Both a name and a tribute

When friends see me the first thing they ask is, "Are you having a boy or a girl?" When I tell them that we're having another little girl their next question is, "What do you plan to name her?"

Well, as you remember, when I was pregnant with Amelia Michael and I were very hush-hush about the names we were considering for our daughter. We were worried that other people's opinions of the name we had selected would influence us and we might end up naming her something that we liked less to please others. We also thought it would be a bad idea to let one grandparent think that he or she had chosen our daughter's name when there were six grandparents to consider.

Parents tend to loosen up a bit when they have a second child, and I guess I'm no exception. And it doesn't seem right that I should be telling friends and fellow reservists what I think is the perfect name for our baby girl without sharing it with family. Michael agrees, grudgingly, so I am going to go ahead and let all of you know the name we're sold on for our daughter.

First, let me say that Michael wasn't crazy about this name the first few times I said it. But since he was the one who originally suggested "Amelia" it seemed reasonable that I should suggest our second daughter's name. This name comes from two of my favorite characters from BBC series that I love: Absolutely Fabulous and The Black Adder. The name I adore and that Michael has grown to love as well is Edwina Pearl.

I'm sure the name sounds a bit odd the first time you say it, but put it together with our last name and it sounds terrific! Plus, I think it's a great tribute to two of my favorite television characters: Edina Monsoon (seen on the left in the photograph above) and Edmund Lord Blackadder.

Pearl made the most sense of all the middle names we tested. First of all, "July" would have been a terrible name, if we had tried to name her after the month in which she was born (as we did with Amelia Mae). But because Pearl is the July birth stone, and goes great with Edwina, it suits as a baby's name really well.

So I hope you're as excited and eager to meet little Edwina Pearl as we are. You know, she kicked at the doctor's Doppler while she was listening to her heartbeat during my last appointment. Edwina's a perfectly spunky name, and our daughter is obviously a very spunky girl.

Speaking of spunky girls, I sure do miss Amelia. It was nice hearing her on the phone tonight saying, "mommy, mommy." I wish I had brought my webcam to Chicago with me. Oh, and before I close this message I want to tell all of you: April fools!

Lisa