***There’s a game at the end of this post if you want to guess her name.***

It is incredibly difficult to name a tiny human! Many kudos to those of you who have done it (some, many times over)!

Nick and I started talking about names years ago as we began to dream of our future family. But, as the time has come to actually name a little girl, we have been wrestling with the task.

We created a spreadsheet to help us track the name combinations, initials, monograms, and potential nicknames. Kids can be so cruel, so we are trying to think through all of the possibilities to limit the ways she might be picked on because of her name.

Nick’s brother, Drew, shared with him an app that was helpful in sorting through baby names. The app lets you register with the baby’s other parent to swipe left and right on names you like individually. It then compiles a list of matches for discussion.

What a fun process! We went through thousands of names from various countries and grouped by different themes. We had fun talking about how they might sound with Giardino and what her middle name might be. We even tried them out on her to see if she felt like any of the names we liked. (Nick may or may not have put his hand on my belly and asked for a high five when we got to her name!)

For middle names, we were choosing from:
Nicole (after her Daddy), Lynn (after her Mommy), Grace, Faith,
Hope, and Joy. Nick kept coming back to Grace and when I asked him why, his answer melted me. I said, “Why do you feel so strongly about the name Grace?”. And he said, “Because we wouldn’t be here without it.”. So, the chance of her middle name being Grace went up considerably!

We were down to 3 names and tried them out over a few weeks and kept coming back to the same one. So, while we reserve the right to change her name once we meet her, we’re pretty sure she’s…

You didn’t think it would be that easy did you? 🙂 Here’s a link to a puzzle to solve to see if you can guess. The password is: Giardino
https://crosswordhobbyist.com/645136/Whats-the-babys-name

Good luck! Here’s a link to the answer key! (The password is Miracle). The puzzle is best completed on a computer and should let you know if you’ve chosen a wrong word.

Clue: Her name means “Hero or Warrior of God’s unmerited favor”

P.S. – We reserve the right to change her name if it doesn’t fit her when we meet her.