Browsing Tag

baby name

motherhood

Eau De Bebe

September 23, 2009

It reminds me of a cologne by Michael Jordan

My brain is telling me “No more babies”. So is my uterus. It’s not good for my social life, sex life, and also my sanity. 18 months of being pregnant plus 6 months of postpartum recovery and a lifetime of being driven up the wall all make compelling reasons NOT to make another baby. And don’t even get me started on the delivery, which only a hardcore masochist would want to inflict on themselves.

I’m totally loving not being pregnant. No swollen ankles, midnight cramps, numb fingers, backaches and insomnia. I can jump around and drink all the alcohol coffee in the world without worrying that my baby is going to come out all messed up. It’s also nice not having to drag a huge ass (mine, not the kid’s) everywhere I go.

So it’s gotta be weird that I’ve already got names for my next 2 kids, hopefully both at the same time. My next boy will be Travis and if it’s a girl, she’ll be Hailey. The names are so cute that I’ve just gotta make sure I make a couple more babies. Insane, RIGHT? As it is, 2 kids are way more than I can handle, but I can’t help myself. I’m like a crazy baby-making machine. MORE BABIES, muahahaha…

On some level, it’s an attempt to hold on to their infancy and babyness for as long as I can because time just passes you by so quickly and before you know it, you’ve got a couple a gangly, awkward teens on your hands.

Tru is growing up so fast it scares me sometimes. It seemed like just yesterday when he was all wide-eyed wonder and helpless flailing limbs. Now all I can do is wonder what happened to his helplessness as he destroys yet another electrical appliance in my house. And all I have are the moments where I held him tight, smothered him with kisses and tickled him senseless all stored up in my head. With every passing day, I have to come to terms with the fact that his days as a baby are numbered.

That’s pretty much why we made Kirsten in the first place (besides the fact that I’m addicted to pain and I need counseling). So that there’ll still be another baby to smell and kiss and cuddle and relive the babyness. In spite of all the whining and griping about how my life sucks and I am sleep-deprived and my boobs are killing me, all it takes is that little smile and gurgle for me to feel like it’s all worth it. Every bit of it.

The husband says we cannot keep making babies “just so that I can smell them”, and my head actually agrees. But I don’t know, the smell of a newborn baby is probably the most awesome smell in the world. Plus I ALREADY HAVE NAMES. That’s gotta be a good enough reason.

by Daphne

Funny or So I think

The Name Game

April 6, 2009

I’m having a massive dilemma, so much so that I’m grabbing my head while meditating on the floor (lotus position, say ohm…) as I type. I was so sure that Kirsten was THE CHOSEN NAME for my little munchkin. But something has been troubling me of late, and I will have no rest till I come to terms with it.

Well, so it’s like this. I’ve been infatuated many times in my life, and fallen so head-over-heels in love that my head spins and I can barely catch my breath. But I’ve never felt like this before. I am completely besotted with the deep-badass goddess of fug that is TILDA SWINTON (trust me, you WANT to click on the link). She brings me unspeakable joy and makes my life complete. May she live forever.

And to pay homage to her genius, I’m willing to offer one of my offspring to be named after her greatness, in hope that a sliver of her brilliance will be somehow passed on to my baby girl.

Therein lies my dilemma. Much as I love how Kirsten Kao sounds, TILDA KAO would kick its pretty little ass out of this galaxy. Think of all the goodness that lies in the name.

First, I’ve got the cheesy sibling alliteration name thing going. They will all have names beginning with ‘T’. Truett, Tilda, Travis, Trent, Tristan. I’ll have my own little terrific tribe of tiny tots. Everyone will be so envious.

I’ve also googled the meaning for Tilda, and it totally rocks. It means “Mighty in Battle”. What could be better than having my own warrior princess? Her battle cries alone will give Tru a run for his money.

Best of all, it’s not your usual Jane or Mary. (disclaimer so I don’t get hate mail: those are very pretty names) Nobody in her school (no, make it life) will be called Tilda, so she’ll grow up with a unique personality. She’ll never have to deal with just being another face in the crowd.

So I’m really torn. Should I stick with the safe and go with Kirsten, or jump off the deep end and follow my heart to go with Tilda? I’m leaning towards the latter.

Oh, but there’s just one teensy, weensy pickle. “Tilda Kao(s) come home” would be mildly amusing.

**********************************************************

POLL RESULTS: KIRSTEN (61%) TILDA (39%)

Drats, it wasn’t even as close as I hoped. All you people with your predispositions! Tilda day comes, I will wait patiently..

by Daphne

kids inc

What’s in a name?

February 24, 2009

I am of the opinion that Shakespeare got it all wrong when he said “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” I’m guessing his idealism got the better of him. I, for one, am certain that names do matter. A lot. Chances are, Romeo and Juliet would probably not be the classic that it is if it were called Romeo and Julio (read Hoo-lyo). Snigger, snigger.

I’ve been putting off the whole name selection process for 5 months now, and I think it’s time. I mean, it’s the kind of huge decision that sticks with them for life, and I really don’t want to muck it up. Plus, it doesn’t help that their last name will be, wait for it… KAO. Cool last names like Smith or Williams can go with practically anything, but with Kao, that’s a different story. It’s a delicate balance between being unique and keeping it cool.

Take for example, a lovely name like Abarne. Pair it with most names and it works, but if I were to name my daughter that, her name in itself would be a knock-knock joke.

Knock-knock. Who’s there?

Abarne. Abarne who?

Abarne Kao.

Snigger, snigger.

As a rule of thumb, literary devices also don’t work in a name. Rhymes (Julia Gulia), alliterations (Peter Piper) and onomatopoeias (Ling Ling) are a no-go. If you haven’t already noticed, kids are brutal when it comes to name-calling and a badly chosen name would be like sending her bleeding and blind into the pack of wolves.

After mulling over it for a couple of days, the list was narrowed down to Ava, Emma and Kirsten. Emma Kao got voted off first, because it sounded too much like “I’m a Kao”. Ava, I really liked, but of all the things in the world, it had to mean birdlike. And I hate birds. (There’s a story here which involves a crow getting lodged in a woman’s frontal skull, but I’ll save it for another time.)

So we’ve decided on Kirsten Kao. Yes, I know it breaks the alliteration rule, but if you say it enough times, there’s a rather nice ring to it.

by Daphne