Think of a name that will look good on a graduation certificate. I have a neice named "Julie" -- not Julia, just Julie. Nothing wrong with that, I just think "Julia" would sound more dignified on official paperwork. People ought to have names that they can dress up or down, depending on the circumstances.
I knew that if I was having a boy, I wanted him to have his dad's middle name (dad is usually called Kelley, but his first name is really Joseph). But I didn't want two Kelley's in the family, so I needed a first name that went with it... took forever, but I finally chose "Michael"
With my daughter, it was totally, "oh, what sounds pretty?" but won't be too common or too unserious.
Actually, I named my daughter several years before I got pregnant the first time
I know what I'd call another girl, too, but have decided we don't need to go there.
And... regulations? There are laws in Germany about which names you can give your kid?? That's really ... different from here. We get people making up names all the time (although apparently a lot of people still like "Rachel") and all you have to do is spell it correctly (whichever spelling you choose) on the birth certificate.
PJ
