The name game

[judecorp]

I haven't mentioned anything in my journal because it wasn't really my business to put out there, but now that Jen has said something herself I guess it's fair game.

Jen has completed all of the necessary paperwork to change her name, and as long as no one "objects," it will go through in a week or so. We have been going back and forth on names for so long, and this really means a great deal to me.

When we got married, we really went around and around about names. She wanted us to have the same last name but wanted to hyphenate. Well, both of our names are three syllables each, and hers has 9 letters and mine 7, and I /really/ didn't want a six syllable, 16 letter monstrosity. Let alone do that to a kid. We ended up not coming to a consensus and not changing anything.

When we got pregnant, we revisited the name thing. Jen hated her name growing up, got teased a lot because of it, and only really "owned" it as an adult because her family means a lot to her. I really didn't want to set my kid up like that. And hey, I love my name! It is an awesome name! At some point, Jen decided to change her name and move her last name to her middle name and take my name. So exciting.

So now it is actually happening. I don't know if she can ever really know how much it means to me that we will all have the same name like a goofy happy family. I guess I just have to trust that someday I will be able to give her a general idea.

By the way, I think her new name sounds AWESOME.

Comments

[fatfeistyfemme.livejournal.com]

awww. Congrats!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks! It should go through sometime this week!

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

OMG!!! This is so so so very cool. (And would be a good time to use my acronym icon, if I hadn't just trashed it last week...)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Ha ha, yeah. But it's okay to trash it, because really, you didn't use it all that often.

[hotfirecrotch.livejournal.com]

That's great! My sister in law did the hyphenated thing, but when they had their daughter, they used her maiden name as a middle name, which I think is cool. But, then again, her maiden name is Lee...so..it's way short and sweet!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, a short name would have been a different story. I like some hyphenated names quite a bit... but not when they start looking ridiculous. :)

Names are funny.

[aminahfiddler.livejournal.com]

So exciting. I'm happy for your family!!!!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much!

[meglett.livejournal.com]

what a sweet acknowledgment--and i bet she knows how much this means to you.

i too think the new name sounds great!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I hope she does. I mean, it's not something I take particularly lightly. I changed my name once. I know it's a big deal.

xoxo

[mayna.livejournal.com]

Well that's cool that she was willing to do that for you!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I know! I think, though, that she was more willing to do it for the baby. When she was a kid, she and her parents had a different last name than her brothers and I know that didn't sit well with her.

[bit-of-muslin.livejournal.com]

w00t w00t! :)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

[mtgirl.livejournal.com]

That is such a wonderful story. I am SO happy for the three of you. Congratulations!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much! It is so interesting and fun! (I hope my grandparents think it's interesting and fun, too.)

[changinglight.livejournal.com]

cool!!!!!!!!!!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Quite!

[pantsie.livejournal.com]

You do have a lovely last name, and I like the idea that Jen gets to keep both names in the new arrangement. My oldest sister did the same thing when she got married, and it's worked out well for her.

Congrats to you both! That's a big step!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

It was very convenient that Jen didn't have a middle name so she could just stick it in. (My grandmother did the same thing, actually. And when I was married the first time and changed my name, I ditched my middle name for a while.)

It will be interesting when we start changing things like the checks. Or hearing her say it to someone. So weird!

[afullmoon.livejournal.com]

That is so cool. Our daughter has my partnerla last name and I hate being the odd one out. I would be willing to change my last name but our first name is the same and our middle names are pretty close so I have not found a solution.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, I didn't know you two had the same first name. I guess that's one of the hazards of dating someone of the same sex! (A friend of mine once dated a girl with the same first name. We called them Mel-1 and Mel-2.)

How did you end up deciding to give your daughter your partner's last name, if I may ask? I find names so fascinating!

[evewasframed.livejournal.com]

That is all fabulous! I'm just sad that I don't know what any of these names are! :P

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well, drop me an e-mail address and I'll tell you. (I keep the last name off the internets.)

i'm yours, spambots.

[evewasframed.livejournal.com]

evewasframed@gmail.com, baby!

Re: i'm yours, spambots.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Sweet!

[angelhsent.livejournal.com]

I am happy for you guys, But I too am sad that I don't know what these names are.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well, when I went into social work I made a concerted effort to keep my last name off the internet everywhere. The last thing I really wanted was to have clients all up in my personal business, or finding something out about me that isn't really up for client-worker discussion. (You know, like my sex life or something.)

[eeka13.livejournal.com]

DUDE! I didn't ever parse her last name as being, well, anything to make fun of until you mentioned that and I was thinking "wait, why would anyone tease her about--OH!"

Might have something to do with me being a native German speaker. D'oh!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Ha ha ha, yeah, every so often someone tries to be kind or nice or ethnic or whatever and pronounce her name with the 'oo' sound - but they don't pronounce it that way at all. It's exactly like it sounds, mockery and all.

But yeah. Totally.

[eeka13.livejournal.com]

Huh! I think I've only seen it written, actually. Jen doesn't go around calling herself by her full name so much. Actually, I think she usually calls herself "I" when she talks to me, as most people tend to.

Yeah, I'd just assumed it was pronounced (and defined) in German or Yiddish, in which case it's quite a lovely name. Never occurred to me that it could be pronounced or defined in any other way! OOPS!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, totally. She appreciates people's efforts to jazz it up, though.

[sassywoman.livejournal.com]

That's great! ;)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

You're great!

[mermil.livejournal.com]

You do have a nice name. Solid work all around!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks. *pats back* I made it myself!

(Kidding)

[skatured.livejournal.com]

Awesome! Does that mean I can woodburn your last name into a cutesy, up north (think wolf, ducks, cardinal) wood hanging thing to put in front of your house? :D

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh, I wouldn't expect this from anyone but you.

LOVE.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh of course you can. And whenever you come visit, I will make sure it is hanging outside. :) :) :)

[indigodove.livejournal.com]

I am so happy for both of you!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I changed my name the first time I got married and I felt really weird about it. It just never sat well with me. I mean, it was a weird name to begin with and was an anglicized foreign name so it didn't have that ZING, you know? People would be like, "Oh, what is that from?" and it was just a weird name. And long. I thought that when we moved somewhere where no one knew me before it would make it more "mine," but instead it just felt even more weird. I swore I would never change my name again. (But I probably would have if Jen had insisted... but I didn't want to do that to the kid.)

I will always call you mrs. joebass. Unless you should ever break up (DON'T EVER BREAK UP) in which case of course I will take your side every time. :)