The Name Game

The name Emma was pretty much a given even though we waited until we met Emma to name her.  We had a few other names at the ready, the main other one being Justine (love that name).  BUT Emma was not a Justine at first sight and still is not.  I loved the name Emma from way back - way before we started the adoption journey.  It is just "too" popular but in the end I think you have to pick a name you love and wouldn't mind saying over and over and over again.

With Noelle it wasn't as easy to decide on a name.  We didn't want to use the name Justine because it was a "left-over" from naming Emma and that just didn't seem right.  Noelle was also one of the first names we thought of  (for Emma) back then but when the adoption referral didn't happen around Christmas (although Emma is a Christmas baby with a birthdate of December 15) we discarded that name as one of the top choices.  Over the past year when we had decided to definitely go ahead with the adoption of a second child, we went through a long list of names:  Jenna, Tessa, Camille, Cassandra, Michelle, Nicolette, Summer, Corinne (notice the pattern?) and then one day I thought Meghann Lynn, that's it!  I just knew it and we started to tell everyone that was going to be the name.  Well as with the other names, after a while, the name lost its luster and we were having second thoughts - it just didn't seem 100% right. 

Then because Christmas was nearing, the name Noelle popped back into my head and never left and I had an inkling "this" would be her name.  So, we decided if we got the referral before Christmas, the name would be Noelle Christina and if after Christmas, Meghann Lynn.

The rest is history as the referral came on December 20 - how perfect was that?  ;D  Our second daughter IS a "Noelle" not a Meghann.  And just like with the name Emma, I know I will never get tired of saying the name Noelle over and over and over again.  It is the perfect name (for our family), pretty, not too far out, lots of nicknames can come of it - Elle, Elly, Noey (gotta love those "y" nicknames) - and it is a solid great name that will travel well with this little girl all through the seasons of her life.

Copied from a web article:

"Names are very important in Chinese culture. They can affect a person's self-esteem and influence the expectations of others. To choose an auspicious name for their baby, parents can consult a fortune teller who will consider the baby's Zodiac sign, family name, and parental expectations to choose characters which are harmonious with each other and offer the best chance for success in life."

I totally agree with the Chinese.  I do think a person becomes their name (most of the time).