Girl Names

We just found out last week we are having a baby girl, which of course we are thrilled about!! We have a few names that my DH and I agree on, but he wants to do the middle name or something for his mom who passed away when he was 16. I am TOTALLY fine with that, but the problem is her middle name was Arlene which I have to say I am not a huge fan of . She hated her first name which was Doris so we would never do that. I was trying to think of something similar to Arlene but at the same time I completely understand why my DH would want to use his mom's actual middle name. Any suggestions or am I just being difficult? lol I know it means a lot to him and if we can't come up with something different of course we would use it because the significance is so much more important, but just wondering any thoughts?

Thanks!! :)

Message edited 11/22/2011 11:37:08 AM.

Re: Girl Names

What about Aileen (pronounced ay-leen)? I think it's a pretty name and it's close to Arlene.

Re: Girl Names

Going through the same thing. My mom hated both her first and middle name but we are using her first name as the babies middle name if it is a girl because we love the meaning of my mom's first name.

Re: Girl Names

We went through something similar. MIL passed away before my 6 yo DD was born and we considered using one of her names (Barbara Elsie) for our child.

We ended up deciding against both Barbara and Elsie becauwe we weren't fond of either. But we did give our DD the middle name Elizabeth, and Elsie is a short name for Elizabeth, so there was still a tie to MIL.

Re: Girl Names

Darlene?

Message edited 11/22/2011 12:10:14 PM.

Re: Girl Names

Maybe use the same initials--D and A? I'm not sure if any names you like start with those letters.

Also, what about her maiden name? Sometimes family names make a nice middle name too.

Re: Girl Names

I would go with Arlene if that's what your DH wants. It's the middle name - not the first. Unless they're in trouble, or it's their high school graduation, you'll never really use the middle name.

In the interest of full disclosure, I agreed to let DH give DS1 the middle name Murry, directly after his grandpa Honestly, though - the real name gives it so much meaning and I'm sure your DD - though she may not like the actual name - will love knowing she has her grandmother's middle name

Re: Girl Names

What about Lena? Short for Arlene.
Also, maybe try to pull inspiration from something she was passionate about or that connected to her in some way, then use that instead of her actual name.
Examples: birthday month, favorite season, favorite flower, birthstone, her favorite singer or actress, etc.

Re: Girl Names

I would use Arlene as the middle name. It's such a nice connection to your DH's mom.

Re: Girl Names

DD is named for DH's grandmother, but we took the first initial of her name. My ILs did the same thing with DH's name - they took the first initial and picked a name they liked. But that's typical in Jewish families; not all cultures work that way.

You could pick a name that's similar to one or both names.

Darlene
Darla
Daria
Dina
Dory
Aileen
Eileen
Arlie
Lena
Lana

You could pick a name that means the same thing.

Or you could just pick a name you love for the baby's first name and remember that you'll rarely use her middle name anyway.

Re: Girl Names

Re: Girl Names

Is her maiden name something you could work with ?

Re: Girl Names

Thanks so much for all your help ladies! There were a lot of great suggestions! :)

Re: Girl Names

I would use Arlene as the middle name. As the PP's mentioned, its her middle name an will so rarely be used, but it will still be nice to incorporate. Especially if its going to really mean something to your DH