i'm still an animal

So... am I the only one that frequently wonders about what they'll name their children? I always have a few favorite names picked out. They change about every couple months.

For a long time I liked Aisling. It's pronounced ASH-ling, for those who don't know much about old Irish names... which is most of the world. I still do think it's very cute, but I have to wonder what my family (especially Katie) would think if I named my daughter Aisling. They'd probably think I'm some kind of weirdo who tortures their children with horribly obscure names just to be unique. In actuality, I've read several books with characters named Aisling, and I just think it's adorable.

Then I was determined to keep Grace Harper. Doesn't it just roll off the tongue so smoothly? It's like a gorgeous celebrity name. Can't you see her now? Blonde curls and luminous green eyes? Gracie Harper Lastname. Partly inspired by the song Gracie Girl (or whatever it's called) by Ben Folds with Harper added in because it's just so Hollywood. I swear it's up there next to Marilyn Monroe and Lydia Montenegro as far as delicious names go.

At the moment, I'm fixated with "Ree". I just think it's so cute. Can't you see little Ree? Dark hair, dark eyes. She's gorgeous. Of course, Ree could just be a nickname. Think of the possibilities! Risa, Sonrisa, Riana, Ariana, Rosie, Lori. I particularly like Risa and Ariana.

These, of course, are only the girl names. For a long time now, I've really loved the names Henry and Gregory. Of course, I can't have two children with names that both end in 'y'. I could shorten Gregory to just Gregor, though, which is just as good. Henry is inspired in part by the main character in Faerie Wars (excellent series of books, in my opinion) and also a supporting character in the Gregor the Overlander series. Obviously, my affinity for the name Gregor comes from there. Then there are the bazillion other names that I love: Howard, Mark, Lucas, Vaughn, Jameson/James, Tobias, and Fletcher for boys, and then Cheyenne, Lucille, Kate, Ofelia, Oriel/Orielle, Esther, Finley, Sonora, Raine, Vivienne/Vivian, and Adele for girls.

So many choices... Odds are I'll end up marrying some guy that has names already picked out and will not budge for anything.