Baby Naming

The kids are very into the baby on board. Mia tells me everyday that she's been wanting another baby and is so happy. She also prays at every meal and at night, "Thank you God that mom is pregnant. Please help the baby to grow up to be a man or woman of God." Josiah prays for the baby to be healthy and Sierra just prays, "Thank you for the baby in mamma's tummy." So cute! What a wonderful environment to be born into. This baby is very blessed!

The kids of course have some ideas of whether it is a boy or a girl. Josiah is routing for a boy so that things will be evened out. Mia is routing for another girl, just because. Sierra doesn't seem to have an opinion. With that in mind they are beginning to suggest some baby names for us to consider. I'm always excited to hear what the kids might say because you never know, they might hit on a really good one and what a great story that would be!

Right from the beginning Josiah has been suggesting Jake. For a couple of years now he has had an imaginary brother named Jake. He and Jake have grand adventures together, living in caves and hunting for dinner. He really thinks that is a great choice. I do like the sound of Jake but I'm big on the meaning of names and Jake is a derivative of Jacob which means grasping the heal. Remember Jacob was grasping at Esau's heal when they were delivered. Being an oldest child though, I always hated how Jacob stole the birthright from his older brother. I know this was all a part of God's plan, but it just never sat right with me. So, for now, I'm reminding Josiah that imaginary Jake is his age but the baby won't be able to go on an adventure for quite some time, even if it is named Jake.

Then tonight, when I was tucking Mia in and she was again telling me how much she's been wanting a baby, she told me she had a name for the baby. "What is it Mia?" I asked. She looked right into my eyes with the greatest sincerity and clearly said, "Cherry."

"Cherry?" I asked.

"Ya!" she said.

I tried to formulate a good response, one that encouraged her love of this new sibling and desire to connect with the baby by choosing a name. Unfortunately my brain is so flooded with hormones right now, it is just hard to think sometimes. I sat there another moment and, try as I might, I just couldn't keep it together... I burst out laughing. Finally, I was able to pull it back together enough to say, "That's a beautiful name, Mia, very happy, and I like the color red. Um... maybe we should wait until we know if it's a boy or girl first and then we can start thinking about what to name it. Or, maybe you can use that name for one of your babies."

Well, I just had to share those two stories! I think names are so awesome! I put a great deal of thought into the names we've chosen for the kids and there meanings and namesakes. It helps that we pick 3 names for each of the kids, not just two. It's such a wonderful discovery figuring out a child's name and it's always been awesome to see how perfectly named each one is. I can't wait to learn who this new one will be.