Originally posted: 9/28/2010
Like I mentioned in my last note, as I get closer to delivering my little sunshine girl, I feel the urge to document EVERY feeling... Hopefully these notes will help during 1am feedings. [But, wait. I'm up at 1am right now. ...Yikes.] Either way, one of the biggest struggles Andrew and I faced through my pregnancy was picking a name for Ellie. So, how did we do it?
I wanted to name her Charlotte, Caroline, or Gracie. He wanted to name her Piper, Sarah, or Emma. There were other names... Laney, Hallie, Emily, Molly, Addison, and so so so many more. And then, one day in June, I was sitting on our old futon [which, side note, was our first bed in our first home. Sometimes I am thankful for when we lived paycheck to paycheck...] and it just came to us. Everyone told us that a name would just pop out, but I never believed them. But, honestly, they were right. Ellie. We had considered naming her "Elizabeth" which is a family name on both sides, but decided that Ellie was enough. Ellie. Ellie. Ellie. Let's be honest, shouldn't a little girl have a sweet little feminine name? My incredible little ball of silly kicks... My Ellie... I could cry at even the sound of the name I know I'll say ten million times. The name I'll yell at soccer games. The name I'll write in birthday cards. The name of the child that made me a mother. What IS really in a name?
And then her middle name. We had considered my sister's name, Lisa, and several other family names before we decided on Brooke. I was never fortunate enough to have a brother that I grew up with- sure I had stepbrothers and male cousins that were like brothers, but I didn't really grow up with one. Have no fear, though! I scored the brother-in-law jackpot and in comes Brooke Knieriem, Andrew's younger brother. Besides being the most compassionate and honest person that I know, he has always been a shoulder to cry on [especially during Andrew's Basic Training] and one of my very best friends. If Ellie become 1/10th of the incredible person that our brother Brooke is, we'd be blessed.
So, Ellie Brooke, how many newspaper clippings will I scrapbook with your name in them? How many times will your teachers tell me, "Your daughter, Ellie, is a total joy"? And how many times will I whisper your name while rocking you to sleep? I promise not to yell your name as often as I praise it... as long as you promise to be my little Ellie girl forever and ever and ever.
and ever.
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