What's in a Name

Okay, I'm stealing the title of my post from my friend's blog. I don't think she'll mind. I was posting my comment and realized that it was getting way too long, so I decided to just use it as a new post over here and link to it in her comments. What she wrote about was how her children were named and why and what they mean. So I will do the same.

My firstborn was named while his dad and I were still engaged. (edit: over 4 years before he was born!) We were driving around town (So. Cal.) reading all the signs aloud. When I read the names of two cross-streets, Bryan & Culver, we both said, "what a cool name!" And that's how he got that name. He also had a friend, Brian, but we preferred the more unusual spelling. Occasionally we call him Byron or Brain, which is appropriate because he is very brainy.
Bryan: Noble, Strong, Virtuous; Hill

Culver: Dove

My next son is Josiah Jeffrey. Josiah was a name I'd had picked out since school, though I'd chosen Remington as a middle name (does that date me?) but never even suggested it in real life. The Jeffrey was for his other best friend, and we liked how they sounded together. Had to fight against my grandmother and his dad wanting to call him JJ, though! I call him my sunshine boy and would sing, "You are my sunshine" to him when I rocked him. At one time he had an extra long tie-dyed tshirt that he wore to bed. The pattern on the back looked like a sun, so I called him "sunshine b*tt". He didn't like that and started wearing the shirt backwards. I quit calling him that variation!
Josiah: The Lord saves
Jeffrey: God's peace

My third son was named by Bryan, who was almost 4 at the time (though obviously we approved the choice). He liked the names Mike and Chris (friends of ours), but when reading through baby name books, chose Aaron. So boy #3 is Aaron Michael. My nickname for him is Bug, because he was such a speed crawler, and he got into everything!
Aaron: Mountain
Michael: Who is like God?

My first daughter was named during my first pregnancy; it just took a while to use it! I made up her name, Alyna, a combination of both our middle names, Alan and Lynn. I chose the spelling because I liked how it looked with one 'n' versus two, more symmetrical. It's pronounced uh-linn-uh. Her middle name is Joy, my grandmother's middle name. She is such a joyful young lady, too! I call her my Butterfly girl because she so gracefully flits around.
Alyna = Alan: Rock + Lynn: (English) Waterfall
Joy: Joy (kind of self-explanatory, wasn't it?)

Daughter #2 has another name I chose as a youngster, Tabitha. I loved that name in Missionettes. We hadn't chosen a middle name for sure, but the hospital wanted her name before we went home. I'd wanted Catherine (or a variant spelling) so I'd have a Tabi Cat, but his step-mom's name was Kathy and he didn't want to use it. One nurse suggested Rose, and she was a beautiful rosy girl, but we went with Grace because as our only hospital baby we felt that God had been gracious to us how everything went. What's funny is when she was about 3 she started calling herself Rose or Tab-rose, and we'd never told her the story. I ended up calling her my Tabi-cat anyway, and she likes it.

Tabitha: Gazelle
Grace: (English) God's favor

Daughter #3 went a couple days without a name. I really wanted Josephine (Jo from Little Women), but he didn't like it. I started a poll amongst all the children to get their opinions. I didn't think we'd come to a definite decision until friends who called and came over told me her name was Christina Faith. Apparently her dad told his customers at the grocery store that was her name. I was slightly bummed, because it wasn't my first choice, but now I can't imagine her as anything else! I did discover shortly after that she was born on one of my fav aunt's birthdays--Josephine Virginia (who was called Jenny). If I'd known that, I would have been more insistent! When she was a baby, I started calling her Christinka when she had a smelly diaper. Then in her first play she was a skunk, so she has been referred to as Little Stinker, though really she is quite sweet!
Christina: Follower of Christ
Faith: Faith, Confidence, Belief; Faithful (another 'duh' moment)

Then I had another boy. I told his dad it was his job to name him, and he chose Adam Charles. I'm not sure the reasons behind the name Adam, but Charlie was his younger brother's name, who died while in high school. Adam hasn't acquired any nicknames yet. (edit: He says it's because he was our first son :) )

Adam: Man, Earth
Charles: Free Man

I really don't know what name(s) I would choose in the future. I think I'd let my husband make the decision again! Some names I do like are:

Caleb: Like the heart; Dog; Faithful
Nathaniel: Gift of God
Phoebe: Pure, Bright, Shining; Moon
Danica: Morning Star

Baby Names Country website has a baby name advisor, where you put in the parents' first names. It's choices based on some logarithm are:

Leonard: Brave as a lion
Elsa: Noble (Hey, Elsa was the name of the Lion in Born Free!)