Kids' choice
It's very tempting to get your first child involved with naming your second. And, of course, it can be sweet if the older sibling feels included in the first important act for the new baby, especially if kid #1 is old enough to handle that responsibility. But, should you really let a 2-year-old with a 10-second attention span make such a huge decision for you?
Small kids tend to pick cartoon characters—like Garfield, Ariel, and Rudolph. Or they gravitate toward names similar to their own. We once met a woman whose daughters were Melissa and Alissa because the older picked the younger's name and apparently the mother hadn't paid too much attention, but now she regretted it.
Of course, sometimes the child can resolve an ongoing debate between parents. "I wanted the name to have a Jewish feeling and was drawn to a lot of Israeli names that Rob thought were all too weird," says Nina Fresco. Her first choice was Elijah, since the baby was due during Passover, but Rob only liked the nickname Eli. Rob's first choice was Peter, but Nina thought the "er" ending sounded too harsh with the R in Fresco. They just couldn't agree! "So we had David (then 3 years old) decide which order the names would be," Nina says. "He picked Eli for the first name because it's the name of his best friend at school, and Rob agreed to name him Elijah if I promised to call him Eli...which I do most of the time."
Small kids tend to pick cartoon characters—like Garfield, Ariel, and Rudolph. Or they gravitate toward names similar to their own. We once met a woman whose daughters were Melissa and Alissa because the older picked the younger's name and apparently the mother hadn't paid too much attention, but now she regretted it.
Of course, sometimes the child can resolve an ongoing debate between parents. "I wanted the name to have a Jewish feeling and was drawn to a lot of Israeli names that Rob thought were all too weird," says Nina Fresco. Her first choice was Elijah, since the baby was due during Passover, but Rob only liked the nickname Eli. Rob's first choice was Peter, but Nina thought the "er" ending sounded too harsh with the R in Fresco. They just couldn't agree! "So we had David (then 3 years old) decide which order the names would be," Nina says. "He picked Eli for the first name because it's the name of his best friend at school, and Rob agreed to name him Elijah if I promised to call him Eli...which I do most of the time."
