Name Game

So I saw this on the back of a car today, and it reminded me of 3 things: 

1.  I have never been a fan of these family decals.  I used to think, "maybe when I have kids I'll change my tune".  But, nope...still think they are cheese ball!!!!  For awhile, I thought it would be funny to get one as a joke that was Dad, Mom, Leon ----this was BB (Before Breckin)

2.  Jess, the man I married, the man I love and cherish and think the world of wanted to name our daughter JANESSA...not like a random, "hey, what about Janessa?" Like, this was the top girl name on his list.  The FIRST name he brought to the table when we found out we were having a girl. I, of course, immediately used my veto power, and have been laughing about it ever since.  I was certain Jess had either a) lost his mind or b) thought he was having an African American baby. Either way, it sounded like a name he had just made up out of thin air, but lo and behold, someone who parks their car in a Van Nuys orthopedic hospital parking garage has a daughter named Jhanessa.  And, finally:

3.  Since we are on the topic of names, I thought I would share Breckin's name story. 

Breckin Adair Royall

Breckin: 

It all goes back to circa 2005/2006 when Jess and I first started dating.  I was living in Colorado while Jess was living at his family's lake cabin at Grand Lake O' The Cherokees.  During this time we had a lot of buddies that were living the ski bum life in Breckenridge, CO.  When Jess would come visit me in Colorado, we would often spend our time snowboarding and seeing friends in Breckenridge.  This place will always remind me of falling in love with my hubby.  

I made a trip to Stillwater during this time with my sister.  We were seeing our friend Trent play with his band at Willie's on the Strip.  We got to talking about Jess and our time in CO and a few drinks later this turned into "Well, you have to name your future child Breckin!!"  I thought it would be a good idea to phone Jess and tell him this (remember...this is early in our relationship).  The best part was that Jess did not think I was weird or crazy at all for talking about our future children when we had not even discussed marriage or even living in the same state! 

8 years later, we got pregnant and Breckin was immediately added to our name list.  After tossing around a few names we narrowed it down to two.  Breckin or Edie.  Edie was an homage to my grandma Edna Mae.  We had a running joke that if she was born on 6/12 (my grandma's birthday) we HAD to name her Edie.  We thought that was hilarious since my due date was 5/25.  Never in a million years did I think she might actually be born on that day, and she was one day shy!  We did not officially name her until she came out.  They immediately put her on my chest, and I did not see her face for about 30 minutes.  Jess was the one that said, "She's a Breckin"as soon as he saw her.  She has been our little Breckin Bean ever since.   

This is Breckin Meyer.  He is an actor known for his work in Clueless, Road Trip, and some other things, I'm sure.  He is the only Breckin I had ever heard of before naming our daughter.  The name is generally perceived as a boy name, but I think it works for a girl...especially our girl.  

Since having our baby, I have heard of two more Breckins:  One is a little boy that goes to preschool with a friend's daughter here in LA.  The second is a quilt shop owner (female) in Newton, KS that my friend Emily was telling me about.  The word is she is cool and has lots of tattoos.  

Believe it our not, Breckin IS in the name dictionary.  We would have chosen the name no matter the meaning.  I was happy when I learned it meant "Freckled".  How cute. 

Adair: 

This is a family name on my side.  Adair was my Papa Joe's mother, Vernie's, maiden name.  It is also my middle name.  Jess really wanted her to have my middle name.  If/When we have a boy, he will have Jess's middle name, William.  

So, there it is.  I hope she grows up loving her name as much as I do.