Baby Girl’s Name Is …

I know a lot of parents these days opt to keep their baby’s name a secret until birth, but given I have zero capacity to keep a secret and I’ve already told most people I see day-to-day our baby name pick, I figured why not share it on the blog!

But I’m going to make you read a little more back story first. :)

I’ve been literally thinking about baby names for my future children for, oh, roughly eight years now. It’s a slight obsession. Before we were even engaged, I used to ask Luke what he thought of baby names. It’s a miracle I didn’t scare him away right then!

When I found out we were having a baby, and especially once we found out it was a girl, I was excited to REALLY get into the baby name game with Luke. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to indulge too much because the name we landed on was one of the first ones I brought up.

Me: “Luke, what do you think of the name <insert chosen name>?”

Luke: “Like it.”

Me: “Me too.”

Luke: “Good. Glad that’s settled.”

Lol. Seriously though. That’s how it went down. No “his and her” name lists to compare. No fretting over our decision. The name just fit and felt right from the beginning. Everyone we’ve told has said they love it too, which means a lot to someone who tends to be a waffler like me.

So without further adieu … the  name we picked out for our little girl is:

I’m in love with the name Lila name for several reasons:

– It’s unique but not weird
– It can fall into the “classic” and “throw back” categories
– It is short and easy to spell/pronounce
– It is lyrical and phonetically fun to say
– It’s cute for a little girl but sophisticated for an adult
– It is soft and contrasts nicely with a masculine last name like Batman

Kate was chosen to honor my late grandmother, my Dad’s mom – RoseCatherine. And I just adore the way Lila Kate goes together. Short and sweet. People can either call her just Lila or Lila Kate.

The meaning of the name Lila appealed to me too. It has a lot of various meanings, but all made me smile.

Hebrew Meaning: “You Are Mine.” One of my favorite songs to sing at mass is called “you are mine” and the lyrics are beautiful:

Do not be afraid, I am with you
I have called you each by name
Come and follow Me
I will bring you home
I love you and you are mine

This song has always reminded me of my other grandmother, my mom’s mom.

Persian Meaning: “dark-haired beauty” Given that both Luke and I have dark hair, I think this one will probably ring true for our little girl.

Sanskrit Meaning: “divine play” The definition I found along with this meaning was  “the universe as a playground of the gods.” I thought this was a pretty neat concept.

Swahili Meaning: “delicate, good” I’m not sure given how tall both Luke and I are, that she will be “delicate,” but I think “good” is a sure bet.

Latin Meaning: “symbol of purity, innocence and beauty” Isn’t it every mother’s dream that her little girl will embody those three adjectives?

The only downfall to the name Lila that I have come across is we’re getting into dangerously close to being the “All L Names” family. Luke, Liz, Lila. Nothing against those who choose to do that, but it’s not what we’re shooting for. We’ll just have to make sure our future kids have a different first lettered name.

It’s been really fun knowing her name so far in advance. It’s made getting to know her even more personal as we can call her by name, get some things embroidered and just think about her as her own little person. I can’t wait to meet her!