The Name

Since Adam & I decided to keep our chosen baby name a secret throughout the entire pregnancy, it sparked a lot of mixed reactions. One of the main responses was pure curiosity as to what this mystery name was, how we chose it and why we chose it. Well folks, you already know the first answer. And by the way, her first name is pronounced "Uh-lay-nuh" / "A-lai-na", NOT to be confused with "Uh-lanna" or "Uh-lonna." Now it's time to give the reasonings behind how and why we chose her special name.

~ The HOW & The WHY ~

I truly believe God spoke this name to me over a year ago, before she was even conceived. Alaina popped into my mind and gripped my heart, and just as I would have done with any name I liked, I researched this name in my huge Baby Name book. I was determined to only choose a name that had a good meaning. Something that fit. When I learned the meaning of Alaina, I was certain it was THE perfect name.

ALAINA means "shining light"; "precious"

This precious baby has been a light to Adam & I, to our family, to our friends. We were in a sad, dark place last year when we found out we lost our first baby Caroline. Especially since the only thing in the world we wanted, or at least I wanted, was to be parents. We needed a light in the midst of darkness, a hope for a new beginning. And ultimately, Jesus is our light and our hope. I pray that Alaina will be a light to everyone she meets, shining the light of Jesus into a dark world.

In Matthew 5:14-16, Jesus tells His disciples...
"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

There are a couple more reasons why this name is significant. In a way, it combines a piece of both her mommy & her daddy's name. My middle name is Elaine. If you take the 2 E's on the end and substitute them with A's, you get Alaina. Adam's initials are ABE, and he always wanted his firstborn to carry his same initials. This left the "B" middle name to be filled. We both agreed that we really liked the name Brooke.

BROOKE means "flowing water"; "small stream"

The meaning of Brooke isn't too profound, however we love the name, so that's that! I also LOVE the sound of flowing water and it's calming effect. Always have. When I was a baby, often the only way to calm my colicky self down was listening to the drip of running water from the faucet. When Adam & I are planning a special dinner, I always throw in the fact that my vote would be a waterfront restaurant, overlooking the ocean or a river or a lake. Heck, even a creek would do the trick. That reminds me...our 3 year anniversary is coming up in late September...perhaps dining at a "water" restaurant is in order!

So you see, her name is PERFECTO, just like her :)


P.S. It has taken me a good 3 hours to complete this blog post. Some of the time, I have been typing 1-handed as I held Little Miss Alaina. I have left the computer multiple times to put her in the swing, take her out of the swing, feed her, burp her, walk her around the house, clean up spit-up, change her clothes, change her diaper, rock her, lay her down in her crib, etc. Life as a mommy is interesting to say the least! But I LOVE it!