I thought I had completely exhausted the subject of last names too, but then I heard what a soon to be married friend is planning on doing and it triggered a memory of another unique last name solution.
A guy I've known since I was six years old is getting married next month and he and his fiancee have decided to combine their last names in the most awesome way. His last name is Johnson and her last name is Sun, and they are both going to change their last names to Johnsun. How cool is that? I know not all last names combine so neatly, but how perfect when they do.
It reminded me of two professors I knew when I was in college. They both kept their last names when they married, but when they had a child they gave him the father's last name as a first name and the mother's last name as a the child's last name. So the son's name was Walker Herlastname. (She had a unique last name so I don't want to share it.) When they had a second son, they also gave him the mother's last name.
I love it when people find creative ways to combine names.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Moses Basket Alternative
Because babies outgrow Moses baskets and bassinets so quickly, they can only use it until they learn to roll over, it just makes sense to re-purpose a regular basket for a few months for baby, and then re-integrate the basket back into home storage when you're done with it.
P.S. I totally don't think you need a Moses basket or bassinet, but because my husband really wants to co-sleep with the baby and there's some increased risk of SIDS with that, a basket seemed like a good way to keep the baby in bed with us without compromising safety or splurging on a co-sleeper.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
40 Weeks
Using my conservative due date, based on my cycle length, I was 40 weeks yesterday. Using my more traditional due date, based on my last period, I will be 42 weeks tomorrow. Physically, I'm ready to be done with this. Emotionally, I don't know if I'll ever be ready.If you can't get enough of "Baby Watch 2012" be sure to follow me on Instagram. I'll be able to announce the baby there before I'm able to announce it on the blog. (Turns out I'm going to have to have a hospital birth so I won't have internet access for awhile.)
And just for fun, I've set up a little poll over there in the upper right corner where you can register your guess for this baby's sex. I don't have a strong feeling about it, but I have a hunch. However, Chuk has a strong feeling about it and his guess is the opposite of mine.
And just for fun, I've set up a little poll over there in the upper right corner where you can register your guess for this baby's sex. I don't have a strong feeling about it, but I have a hunch. However, Chuk has a strong feeling about it and his guess is the opposite of mine.
Friday, April 20, 2012
Seven Quick Takes
1. My mom sent me flowers this week. It was only the second time in my life I've ever had flowers delivered to me. Such a nice treat!2. I occasionally watch 16 & Pregnant and what strikes me again and again is they all have fake nails, highlighted hair, and eat out all the time, yet they complain about not having money to raise a baby. Obviously, that's not my biggest issue with the show, but it does make me question what some people think are essential expenses nowadays.
3. On Monday, I had an ultrasound (it was only my second) and saw baby's face for the first time. I could see its teeth in its jaw. Weird!
4. On Tuesday, I got two hours of acupuncture to induce labor and it was also weird. I have what I'm calling tacks in ears and ankles that I have to press simultaneously for five minutes a day. (Chuk helps me.) I also have instructions to swish water in my mouth before I drink it and orders to do six sets of squats twelve times a day, but also to rest as much as possible.
5. Chuk did really well at the Jeopardy audition. We'll find out in the next 18 months if he made the show or not, but he's officially in the contestant pool. When I told my grandpa about it over the phone, he got excited and said, "I can't believe we might have a TV star in the family" in his thick Louisiana drawl. It was super cute.
6. My cat's favorite place to sit is normally on my lap, but for the last few months she hasn't been able to sit there because I have virtually no lap. A few days ago, she managed to eek out a little spot for herself on my lap and the baby kicked her relentlessly. The sibling rivalry begins already.
7. My husband's been watching lots of Formula One lately. All I have to say about car racing is that it's absolutely not a sport. (Also, it's super boring.)
Read more Quick Takes at Conversion Diary.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
National Parks Week
National Parks Week begins this Saturday. That means you can get free admission at more than 100 national parks from April 21-29. That's two weekends in a row that you can go for free. To see if the national park closest to you is participating click here.With the beautiful weather we've been having, I'd love to head out to Shenandoah this weekend, but hopefully I'll be too busy having a baby, and if I'm not, Chuk will have to work. Go and let me live vicariously through you!
Fun fact: my father-in-law is crossing an item off his bucket list this summer by taking a 6-ish week national parks road trip. He's going to drive cross country only stopping at national parks. Fun, right? He's turning 60 next month and he's never been west of the Mississippi River before.
Monday, April 16, 2012
In Which I Don't Brag
Remember yesterday when I got all brag-y about my husband? Well I'm taking it all back now. He's supposedly been in class for the last hour, but I just logged onto Facebook and 22 minutes ago he posted a badge that he got a 40 point word in Words With Friends. WTF, dude???
I'm glad we're paying thousands of dollars a semester for you to keep up with Words With Friends. Who can I talk to about revoking that Outstanding First Year Graduate Student award?
Back in my day, there were no smart phones in grad school...my day being five whole years ago.
I'm glad we're paying thousands of dollars a semester for you to keep up with Words With Friends. Who can I talk to about revoking that Outstanding First Year Graduate Student award?
Back in my day, there were no smart phones in grad school...my day being five whole years ago.
More on Last Names: Hyphenating Baby's Name
A couple of years ago, I wrote about some of the reasons I chose not to change my name when I got married. When I wrote it, I was feeling defensive about my decision because family members kept disregarding my choice and were changing my name for me. Every time I re-read that blog post I wish I had spent more time on it and was more articulate because it continues to be one of my most popular posts and I don't think it accurately reflects the nuances of my feelings on the issue. I've meant to revise the post or to do a follow-up (especially since it generated my first and only mean comment in the history of this blog!) but as you know, life gets in the way.
I guess the one thing I would reiterate about that post is that I made the decision that was right for me. As the years have gone on, it has become increasingly clear to me that I made the right decision for me, and I wouldn't (and haven't) changed it. Again, nearly all of my female friends and family members have changed their last names and I think that's great, because they're doing what feels right for them. I'm all about all of us living intentionally and authentically.
The other point I want to make is that, this is not an issue in my marriage. Chuk and I have had approximately two brief conversations about my name (both before we were married) and it was always very clear that he really didn't care whether I changed my name or not. I get the impression from some that they imagine we talk about this, or even fight about it, a lot. We don't. It's a complete non-issue for us.
Except that we're going to have a baby any day now, so this issue has resurfaced. We've had first and middle baby names picked out since before we were even considering having kids (just because it's fun to think of baby names) but we still don't have a last name picked out. I mean, there's a 99% change we'll hyphenate the baby's last name, but we don't know whose name will come first and whose will come second, mostly because neither one of us cares which comes first.
The decision to hyphenate came in the car on the way to Target, of all places. The conversation isn't verbatim, as it was several months ago, but it's pretty darn close.
"I'm getting annoyed that your dad keeps asking about the baby's last name," I said. Seriously, it was the second question he asked us when we told him I was pregnant.
"Sorry. I don't know why he's so fixated on it," Chuk said. "We'll probably just hyphenate it though, right?"
"I assumed so." And end scene. We haven't discussed it since.
I've read some articles about how for couples with different last names choosing to hyphenate their child's last name has been a real struggle. (Read more about it here, here, here, and here.) Honestly, their stress over the issue seems to bounce between silly and controlling to me. The two main issues seem to be that a hyphenated last name would be too long or figuring out what the child will do when he or she gets married.
To the first point, about a hyphenate name being too cumbersome, my argument is, lots of people have long last names so it's not really that different whether there's a hyphen in the middle or not. In our case, if we hyphenate our last names, it will only be three syllables, which I don't think is all that long. Learning to spell your last name is challenging for all kids, no matter the length.
As for the complications that could occur when the child gets married, it just seems like none of my business. I'm responsible for doing what I think is best for this person for the first eighteen years of his or her life, but after that it's up to it to decide what it wants to be called. Worrying about things that far in the future seems controlling to me not only because the "child" will be old enough to decide what he or she wants to do by then, but also because it assumes so many variables. I don't assume my child will get married, or that if it does it will necessarily want to keep its name or that its future spouse will want to keep his or her name, or that they will have children.
Everybody should name their child whatever they want, but my point is that for parents who want to hyphenate their child's name, it doesn't have to be an emotionally wrenching decision. Do what you want to do and don't let others make you second guess yourself.
I guess the one thing I would reiterate about that post is that I made the decision that was right for me. As the years have gone on, it has become increasingly clear to me that I made the right decision for me, and I wouldn't (and haven't) changed it. Again, nearly all of my female friends and family members have changed their last names and I think that's great, because they're doing what feels right for them. I'm all about all of us living intentionally and authentically.
The other point I want to make is that, this is not an issue in my marriage. Chuk and I have had approximately two brief conversations about my name (both before we were married) and it was always very clear that he really didn't care whether I changed my name or not. I get the impression from some that they imagine we talk about this, or even fight about it, a lot. We don't. It's a complete non-issue for us.
Except that we're going to have a baby any day now, so this issue has resurfaced. We've had first and middle baby names picked out since before we were even considering having kids (just because it's fun to think of baby names) but we still don't have a last name picked out. I mean, there's a 99% change we'll hyphenate the baby's last name, but we don't know whose name will come first and whose will come second, mostly because neither one of us cares which comes first.
The decision to hyphenate came in the car on the way to Target, of all places. The conversation isn't verbatim, as it was several months ago, but it's pretty darn close.
"I'm getting annoyed that your dad keeps asking about the baby's last name," I said. Seriously, it was the second question he asked us when we told him I was pregnant.
"Sorry. I don't know why he's so fixated on it," Chuk said. "We'll probably just hyphenate it though, right?"
"I assumed so." And end scene. We haven't discussed it since.
I've read some articles about how for couples with different last names choosing to hyphenate their child's last name has been a real struggle. (Read more about it here, here, here, and here.) Honestly, their stress over the issue seems to bounce between silly and controlling to me. The two main issues seem to be that a hyphenated last name would be too long or figuring out what the child will do when he or she gets married.
To the first point, about a hyphenate name being too cumbersome, my argument is, lots of people have long last names so it's not really that different whether there's a hyphen in the middle or not. In our case, if we hyphenate our last names, it will only be three syllables, which I don't think is all that long. Learning to spell your last name is challenging for all kids, no matter the length.
As for the complications that could occur when the child gets married, it just seems like none of my business. I'm responsible for doing what I think is best for this person for the first eighteen years of his or her life, but after that it's up to it to decide what it wants to be called. Worrying about things that far in the future seems controlling to me not only because the "child" will be old enough to decide what he or she wants to do by then, but also because it assumes so many variables. I don't assume my child will get married, or that if it does it will necessarily want to keep its name or that its future spouse will want to keep his or her name, or that they will have children.
Everybody should name their child whatever they want, but my point is that for parents who want to hyphenate their child's name, it doesn't have to be an emotionally wrenching decision. Do what you want to do and don't let others make you second guess yourself.
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