Baby Boy Dickerson

WARNING: The following blog is more of a word-vomit brainstorming thing-a-ma-jigger than an actual piece of writing. But I guess you are used to that by now if you have been following my blog....

I am beginning to think that this kid may leave the hospital without a name. Will he forever be known as "Baby Boy Dickerson"?

"Baby Boy Dickerson on the tackle."

"Baby Boy Dickerson, will you please report to the Assistant Principal's office, immediately?"

"Baby Boy Dickerson, Magna Cum-Laude."

"Baby Boy Dickerson, Attorney at Law."

You get the picture. It's just not doin' it for me....

Troy and I have been dating since high school. You would think that we would have discussed our future children's names a few times between ages 16 and 26, and we did. But it used to be fun to talk about and think about. Now I just have a giant clock (replace proverbial biological clock with a big ticking time bomb resting on my shoulders) that counts down the days and we are no closer to having picked a name.

Troy's "only" requirement is that his initials be TLD. My only requirement is that the name be original. Being a Kristin is so boring (no offense mom)! I don't want to make my kid be a Matt, Mike, Tom, Tim...zzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Oh sorry, I just fell asleep for a minute, what was I saying? Oh yes, the name has to be original.

We have 4 months left before Baby Boy comes, that's not necessarily why I am panicking. But I have gone through every baby book I could find at Barnes & Noble (I didn't actually buy the books but I flipped through them standing in the aisles. Who actually pays for a book like that?!). I have looked at every website to find a T name that we both like. Apparently it just doesn't exist.

Troy likes boring names that are not remotely unique:

-Tyson (yes, the chicken or the boxer...you pick)

-Tucker (Tucker the Trucker....redneck much?)

I like original and creative names like:

-Trace (Troy's sister's name is Traci, so that makes sense. Our home church that we still attend is William's Trace Baptist. BUT Troy says that it's too girly sounding)

-Taavi (Means dearly loved in Hebrew, but most people wrinkle their noses when I mention it...not just my mom. So I guess that's a bad sign)

-Truitt (A bit formal for our family, but I love the nickname True. From what I understand, different forms of True may be becoming popular, so that makes me nervous! But overall I like it)

Then we both somewhat agree on the following names but neither of us is completely sold:

-Tripp (I don't mind all of the stupid ways the other kids could make fun of it...I'm sure he could handle it. But it feels like a nickname, it feels incomplete.)

-Texas (Obviously we would get quite a bit of criticism for this one, but who cares? My only concern is if anyone will ever be able to take him seriously. Plus side: it was my Grandad's nickname in the army and has stuck for the last 70 years)

-Turner (Also sounds a little bit formal for our family.)

BUT I (said with pride) came up with (invented really) the most perfect name for our child. It is a T name that is original but not bizarre (see: Taavi). It has a piece of Troy because his initials would be TLD. It has a piece of me because this name is a derivative of Shannon, my sister's name. I can't wait to present this name to Troy! I can't wait for that moment when everything clicks together and we JUST KNOW this is who this baby is going to be. It will be magical!

Or...at least I will get a MAYBE out of him. I cannot expect much more than that, Troy does not make impulsive decisions. He's a thinker. He is very deliberate. Very calculated (no Accountant pun intended...he he). So...maybe I will get a MAYBE!

TANNON LEVI DICKERSON.

It is strong. It is bold. It is....my kid's name. I am sure of it! And to top things off....I got a maybe from Troy! I got a maybe! Do the maybe dance...do the maybe dance! Troy said that he would think on it (this is to be expected). He liked that it was original and sounds normal and is derived from Shannon. Everything was right on track, UNTIL...

He used Tannon when making a lunch reservation for his team at work. He had to repeat the name THREE times, heaven forbid. It was America's Restaurant for the love of heaven...she was probably straight off the boat (plane, bus, whatever) from Brazil for all we know! But that did it. That was enough to turn him around and send him running from the name Tannon (irrelevant that last week the waiter got it on his first try).

Shot.....down.

But don't cry for me, Argentina. Troy has never (never ever never never ever) been one for making things easy on me. Why would I have ever been so naive to think that he would just accept the name and we would have a Disney moment to follow? Stupid.

Military-style plan of action: I must slowly wear him down and make him realize that Tannon is the kid's name. There is no other name. This is who he was meant to be. Period. And that's why I'm willing to put the work, blood, sweat and tears (maybe literally) into this mission. Don't get me wrong, my intent is not to convince or persuade him to accept a name that he doesn't like. The ultimate goal is to make it click for Troy that this is who our kid is meant to be. Easy enough, right? In my world, nothing comes without a little elbow grease and effort. That would be far too pleasant and normal!

Many-a-dinners, coffees with girlfriends (my girlfriends...not Troy's) and family gatherings have been consumed by baby naming conversation and suggestions.

Troy's cousin's (Molli and Ben) were in town and we sat around for a solid 3 hours talking about names, changing words in the dictionary to T names, flipping through cookbooks, and rhyming every object in sight. At around midnight (Troy had quit by 11pm) Molli looks around the room one last time and says "Touch (couch)", "Ten" (pen), "Tall" (wall)....then she looks up at Troy and excitedly exclaims, "Tald Spot!" I don't remember breathing for a full 2 minutes after seeing Troy's expression drop into humiliation....I even might of peed a little. But eventually I was able to peel myself up off the living room floor and regain composure. So...along with the occasional quarrel, there are most definitely good belly laughs to be had!

We are absolutely open to suggestions, but good luck presenting something we haven't heard or considered! It can't be anything longer than 10 letters, his future teachers must be able to pronounce it, and the name cannot contain any numericals ;) But, you're more than welcome to try!

Middle name possibilities: Levi, Landon, Lane, Liam, Loren, Lincoln). I have no energy left to care about a middle name. I will be lucky to get through the first name with my sanity.

I will keep you updated!