Susan Vs. Sunshine - Today's Name Game and Why Something Classic is Better for Your Child

Fifty years ago naming your child meant choosing a family name, or just a name that you liked in general. Names such as Mary, James, Susan, and Allen were commonplace and Sunshine, Moonbeam and Hunter were considered rare hippy names. Today it is not uncommon to see a new child named after a favorite fruit or vegetable, season or place. As parents strive for that one unique name for their unique child, naming traditions have been thrown out the window, with anything passing as an acceptable name.
A Name Which Grows With The Child
While Sissy, Kiki or Jimmy may be cute names for your little bundle of joy, it is important to not only think of the child as a baby but as an adult. How will little Sissy feel as "the honorable Sissy ______"? How is a potential employer going to react to the name Apple Blossom on a job application? As much as we try to believe that prejudice and stereotyping do not exist, they do. Instead of using Jimmy, call him James and use Jimmy as a nickname. Give him a choice so that as he grows he can mature his name and become an adult.
Limiting Torture for a Child
Of course it is important for a child to be unique and not to care what anybody thinks, but it is important to remember that some children are naturally more sensitive to the teasing and torture their peers can create. The name Francesca Ulrich may seem perfect until a thirteen or fourteen year old notices that her initials are FU and begins to call the child FU for the remainder of the year, or even into teenage years. Dick may be a family name, but children can be cruel and associate the name with human anatomy making attending school torturous for the child.
Kreeaytv Spelling
You may think that spelling a common name such as Jennifer like Genifr, but please reconsider. A little creativity - changing a J to a G or one 'n' instead of two may be perfectly acceptable and put a bit of a spin on the name. Spelling the name so that it becomes unrecognizable can create many difficulties for a small child. Having teachers and friends both mis-pronounce and mis-spell the name, having to constantly spell it out, and even just learning to spell it herself can be a daunting task for a six year old.
Your Child, Your Choice
Of course it is your child and you are also going to have to live with the name that you choose. So pick a few names that you like, look at them from your eyes as well as the eyes of a child and have fun. Names do not have to be boring, but they also should not be too out there.