Celebrity Babies on the Way

It seems tis' the season for celebrity babies. Just in the past week or so we have seen an innumerable amount of Celebabies enter the world.

• Ellen Pompero welcomed a baby girl with a name out of this world (excuse the pun) -Stella Luna


• Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prince Jnr. dubbed their baby girl Charlotte Grace


• Ms Heigl-Kelley adopted Naleigh, and we will just have to thank god she is really Nancy Leigh. Though does any one else wish she was a Nancy Lee instead?


• Jude Law's illegitimate baby girl was christened the incredibly popular Sophia


• Juanes and wife Karen welcomed Dante


• and Amanda Beard named her baby boy Blaise Ray.


• Oh and lets not forget the outrageous Sparrow James Midnight! A perfect fit with Harlow Winter Kate in my opinion. But I seem to be one of the few that dislike her (meaningless and entirely ridiculous) name.

Celebabies due in the upcoming months are sure not to disappoint in the name department.

• Hiedi Klum and Seal are expecting a baby girl to join siblings Leni, Henry and Johan. I'm so looking forward to this one. I'm expecting something short, sweet, and familiar but uncommon.


• Kedra Wilkinson and Hank Basset are expecting a their first, a baby boy. I have a feeling she might be having Hank the Tripp. But who knows? I could be wrong.


• Marcy Rylan, from her show Guiding Light, and husband Don Money are expecting their first, and she has been calling it a he.


• Ashely Jensen, who's BFF with Rebecca Romijn, hasn't found out the sex of her baby. Her and her husband Terence Beesley are due in October.


• Brazilian beauty Gisele Bundchen is one of the many Victoria's Secret Angels expecting. Her baby boy, who she has announced will be Gabriel will join half brother John Edward Thomas from her husband Tom Brady's previous marriage.


• Fellow Victoria's Secret model Karolína Kurková is pregnant with her first. The sex is unknown to her.


• Jenna Elfman is expecting a sibling for brother Story Elias. I'm hoping its a girl simply because I'm curious what the female equivalent of Story is. India perhaps? Maybe Ever or Sage? We will just have to wait and see.


• Maya Rudolph is expecting a sibling for the fantastically named Pearl. What a breath of fresh air this baby's name is going to be.


• Scrubs' Judy Reyes is expecting a baby girl.


• Another Victoria's Secret Babe is expecting a babe of her own. Adriana Lima and husband Marko Jaric are due in December.


• Leelee Sobieski and husband Adam Kimmel are keeping the sex of their first baby a surprise.


• Days of Our Lives actors Arianne Zucker and Kyle Lowder are due is December


• Kourtney Kardashian has already said she will not be using a K name. Something tells me this little one has got more chance of being a Diamante or a Wynter than it has being an Elizabeth or a Charles.


• Camila Alves and Matthew McConaughey are excited to give little curly-haired Levi a little brother or sister.


• Lastly, Jillian Reynolds of Good Day LA will welcome her first in January.

Told you it was the season for Celebrity Procreating.

Also, she may not be a Celebrity but you may remember Marilyn. Marilyn was looking for a name for her 4th. As it turns out Marilyn recently welcomed a beautiful baby girl with a lovely name - Daisy Aurora. Isn't she a doll?

A Violet Opportunity

Violet Affleck out with Mom and Dad

I was talking to one of the moms from Edward's kindy the other day who has 3 kids and is expecting again. After general chitchat about both our pregnancys I asked her about names. She said "We are looking for something quite uncommon, just like our other kids names". And what are her other kids names? Harrison, India and Summer.

I told her that Edward might have indeed been a Harrison if it had been solely up to me but that Nathan thought it was just too popular. He was in the top 50 names for the year Edward was born (I checked now and he was ranked 24th) so we opted for the unranked Edward. She didn't seem to know that Harrison was such a high flyer.

I also mentioned that Summer and Sienna are amoung our (evergrowing) favourites when she asked. Her response was "I loved Sienna for Summer but we just couldn't have an India and then a Sienna." I checked the stats for my state for the year her little daughter was born abdSummer ranked 23rd, Sienna 8th. What!?!?!?! Since when did 15 places count for all that much? Summer even outranked Sarah at 29, Sophia at 30, Elizabeth at 33, Kate at 47 and ALL the variants of Caitlin! So much for unpopular.

Even the least common of her kids names, India, bears great correlation to the very popular Indiana, who now sits at 47 for us West Aussies.

Tut, Tut, Tut. Why won't people do proper research? If your looking for an uncommon name I would very strongly suggest having a long hard look at the trends and stats. Otherwise you just might find your 'rare' choice isn't rare at all.

So I had a good look at all the names on my list. The habit we have been getting into recently will either be our making or our breaking. We write any names that take our fancy on a white board I put in the lounge, next to the TV, so we have too look at it every day when we flick on the news. Its great! It gives me something to look at during the add breaks plus, we have a big pool to pick from. But anyways, I picked my favourites and had a look at their rankings. It was the best thing I could have possibly done to educate myself. I got some pleasant and some not so pleasant suprises.

For the Boys:

• Did you know that Christopher didn't rank at all in West Aus. !? And his name-cousin Christian ranked 76. I think its safe to use him don't you?
• Oliver was ranked 4th which is sad because he was a big favourite of mine though Olivia was 11th so that might be usable with the nickname Olive.
• Not many more surprises with my boy favourites except for Alexander. He ranked 26th. Yes! I'm happy about this one - just when he cracked it into the top 10 in the States!

For the Girls:

• Madeline didn't rank (but they do only do top 50 occurances). And even if she did,most people pronounce her like mad-e-lin, whereas I prefer mad-e-lie-n (rhyming with crime).
• His favourite girl, Phoebe, ranked 49th.
• My beautiful Imogen is 24th. I shed a tear or two over this one.
• No Isabel's Isabelle's Isabell's or Isabele's appeared anywhere! Which is fantastic because I am just enamoured with scottish Isobel (with a definate 'Oh' sound) and fellow -bel ender Claribel. Though, predictably, Isabella its hot stuff at rank 8.
• One of our strongest honarary middle name possibilites, dissapointingly, was 10th on the charts, Matilda.

And one last one that really took me by surprise:

• Sweet little Violet didn't chart in the top 50 occurances in West Aus. nor in the national statistics. This was quite a shock for me. I always thought, perhaps a little biasedly, that Australia usually, was a bit ahead on the baby name trend front. I did a post a couple of weeks back detailing all the little darling names Aus. has in our top 100 that have escaped popularity in the US. Well since that post, it appears that the US had taken our lead and added a couple of those Australian Favourites to their top 1000, like Gemma and Callum for example. Well it looks like you Yanks have beaten us to this one. I think I might bump Miss. Violet up my list after this discovery.

Shows the importance of doing research, I guess. But I know all you reading this all ready know that. That's why your reading this of course.

UNIsex and UNIque baby names

I LOVE your blog!! You always have such great ideas. I'm really hoping you can help me and my hubby find the perfect name for our daughter (due in Aug). We have a daughter named Evan Susanna. I absolutely love her name...and I came up with it very quickly. This baby is stumping us though. Here are some names we're throwing around (but none of them are standing out like Evan did):

Catherine "Cate"
Quinn
Finley
Mallory - horrible meaning though
Larkin
Leah
Erin - although I'm not too sure I want both girls' names starting with E.

For middle names, it will either be Catherine, Mae, or some form of Marianna / Marianne/ Maria. All family names. I can't decide if this baby girl should have another unisex name or could we give her a more traditional name. We do not like super common names. Any ideas??? Thanks in advance!

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Thanks for you email and we are so pleased to hear that you enjoy reading our posts - it's for people like you that we write them for. Congratulations on your baby, we are more than willing to help you with a name.

In this case I think it would be best to steer away from classical names, you wouldn't want to have one of your girls to feel envious of her sister's trendy name when she got the classical choice or vise versa. However, I don't think you are bound by unisex names. I have suggested some unisex and some exculsive names for girls. I like this list favourites include India, Paige and Yael.

Enjoy!

Jordan - A lovely choice for a boy or a girl. I personally prefer it on a girl. It's a Hebrew name meaning to flow down. But it's also a place name as well as the name of a river. Spelling variations include Jordyn, Jordin, Jorden and Jordon. I think Jorden is the more feminine of the lot.


Brody - This name just screams fun-loving to me. Quite a popular choice for boys at 70 and ranks below Evan at 38, but remains still unranked for girls. If current trends are any indication this one should climb up the girls ladder any time soon. You might be on the edge of a big trend here.


Peta - This fits so perfectly within the style of Evan's name. These classical masculine names turned modern feminine names are perfect for you. Seen as the feminine version of Peter this name also means Golden Eagle in Native American.


Asha - This name has the most beautiful meaning. It means Hope or Wish in Indian and also means Life in Swahili. If your looking for something unisex then this might be the go. She is unranked for girls but Asher ranks 208 for boys. Along with the popularity of Ash- girls names this is the perfect harmony between popularity and obscurity.


Scout - If 341 people we allowed to name their sons Atticus in 2008 then why not Scout? She is a darling little character in Harper Lee's to kill a mocking bird.


Elliot(t) - I have always felt that this was a little soft for a boy. For a girl however, I find it very appealing. Many male start babies behold this name, as well as Ava Elliot, Hugh Jackman's little adopted girl. I think perhaps Erin might be a little bit close to Evan whose sound is really only one letter apart. Elliot on the other hand sounds very different regardless of the beginning E sound.

Kellen - A gorgeous little boys name - on my list for any brothers Edward might have. However, on a girl it lends to the quite highly ranked Kelly (at 248) as a potential nickname. Meaning Descendant Of The Bright headed One how could you possibly go past this one?

Killian - Think Jillian with a K. Another ranked boys name that has unisex potential. It means Church or Monk's Cell. And like many popular names like Riley, Aiden, Brianna, Caitlin, Connor, Quinn, and Finley it is of Irish origin.

Yael - Pronounced exactly like the Ivy League school - Yay-el. I adore this. Probably my favourite out of these suggestions. Yael means Strength of God. A distinguished Yael's is Yael Dayan, an Israeli parliament member and author.

Paige - Before you pass of Paige as being too popular consider this. Evan is ranked 38 whilst Paige is ranked 88. This could also be seen as unisex in a way, Paige, is derived from Page Boy. This another that is fairy high ranked on my very very long list.

Presley - Meaning From The Priest's Field this on maybe a long shot with your other names but still a possibility. Is there any chance your an Elvis fan?

Harper - Recently used by David Groul for his new baby girl. This one has soared into popularity for girl since 2004 to her position at 297. This strong name has added appeal thanks to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Ayla - I love the end in -la names and by the looks of things so do the new American parents. This name fits in perfectly with the "Ay" sounds popular in names like Aidan, Kayla, Taylor, and Ava as well as the 2 syllable nature of Evan. Very pretty meaning as well. It means Oak Tree in Hebrew and Moon Glow in Turkish.

Logan - The first Logan I ever met was a little girl. She is a stunner too. This Irish name means From The Hollow. This might be a little too highly ranked though, for boys he was ranked 19 in 2008 and for girls 430. But if you find this appealing then I wouldn't let anyone else stop you from using it.

Harlow - It's that sweet little "Oh" sound at the end. It adorable. I also like the combination Harlow Catherine. Its a nice marriage between funky and modern with timeless and classical. And unless you have been living under a baby name rock recently then you must know that Nicole Richie and Joel Madden gave their little girl this darling little name.

Pearl /Perla - We have mentioned Pearl about 100 time now. It is the middle name of Laura's little princess, Aurora. Perla however, hasn't yet been mentioned. It means Pearl in Spanish. Pearl's are often used as a metaphor for treasure in the Bible. This has to be my favourite middle name of all time. I would love too see it up front too.

Campbell - That -bell ending could be seen as feminine although all the Campbell's I have met have been boys. In 2008 this ranked 762 for girls.

India - I just adore this name. If I have a girl then at this stage, she is very very likely to be an India. I fell in love with it after reading Gone with the Wind. India and Evan are a gorgeous sibsit. What do you think of India and Edward as a sibset?

What do think? Anything grabbing your attention? If nothing we have suggested jumps out at you please feel free to tell us and we can suggest some more names that might better suit. Until we hear from you good luck. Hope we have been of assistance.

Gone with the Wind!

I was going to do a post on my favourite literary names until I realised that pretty much all the names I liked came from Gone with the Wind. Not your typical literary names. No Edward's or Catherine's for a start. I do like Catherine though and I obviously love Edward enough to use it for my own son.


So here they are. All the best Gone with the Wind names and a little background into the characters and their names. My favourite is Ashley on a boy - On the list.


Scarlett O'Hara - The strong willed protagonist is known for her beauty and is the daughter of the Tara Plantation owners Gerald and Ellen. This name has become rather popular of late, Mel C from the spice girls recently used this name for her baby girl.


Melanie Hamilton Wilkes - Ashley's good-hearted wife. Meaning black and originating is Greece this little name doesn't rank in the top 100 in America. She is a sweet obscure little choice with just enough familiarity.

Prissy - The short form of Priscilla. Such a cute name! In Gone with the Wind Prissy is the lie-prone slave at the Tara Plantation. This girl little name matches the style of some of the most popular names of today.

Bonnie Blue Butler - Her real name is Eugenie Victoria and she is the beautiful and pampered daughter of Scarlett and Rhett. An appealing choice. It literally means 'Pretty Girl' and too me this just adds to the appeal.

India Wilkes - I love this name! Right at the top of my list. Whist India Wilkes isn't a favourable character in the book you must agree she had a gorgeous name. India is Ashley's sister who bitterly hates Scarlett for sabotaging her relationship with Stuart.

Honey Wilkes - Honey is Jamie Oliver's youngest daughters middle name and is sister to Ashley and India in Gone with the Wind.

Rhett Butler - Scartlett's third husband and a little bit of a rebel. He is at times, a loving father and husband but pride prevents him from showing his affection. To me this has a bit of a hippy vibe whist maintaining a classical feel.

Ashley Wilkes - Yes, that is on a boy. Believe it or not Ashley is a BOYS names. This one is definitely on my list. Ashley is the handsome and chivalrous love interest of Scarlett's. Please Oh Please don't feminise this name!

Wade Hampton Hamilton - Scarlett and Charles Hamilton’s shy, timid son. Wade has English origins and means Traveller. I think Wade would be a nice choice for Chase's brother.

Jonas Wilkerson - This Hebrew name means dove. He was the father of Emmie Slattery's illegitimate baby. This name was recently used for one of the octuplets.

Beau Wilkes – Melanie's and Ashley's lovable son, delivered by Scarlett. I love the meaning of this name; Handsome or Beautiful. Could be used as the short form of Beauregard or Beauchamp.

Other Gone with the wind names:
- Gerald
- Ella
- Will
- Belle
- Emmie
- Careen
- Suellen