With each of my children, I knew their gender at about six weeks.  I guess it was that mother’s intuition kicking in right away, I am not sure.  But funnily enough, Bradley managed to sway me the other way with both of them, until at that 17 week ultrasound we were told that my intuition had been right!  The first game we played upon confirming both pregnancies was the name game.  A child’s name is the first gift a parent gives to their child and we seek out the most perfect, the most wonderful, the most appropriate name for this little person who is forming inside.  Here are the stories of our children’s names.

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Guinevere Rose Littlejohn

In our humble opinion, Guinevere is a severely underused name.  Guinevere is a beautiful name, the name of a queen, the name evokes magic.  The name encompasses Bradley’s love of folklore and my desire for an unusual name.  It is elegant and beautiful.  Her middle name, Rose, is a family name.  My mother’s father’s mother’s name was Rose, and it was a lovely pairing with Guinevere.  It also happens to be the name of Laura Ingalls Wilders’ daughter, my best childhood friend’s last name, and represents our love of gardening.   If she happened to be a boy, we were throwing around the idea of Percival, Jude, Piers, Emerson, Willem, and Wilhelm.  Her name was decided within weeks of hearing that we were pregnant.  However, I am not a fan of the name Gwen.  Gwen is the name of women who are between the ages 26 and 34, it is not a child’s name.  As soon as we announced our intentions to name our daughter Guinevere, we began hearing her referred to as Gwen.  We countered with Winnie.  Oh!  Winnie!  Our beloved babe, such a cute nickname.  During her entire stay in my womb (once we knew she was a SHE), we called her Winnie, told people we would call her Winnie, and then, as soon as she came into our world on October 13th, 2003, we promptly stopped calling her by that name.  I tried, Bradley tried, but every time someone uttered that name, I inwardly blanched.  What were we thinking?  Winnie?  That is an awful name for this sublime child, so full of beauty and grace.  So for the first few months she was Guinevere, our queen bee in training, and only known by a few other pet names.  We called her Bunny, Sweetie, Smartie, Honey and all of those typical baby names.  We also called her Rosie and Rose.  Around five months, we were able to start chanting, “G-Baby G-Baby G-Baby G!”  and Guinevere would scootch her little baby bottom in rhythm with the chant, and when she was in her exersaucer she would really go wild!  So G-Baby was born, which eventually lead to Gigi.  We still call her Rose, Rosie and Guinevere, but Gigi is what she chooses above all else.  When she starts kindergarten this fall, she will be known as Gigi to her friends.  When we are in public and I am trying to get her attention, I use any of her names: Gigi, Rose, Guinevere or Rosie and switch them up often as she responds and hears different ones better than others at times.  I think sometimes people are wondering what this poor kid’s name really is!

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Emerson Jude Littlejohn

While waiting those four long years between Gigi and Jude, we had plenty of time to think about a boys’ name.  Emerson Jude was decided long before we ever even got pregnant.  In fact, I believe Emerson Jude (or Jude Emerson) was a possibility for Jeff and Michelle’s second child who turned out to be a girl (Luna Willow).   I had a feeling that I was carrying a boy, but just like my first pregnancy, Bradley convinced me that the baby was the opposite of my intuition.  While we waited to find out his gender, we threw a couple of girl names around (Tallulah, Winifred, Penelope, Margaret, Adalaide) but could never land on the just right name.  I was panicky before going to the first ultrasound because (for some irrational reason) I felt like we had to have a girl name and a boy name, just so we could be prepared.  No need to worry though, Jude was so wiggly that we couldn’t get a clear look.  The second time round, though, we were able to see that he was indeed a HE!  Emerson Jude, he would be.  We decided on Emerson because of the great American transcendentalist and writer, Ralph Waldo Emerson.  Jude was just a name we liked.  That St. Jude is the patron Saint of lost causes seemed appropriate because his very existence seemed like a lost cause at times as well while we were trying to create his little beautiful life.  Both of Jude’s grandfathers use their middle names rather than their first names.  By using Jude as his primary name we are paying homage to this tradition in our families.  We realize that we have saddled him with a lifetime of explanations, but I like the tradition regardless.  In addition to his given name, he has a score of nicknames.  While in utero, we decided to decorate his room with retro space and robot artifacts.  He was called Spaceboy, Astroboy and The Cosmic Kid.  After making his entrance to this world, he gained the names Boo (and even Boo-boo), Boy, Little Man, Mr. Man, Little Lamb, String Bean and Sweet Boy.  As he has gotten older (and more adventurous/WILD AND CRAZY) he has become King Kong the Climber, Wild Boy, Monkey Man and Tuffy Toughskin.  We also call him Joodle, Joodlebop, Jujubee, Judie and the Dream of Horses and sometimes just Judie.

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Pearl Littlejohn

Before there was Jude and Gigi there was Pearl.  Just like my other children, I knew this one’s gender early on.  I have to rely on my mother’s intuition with her because she was just a little grain of sand who turned in my womb for a mere six weeks before coming into the world too early on October 7th, 2002.  She brought us the hope of a family and the opportunity to know the love we had in store for our future children while we were able to nurture her for such a short time.  She is named Pearl for Bradley’s grandmother whose name is Alouise Pearl and because she was so tiny, so precious.  She remains in Bellingham, buried under the magnolia tree in a tiny Disneyland jewelery box because she’ll never get to go.  Every year on her birthday we think of her and the gift she brought to us with her short life: hope.  Incidentally, Gigi’s due date was October 7th exactly one year later.  I took that as the most perfect sign that Gigi would come into this world perfect.  She did.  Four and a half years later Jude did too.

*note* in this picture the foreground is Gigi at about 2 years.   In the background is the Magnolia tree.


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