good choice. I know someone named Nola and she is lovely!
I love looking at baby names and came across this blog and love it! My girls are all grown but I saw someone suggested Bailey Kathleen and I wanted to say that is my daughter’s name. She will be 27 in June and I loved it when I named her that and love it still!
I love the suggestion of Quinn above for a girl think it fits perfectly with your other childrens names! i also think Sadie is a lovely name!
If you like Finley what about Flynn or Finn? My little boy is Lincoln, Linc for short i love his name it is also quite an old name that may fit well with Peyton!
I heard the name Emmerson the other day for a little girl i think its pretty and a little differant Emme for short!
Also loveing your suggetion of Benjamen you dont here it alot these days!
best of luck im sure you will find your perfect name soon xx