A Mommy Story

It’s the first of the month, which means it’s blog exchange time again. This month’s theme is What’s in a Name? Please welcome this month’s guest blogger, Amy from Chicken and Cheese! And don’t forget to check out my post over at her blog!

I never liked my name. Call my name in a crowded mall and you’ll see at least five heads swivel. My name is so common among my age group that I was “Amy H.” until I went to college. While this allowed me to frequently skip a particular class in high school – the teacher always blamed it on Amy I. – I felt I deserved a more unique moniker.

I grew up and grew into my name. It wasn’t just my name, it was my byline — of which I was very proud. I worked hard to achieve my dream, and here it was. A byline! My name! In the newspaper! On a story! That I wrote!

Years later my Plain-Jane Name begat my husband, Channing. He relishes his unusual handle, and it suits him perfectly. He could not be an Albert, or a Harold, or even a Tom or Jim. He is, without a doubt, a Channing.

So when it came time to choose a name for our baby we both understood how daunting a task was at hand. She would carry this label for life. It would, to a great extent, define her in the eyes of others. Let’s be honest – how many people would hire a woman whose resume announced her as “Peachez?”

We had a list. We bought a book. We love traditional names like Genevieve, Evangeline, and Madeleine. Beautiful as they are, we feared they were too trendy. After months of debate, we narrowed it down to two – Matilda and Emmeline.

Both names got mixed reviews, but we didn’t care. I leaned toward Matilda (a family name) while Channing lobbied hard for Emmeline.

Sitting in the doctor’s office after our first ultrasound, we debated again. I caved. Channing won.

Today we have Emmie. She is Emmie, Emmeline, The Poo, the Poodaloo, the Poodalee, Emmie P., Bubbaloo, Baby Girl, Sweetheart and Lovey.

She carries the name of Britain’s leading suffragette, Emmeline Pankhurst. She carries my maiden name in honor of my father. Her name is suitable for Chief Justice, an architect, an engineer, a novelist, or a mommy.

And when she grows up we’ll tell her we almost named her Matilda. She’ll look at us and wrinkle her nose. “Matilda?” she’ll say. “I’m glad I’m Emmie.”

I’m glad, too.

– Amy is a SAHM to her high-energy toddler and a freelance writer. She is soon to be transplanted from her upstate NY home to the Midwest, where she plans to learn 1,000 recipes for corn.

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This post is part of a June Blog Exchange on the theme “What’s in a Name?” Click here to read more. And, if you’d like to participate, email Kristen at kmei26 at yahoo.com.