Baby Girl Names Are Stressing Me Out!

Anniston is it...love calling her Annie! Reagan can be for a boy or girl which is very confusing for teachers and the child.Kennedy would be my second choice. Brooklyn is new and upcoming, but MacKenzie is overdone.

I think Amelia is an interesting name as it is not too common but everyone recognizes it. Nicknames can be Mia, Lia, or Amy. Good luck.

B.
www.mamabeartales.com

Anniston E. really is a great name! I actually didn't think of J. Anniston when I read that, for I was just thinking what it would sound like with the last name sounding like E as in Easter. I just think it is a great, different first name. My next favorite is MacKenzie. MacKenzie E. might be harder to say. Sort of a stutter.zie E

If you name her Anniston with the nickname of Annie you need to decide if you want her to be "Annie" because that is what will stick. If you do no nickname then she will be Anniston. MacKenzie with that spelling will give her the nickname of "Mac" weather you like it or not. I am M. and got that a few times but I was able to fall back on the spelling and it stopped that quickly. You can always spell it as "McKenzie" if you like the name. They are all beautiful names. My mom always said when picking out names to yell across your house the full name of what you were thinking of naming the child because at some point you will be doing that in public!
Good Luck!
M.
www.justamom.morethanonemoment.com

Well...I don't know if this will help or hurt. My hubby and I had our daughter's name aaalll picked out. Emily Suzzanne...after long hrs and agonizing conversations....ya just want the perfect name. Well, as we sat there IN THE DELIVERY ROOM...It all changed. I don't know where it came from, but I fell in love with my baby girl Jillian McKenna. So, moral of the story...don't stress out too badly about it. It will come to you, even if it's at the last minute, or even after that!... it will be beautiful and so will she.

I'm a teacher and I hear them all! To be honest, none of the names are ones I would choose because I've known a kid with every single one except Anniston, but they're TOTALLY cute and I would think so if any of them came through my classroom. Even if I didn't like them, who cares? I wouldn't think anything of it if it was your child and your choice. If someone was the type of person to say rude things, are they the type of person whose opinion matters anyway? No matter what you name your baby, someone who meets her isn't going to like her name. You have to say it matter-of-fact like... "We are going to name her Anniston; we just love it." If you say it like that, no one is going to say anything negative. I got mixed reviews about my daughter's name before she was born, too... I just don't care. I get it though, and my pick is Anniston - who cares about Jen!? :)

First thing I would like to ask - please do not give her a common name with an unusual spelling like Mikinsie, Kalleigh - they will forever have to correct the spelling. 3, 4, & 5 are very trendy names. I am a teacher - your daughter could end up being called Kennedy E., Reagan E. etc. b/c there will most likely be two of them in class. MacKenzie will be shortened to Mac - very cute. I like Anniston but she will be asked if her parents were fans of Friends. I predict names will revert back to the more 'traditional' of our childhood like Michelle, Kate and so on when our kids start having babies. But I prefer old fashioned names like Alyce (Ally for short), Madeline, Grace, Yvonne (Evy for short) - I like those because they are not spelled weird, no one else has them and they don't sound made up.

You should be comfortable with your child's name. You're going to be saying and spelling it for MANY years to come. When picking a name, I always played 'The name game'.... hanna banna bobanna banana fanna... if the name passed that game, it went on the list. I would also try and think of all possible tease points for a name.

When naming a girl, I like girl names that can be shorten to a boy-type name rather then a generic name that could be for a boy or girl.

For Anniston/Annie - you have to be careful, some teasing names could be 'little orphan annie' or 'annie oakley'...
For Brooklyn - i like it. A possible tease could be 'New York' but that's not too bad.
For MacKenzie - not crazy about it. I have a friend that named her daughter Kinsy, which I think is very feminie and LOVE!

As for naming babies before birth, my friends and I always had code names. My son was 'tater tot' becuase I was craving fries 24/7. and my daughter was tatachip... my friend has a region specific surname, so their nickname was purposely a wild name from a European country. The joke being that there was no possiblity that they would actually name their child that. They didn't tell anyone the possible list until they had named their child so that they wouldn't have to deal with people's reactions.

BTW. For my son, we picked a name on the ride to the hospital - Carson, and for my daughter, I was in the delivery room 4cm dialated . 'we really should pick a name'... wanted 'Autumn', 'Victoria', 'Tessa', and 'Danielle'. Finally chose Sarah.

M.

Congrats on your little girl! My husband and I had our firstborn child last May, a girl. I know your frustration with naming your children. My husband and I had somewhat of the same experience. Except we didn't share our names, my husband decided two weeks before I was due that he didn't like either name (for a boy or girl!) We eventually picked Ava Rose for our little girl. If you are going to call your daughter by a nickname, would you just want to name her that instead. I do have to say I love the name Annie. Also I have a niece whose name is Keagan (pronounced Kee-gan) but the way it's spelled always reminds my of Reagan. Good luck!!!

We chose Mackenzie for our little girl and I wanted to warn you about all the different nicknames people are using. I call her Kenzie. A lot of family insists on calling her Mac or Mackie, which I do not care for. I really liked Reagan but couldn't talk my husband into it. I like all of the names you've picked out and know girls with those names except for Kennedy, but I like that too. I think Anniston is becoming very popular.

Anniston #1 (love it- totally unique!)
Kennedy #2
Brooklyn #3
Reagan #4
MacKenzie #5 - I like the name but I know TONS of girls with this name, so I wouldn't choose it because of that.

Annika is also cool and unique, and I'm sorry... I was trying to be good and just stick with your names. Congratulations and good luck with whatever choice you make.

Those are very cute names, but is there a reason you chose names that happen to be last names of famous people? I would say that the danger of naming your daughter Anniston would be if J. Aniston (I know, different spelling) was ever involved in some kind of weird scandal or if she stars in really bad movies, or doesn't age gracefully. Then your daughter would have a name connected with a disgraced celebrity. If you're going to call her Annie anyway, maybe you could choose a different name that starts with "An"?

Here are my favorites:
1. Reagan - I had a neighbor girl with the name Regan, so I have soft spot for that name.

2. Brooklyn - Even though you don't want a nickname, her friends will probably end up calling her Brooke for short. Very cute!

Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy. Baby girls are so much fun!

I'm going to try to give you a slightly different point of view on the names. None of them are my taste at all, however I don't think any of them are lame and none of them stand out to me as one of those "oh what were those parents thinking!" names. If you go with Anniston, when you first tell people her name you will get a lot of people saying, "were you a big fan of Friends?". And although you might not want a nickname for Brooklyn, I can pretty much guarantee her friends will call her Brooke, so if you really don't like that then I would avoid Brooklyn. Otherwise, I think you're safe.

Good luck,
K.

Personally - I don't think you should be asking for opinions. After all - that is what got you doubting your name choice in the first place (you said you got "mixed reviews" from others.) My husband and I absolutely loved the names we picked for our twins, but when we joyfully shared the names with our family, we got all sorts of criticism and unsolicited name suggestions. Most people seemed to feel like when we shared the names, we were offering them a chance to vote, when we were just sharing the news. I think you should use the name that you and your husband love!

That said, because you asked, I like all your name choices (I am partial to unusual names) but I especially like Kennedy.

This is so old, I know...but I was just googling this info bc I named my daughter Anistyn and i wanted to see the popularity of it. I do not call her Annie, but Ani, like you'd say Nannie. I even call her Nan sometimes. I think it's gorgeous and unique and I didn't do it bc of J.. Honestly , my mom had this perfume of Jen's sitting on her bathroom counter for 3 years and every time i used her restroom I'd see that and eventually I just loved it and realized my first baby girl's name would be Anistyn. Now, I do wish I had spelled it with an O instead, but regardless I find it so pretty and it just reminds me of like a popular pretty girl for some reason. To all those who claim it's too Hollywood, or even the not very nice Deb who called it unattractive and desperate LOL... It's a beautiful name and Im glad you chose it and I did as well!

I'm biased to Kennedy!!! I named my 6mo daughter Kennedie...had nothing to do with the Kennedy's so I changed the spelling. We named our daughter Kennedie Catherine. My parents and grandmother didn't like the name so much but I didn't care at the end of the day it's my baby...they named their kids and now it's my turn. When the baby is here no one is really going to care about the name....they will be in love with the precious angel in their arms!!! Good luck!

They are all very cute names! Anniston is my favorite and Annie is adorable as a nickname. (I see that your name is J. :) I wouldn't worry though about the J. Anniston connection, there is some connection to every name.
I would not go with Brooklyn - have you ever been there? I grew up near it, and though some parts are beautiful and upscale, I still think of run down neighborhoods and gangs when I think of it. If you really love it, go with first name Brooke and middle name Lynn.
Best of luck.

I like Brooklyn or Reagan. I think Anniston with the last name starting with a long E may be a little much and same with Mackenzie.

My niece is named Aniston Grace and goes by Ani. I think it's really cute!! Of course, no one knows how to spell Ani! I say go with your gut and don't let anyone tell you what you picked out is not good.

I know it's kind of strange but when I was trying to decide on a name for my daughter almost 12 years ago, I was trying to think ahead to her older adult years and if a name would "fit" when she reached a certain age. Honestly, there are some names being chosen today by people that are so over the top trendy, they just don't seem that nice for an older, more mature person. While the names you chose are not wildly over the top, they are pretty trendy to the time we live in. We personally know someone with each name you mentioned except Anniston and honestly for me, that just doesn't have a sweet feminine ring to it. Brooklyn is very common, my daughter has met many through school, church, sports and girl scouts. I won't in anyway claim to have chosen the perfect name but my daughter's name is Julianna with Paige as her middle name. From the moment of her birth, we have received many compliments from people about her name, many have called it beautiful, feminine and timeless. I can certainly imagine her as a 60 year old woman one day being lovingly called Julianna by her husband and friends :-) Best wishes on your choice!

I know that i'm a little late in my answer but I love the name of Addison Rose, and as a nickname you can call her: Addie Rose.

Love it!!!

Updated

I know that i'm a little late in my answer but I love the name of Addison Rose, and as a nickname you can call her: Addie Rose.

Love it!!!

Absolutely LOVE Anniston and would not use a nickname :-)

My oldest daughter (14+) is Reagan. She used to say that she hated having a boy's name (we've run into only a couple of girls with that name, but several boys), but now she says that she loves being the only one. She said she knows if someone's talking about Reagan it has to be her. She also said that other names are so over used that they have to have qualifiers like, the Ashley with blond hair, and then she knows three Ashleys with blond hair. Don't know if that helps. Good luck with your choices; they're all very nice names.

Updated

One other thing... if you go with Reagan be prepared to have to spell it and pronounce it. Believe it or not, it doesn't work to tell most people to spell it like the president. Most people misspell our daughter's name as Regan, which I would pronounce with a long e. We've also run across a little girl who spelled it Raegan, but you definitely have to spell it then.

Hmmm - naming can be hard. When we named our children, we went with favorite literary characters. We named our daughter Kalli (sea nymph who captured Odysseus in Greece and in India she is worshiped as the Gentle Mother but Fierce Warrior Goddess). We named our son Finn after several characters we love - Finn McCool (irish folk hero), Finn Bell (Great Expectations) and Huckleberry Finn.

So, for your list, based on the fact that we always go for meaning along with the name, I like the following:
Kennedy is Irish and means helmet head (I think they mean strong headed). Love the name, decent on the meaning.
Brooklyn means stream and appeared in Shakespear's time as Rossyln. I am a big fan of classic names, si I like it.
MacKenzie means fire-born (LOVE this meaning - strong for a girl)

EDIT: I personally love Arwen for a girl - she is the strong, princess fairy in J.R. Tokien's Lord of the Rings books. She was Liv Tyler in the movie versions. We were going to nickname her "Arie"

Kennedy! I wanted to name our daughter that but my husband nixed that:(

Hi,

First let me say congrats on your new baby girl to come! Baby naming is so exciting but also let me tell you from experience once you pick a name-- don't tell anyone until after she is born or tell them her name is_____and we have made up our minds etc. You will get tons of unsolicited advice from strangers, family etc. about why you should/shouldn't name your child_____. So, to answer your question though-- I absolutely love the name MacKenzie-- I think its beautiful and unique. My second choice would be Kennedy-- I think its really pretty too! As far as Anniston, I think you would continue to get endless questions about did you name her after J. etc. I would find that annoying after awhile. Whatever you choose, do it because you feel its the best and right name for your baby--not what anyone else thinks!

Good luck,

Molly

Heres a wrnch in your thinking, a good suggestion. I did this with my 2nd child. Hubby and I researched names from the 1800s that were popular and not and we came out with the name Ada. Close to Ava but has a nicer ring and isnt very common at all.

I'm sorry, but I find all these names to be very trendy and therefore soon to be (or maybe already) very dated. Also,each one is either tricky to spell or will always be at first glance/hearing a reference to someone famous. For a solid name that is not out-there but is a little unusual, you might consider a family name or an older name. I really enjoyed the book "The Baby Name Wizard" as it has grouping of names based on style.... Good luck, have fun and know that you guys will wind up finding a great name that suits her just fine :)

Honestly, I am not into hip, trendy names and these all seem to be that. I also don't like names that end in the EE sound like Kaylie, Kylie, ect. Seems like all the abducted girls have a same like that. Why not choose a name that classic yet not popular like Lily, Marigold, Ruby, Adrienne, or Adele?

Out of the names you have listed, I like Reagan....Kennedy....and then Brooklyn!

Other names that I like are:
McKenna
Sierra
Sienna
Kendall

Good Luck with the names!

What is the Lame Name, and who said so??? I like different spellings for a common name to make it different, for instance, one of my granddaughter's is named Jazzmyne Unique, and yes we are white!! LOL We call her Jazzy for short! Her younger sister is Alizandria Jayne, we call her Allie! In your list I like Brooklyn. It is different, not that common and could be called Brook for short! Kennedy and Reagan, sounds like your naming her after presidents, and Anniston after a celebrity, MacKenzie is too common now days.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE them all! Kennedy and Reagan were on my short list...funny enough my DH didn't want to use the name Reagan because it is the name of the girl in "The Exorcist"....I like them in this order:

Reagan
Kennedy
Brooklyn
Anniston
MacKenzie

Since we have similar tastes I thought I would throw out a couple that I loved but didn't use...

Ainsley
Kendall

Good Luck! I fully believe that deciding on a name is one of the hardest parts of having a baby!!

Kennedy would have to be my fave from this list but ultimately it's your baby and YOUR decision, regardless of what anyone thinks, friends and family included. Good Luck!

I love Kennedy - of course that is my 11 year old's name. I also loved Regan & Landry for my 4 year old but was out voted. And Anniston is great too. Most importantly is that you love it. Don't worry about what others think because no matter what you pick someone is going to say something ugly about it.

Honestly I'm not too crazy about any of them because to me they are kind of those "trendy" fad names...it's just not my preference. I like classic normal names. But that's just me, and there will be plenty of kids with those types of names out there, so it will be sort of "normal" after all.
Of all five, I think I actually like Anniston the best since you'd be calling her Annie. If you went with Brooke instead of Brooklyn, that would be my second choice. I think Annie or Brooke would be great names on their own!
Even though they are not my taste, it really doesn't matter what I think! I think you should go with whatever fits her when she is born, and whatever you and your husband can't stop coming back to whenever you think about names. Good luck

Oooh, lots of responses, and yet I feel obliged to chime in!
Anniston: you may as well name her Suri or Jolie, way too Hollywood
Brooklyn: sorry, but to me that sounds like the name of a stripper :(
Kennedy: ok
MacKenzie: ok
Reagan: ok, but I like the spelling r-e-g-a-n better
I picked names for my kids based on my favorite childhood fictional characters, some of my personal fav's were Laura (little house on the prairie) Max (where the wild things are) Alice (alice in wonderland) etc...you get the idea. That idea's not for everyone but I felt giving those names to my kids was a special cross-generational connection. I also avoided anything too "out there."

I like them in this order (good names and congrats!)
Reagan
Kennedy
Mackenzie
Brooklyn
Anniston - I love the nickname Annie though!

I had a really hard time with our second daughter, but when we meet her when knew easily. I would quit stressing out over it. All of the names you've picked are cute. I like Reagan the best (because I knew a sweet girl named Reagan), but I really think what a stranger thinks should not be a big factor. Hang in there.

i always liked cheyanne makenzie

I love the name Anniston! The other names are way too popular in my opinion.

My husband and I kept our 2nd son's name to ourselves, knowing my mother wasn't fond of it (cousin on biological dad's side with same name). But I still liked his name and chose it because of what my mother said during my 1st pregnancy. Her advice was to pick a strong name (for boy or girl). I do like your list of names...I like them because I really think those names are appropriate for a girl and are strong names for them. But when you look at your daughter for the first time, I believe you will know if the name fits her.

My friend went in knowing she would name her first daughter Desiree...she was named Abbigail.

Good Luck

im voting for 1 and five, more for 5 though! I love that name!!! I have been trying to talk my husband into that name for our next daughter, whenever she comes along! We named our daughter addison after the tv character. I love that the character was very strong willed, and pretty much spoke her mind and I want to bring my daughter up the same way!

I like Anniston, but I would like to tell you my daughters name maybe you might like it better. Her name is India yes India and I get a lot of oh how beatiful what a great name. Its a name you dont hear everyday. Good luck they are all very nice names. I think once your sweet girl is born you will know.

I am right there with you. I had about 20 awesome boys names picked out, so when we found out we were having another girl, I was completely stumped. My other two kids have such unique names, I can't very well give this baby a "boring top ten name".
Personally, I LOVE Brooklyn. If good friends of ours hadn't named their daughter that, it would be my choice.
I also LOVE Reagan, but I've been forbidden to use any more Irish names :(

Good luck Mama!

I love your top three! Brooklyn is pretty popular actually. Anniston is a great take on the more popular Addison. Make sure you like J. Aniston because that's who people will think she's named after. People will call Brooklyn Brook/Brooke so be prepared! And I don't think too many people associate Kennedy with JFK anymore as much...but Reagan still, as he was president when some of us were born or growing up. And some people will say Ree-gan, I think it should be easily to pronounce a child's name, that's what I hated the most growing up, misspelling and misprounciation (my name is T.). MacKenzie is pretty popular and I wouldn't like to be a 30-something career woman named MacKenzie. Sounds too little girl. Good luck!

I like Anniston and Brookly. The other names are so popular. She would be one of many with those names.

I love Anniston, would go with Aniston as the spelling. I also liked Anastasia for my girl name, so maybe that's why. It's a fine line between trendy and unique. I think Aniston will stand the test of time... it's not very feminin but it could be a woman presidents name! My other girl name was Ella. I ended up with boys, Myles and Rome. And, I didn't realize that I was setting my son up for a life time of answering the question," is that Myles with a y or i?" So think about that. Good luck! :-)

1. Anniston - Different but cute, but it does remind me of J..
2. Brooklyn - I like this one the best, Maybe Brookie when she is little
3. Kennedy - Its okay, sounds very proper, not very girly
4. MacKenzie - This is okay
5. Reagan - I know this is just my generation, but this name always reminds me of the Exercist movie (sorry).

Anniston is cute and different
Brooklyn is very common right now, though it is a nice name
Kennedy is a bit masculine, you could change the spelling to Kennedie it has a cute sound
MacKenzie is a bit hmmm
Reagan makes me think of "stand back I have my Raygun pointed at you"

This is the order I like them. . .

1. Reagan - call her Ray
2. Brooklyn
3. MacKenzie - call her Micky
4. Kennedy - call her Kenny or Dee
5. Anniston - call her Anny

Good luck :)

I liked the name Kate so we named our daughter Kathryn, now I wish we'd just stuck with Kate. I don't think there is anything wrong with just naming your daughter Annie if you like it. My first thought was not to like any of the names because they seem trendy...but after looking at it again, I like Brooklyn...especially if you have some connection to the place...though I guess its fine on own too. Whatever you choose will be special because you choose it together and when you look at your baby you'll know it fits.

Picture your daughter, now picture her one year old and running threw the house like a monkey in her diper and your chasing her for some reason like a bath. What names just comes to mind when your screaming "STOP". A name that you can say over and over again(becuase you will) and it just feels right. Even before i was pregnant i knew her name and when i found out it was a girl it just felt like "home".

Reagan is a cute one. but makek sure its a name that kids can't make fun of and is orgianal to them. you would hate to have her in a class named kate.

Anniston - definitely not! Nothing is more unattractive than a desperate has-been actress trying to hold on to the limelight, which is just who your daughter's namesake will be sixteen years from now. The only female Brooklyn (probably born Suellen or something) I know of is the half-naked one gracing this year's Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition.. MacKenzie is pretty, especially if you have a Celtic last name. Both Kennedy (which I like) and Reagan (which I hate) will be lightning rods for people who think they know the family politics. Have you taken a look back a few generations to see if any family surnames would make good first names? That's where I got Lindsay, Summers and Alden. "Hadley" was next on deck but we didn't have another. You might have some pretty good names - especially maternal maiden names - lurking in your family tree. Just wait till she gets here to decide. My "Cassidy" (it means curly-haired) became Alden (pronounced All-den) when she arrived looking decidedly Grace Kelly-ish, and it suits her perfectly. "Out there" is not bad but trendy is. Don't worry. She willl get here and you will know exactly who she is.