Names on the brain!

We finally picked out names! This issue has been stressing me out for weeks, and I am so glad we finally decided on names. Our doctor told us we may get to find out whether this baby is a boy or girl at our next appointment (next Tuesday) and I wanted to be ready!

Our boy name has been picked out practically since we found out we were expecting, however the girl name has not been as easy to come up with. We knew we wanted the middle names to be those of family members, to carry on the tradition that J*'s parents started, and so those were easiest. Then we decided we would like to have first names from the Bible. Do you know how difficult it is to find a good, not so over-used girl's name (that you both like) from that? Seriously, the girl names are either used way too often (Sarah or Rebecca), or are completely ridiculous (Bathsheba or Haggith). Plus, you don't want to name your girl after a prostitute or an evil woman, such as Gomer or Jezebel...

And of course, with the middle names being picked out, you have to find first names that flow with the middle name. What a nightmare!

Anyway, we finally came to the conclusion of:

If it's a boy - Gideon Sylvester

If it's a girl - Abigail Kaye

Sylvester was the name of J*'s late great grandfather, and Kaye was the name of my late grandmother.

If you are curious who Gideon and Abigail are:

The story of Gideon can be found in the book of Judges, chapter 6. Called a mighty warrior, Gideon listened to the Lord's directions to lead the Israelites out of their oppression brought on by the Midianites, another people group that was taking the resources of the Israelites. With the Lord's help. Gideon led a small group of about 300 men to defeat the Midianites, which was done in a very unique way.

Seriously, read the story. It's a great story, especially the ending to how they defeated hundreds of thousands with just 300 men.

The story of Abigail can be found in the book 1 Samuel, chapter 25. Abigail was the wife of a foolish man named Nabal. Nabal was a very proud man, and refused to help king David (before he was king), after David had protected Nabal's family and riches. David was angered by this, and was planning to murder Nabal when Abigail came to his rescue. Abigail went to David, asking forgiveness for her husband's actions and presented a gift. Her humble actions saved Nabal from being murdered for his arrogance.

This story also has a surprise ending. (If you are not familiar with the Bible, most of the stories have surprise endings, one reason I love it so much!) Take a peek at this story too, it is amazing how God works!

Does your name have a special meaning?