The name game

When we got pregnant with Charlotte, we started working on possible names for our baby.  We were quick to decide on a boy name, Robert (after my sweet daddy) Brooks (after Wade's brother and grandmother), but struggled with a girl name. 

We had a list of three names we were throwing around (I think there was another one, but I cannot recall it now): 

1. Charlotte (after my mom's mom) Elizabeth (after Wade's mom's mom)
2. Larkin - a maiden name on my mom's side that was almost my name
3. Sarah Grace - after my sister and Grace is a family name as well

Once we found out it was a girl, we put Robert Brooks on the shelf and got to work naming our first daughter.  Wade doesn't like double names, so Sarah Grace was out and he was not a fan of Larkin.  Charlotte it was.  And I couldn't think of a better name for our sweet girl.

When I was pregnant with Frances, Mere was on her death bed when I recalled a conversation we had had on the way to the beach Thanksgiving of 2006.  "I always wanted someone named after me, but that never happened.  You are my Frances," Mere told me. 

I walked into her living room and pulled Wade aside.  I told him the story and asked, "If this is a girl, can we name her after Mere?" 

Being the amazing husband he is, he said yes without missing a beat. 

"Can I tell her now?" I asked.

"Of course," he said.

I went back to Mere's room and told her the news.  She was thrilled.  A few days later she told my dad, "I want to reverse this," and ended up making it two months past Frances' arrival. 

Many people questioned our decision to give Frances such an "old fashioned" name, but just like her big sister, there is no other name in this world that would fit her like Frances does. 

Since we are not finding out the sex of this baby, we are having to pick a name for both a girl and a boy.  The boy has been a no-brainer - Robert Brooks - but the girl name we have been struggling with.  We have thrown around a few names, but nothing has felt just right.

After attending my cousin Whitney's baby shower yesterday, I realized that I have bonded with the idea of this baby being a boy since he has a name, but I am very detached from the possibility of it being a girl.  Try as I might, I just couldn't get excited about Christmas Baby maybe being a girl. 

Last night after some discussion, we finally picked a girl name.  And you know what, I have really started to get excited about the possibility of another girl. 

This morning while the girls were in a cheerleading camp at LSU, Wade and I got to tell her namesake in person and it was so much fun! 

My precious little one, whether you are a girl or a boy, you are named after a very special person in my life and your middle name is after a very special person in your daddy's life. 

Whitney Brooks or Robert Brooks, we cannot wait to meet you!