The Name Game

As you know boys names come much harder to Tim and I then girl's names. We have spent hours making lists, highlighting in books, looking up meanings, etc. We went through categories such as biblical names, family names, president names, etc. At one point Tim threw out 'Mark, Matt, Clayton, Justin and Andre" which at first I thought were all fine names and later realized he was going through the Dodger's baseball lineup. As you see we were constantly thinking baby boy names. We were even watching the credits of movies to see if anything caught our eye. In the end there were about five names that we both liked, but we struggled to decide which one stood out the most as our son's name. Well everyone can rest easy, our son has a name!

Over the weekend, Tim and I agreed that our son is JACK BRYANT TATUM. It's already displayed on wall and Hannah is saying it instead of baby boy which is so cute to hear. They have matching piggy banks and Hannah keeps saying "My pink pig big money, Jack's pig no money." Okay so back to the name, according to the US Department of Social Security (which in my opinion has the most accurate rating of baby name popularity) last year Jack was the 45th most commonly used baby name. It's meaning is "God is Gracious" which I love. It is such a wonderful reminder of God's love and that in all things we should be thankful. I like looking up the meaning of names because let's just say you won't find the meaning of Lesley in my baby book "The Gray Fortress." And now to clear a few things up, thinking of my reader population I'm going to guess that only two of you even know this, but yes, Jack Tatum was a famous NFL player back in the day. Personally, never heard of him, but I'll just throw it out there to clear the air. No, we are not naming our child after a man who is most famous for paralyzing a guy after tackling him. Ok, good, glad that's clear. I like Jack because it's timeless. I think it's such a cute name for a little boy running around and yet you can walk into a board room introduce yourself as Jack and feel good. It's easy to say and spell and I think it fits with Hannah. Daddy says your nickname is Jax which I think is cute too.

On to the middle name. Son, I'm sure you and your father will enjoy pretending that you were named after Daddy's favorite basketball player Kobe Bryant, but sorry, it's just not true. The real meaning behind your middle name is that Bryant Ranch is where Mommy and Daddy first met and the name forever holds a special place in my heart because of it. I can still picture exactly where I was sitting when Daddy walked in the room. When I first heard another intern would be joining us, my first reaction was 'oh good, I can size up the job competition, I bet he's got nothing on me.' But as soon as I saw Daddy I knew there was something special about him and we became instant friends. We understood each other and have been each others support every since. We have so many good memories of the groups we ran together, crazy parents we worked with, and work outings we attended. I can still name and picture all 10 1st graders we worked with and it blows my mind to think those little guys are currently in middle school. Anyway, without Bryant Ranch, Daddy and I would have never met. So to me your middle name is a reminder of love and that God has a special plan for all our lives. You never know when your competition might turn into your greatest ally. The internet meaning of Bryant is "Strong" which is also a wonderful meaning. Remember to be not just strong in build, but Strong in faith, family, morals, mind, and heart.

Mommy and Daddy love you Jack Bryant and can't wait to meet you. And P.S. I hope you like your name :)