Chanara’s Blog

I have three top girl names…I think. They are Beatrix, Rosemary, and Henrietta. Though Clementina, Josephine, and Esmé are close to the top.

I have loved Henrietta the longest of the three, I remember when I was four getting two baby dolls that I named Henrietta and Susannah. In my eyes, they were just perfection…and they still are!

Henrietta makes me feel happy when I say it.  It has the innocence of Pollyanna, with the daintiness of a little girl in a pinafore.When I daydream of the name, I imagine warm sunshine surrounded by lilacs.  Slightly old-fashioned, quaint, and familiar.  I imagine a little Henrietta with blond curls tied up in a big pink bow and little mary-janes.  I adore it’s nicknames, especially Henny, Hetty, Hattie, and Etta. I prefer Henrietta over Henry on a boy. I don’t have any firm combos for this, at one point I had Henrietta Cordelia Esmé, now I think I’m set on Henrietta Lilac Adèle.

Rosemary is name that has evolved over many years for me. Rose replaced Camryn as my top favorite name at around age 20-21, when I realized I was OUT of my mind for liking any of the names I liked at the time. I fell in love with Rose, like hardcore-I want-to-marry-it kind of love. I only liked Rose though. I felt it was complete enough and just perfect. I wanted to like Rosemary, but was still newly raw from throwing away my tryndee crap names, that I wasn’t ready to embrace the oldies.  Then one day, I realized I really liked Rosemary, and just over many years Rose slowly evolved to Rosemary as my favorite.  I still love Rose, but something about Rosemary just feels right.  This name is one I really feel like I would use. This name reminds me of a Victorian woman in a lacy antique gown-just all my favorite parts of antiquity. Simply breathtaking.  I had Rosemary Helen Anne as a combo.  Anne is my grandmother’s middle name. I adore Rosemary with the nickname Rosy, and something I find extremely appealing and adorable to call a daughter named Rosemary Helen, Rosy-Posy. Just perfect.

Beatrix is my newest love. It hit me from no where. I’ve heard this name a million times, but just once I really heard it, and realized how amazing it was. It might have surpassed all the other names to my number one spot. It’s the one I dream about, the one I’m just so infatuated with it. It’s got this spunky vibe that the other two don’t have, and at the same time seems even more old-fashioned and antiqued than Henrietta and Rosemary. It reminds me of little bunny rabbits in little blue coats stomping through Mr. ‘ garden. It just makes me swoon. The plus, this is the only of the three that Erik likes as well. I also absolutely adore Trixie. I would use Trixie more than just occasionally.  I’m still working on a complete combo, but was thinking Beatrix Valentina/Virginia/Leona/Delfina or Beatrix Leona Joy/Jean. Valentina is in honor of my mom Val, Virginia is Erik’s mother’s name, Leona was my grandmother’s first name, Delfina was my other grandmother, and Jean is after Erik’s grandmother Elva Jean.

So what do you think? Comments, suggestions, reviews? Thanks!