Baby name consultation: Remembering Lily in no. 5’s name (boy or girl)

sanctanomina Baby name consultant, , ,

I posted the winner of the giveaway this morning — go check it out if you haven’t already!

Laura and her husband are expecting their fifth baby, a little green bean đŸŒ± (=gender unknown)! This little babe joins big sibs:

Thomas Blaise “Blaise”
Augustine “Gus” John
Rose Elizabeth “Rosie”
Lily Marie

So many great names!! 😍

Laura writes,

“Finding a name for this little baby has presented more of a challenge. Just over a year ago, my husband and I unexpectedly lost our daughter, Lily, full-term at birth. We chose her name quickly after she arrived, not knowing how much peace it would bring us going forward. Spotting a lily now unites us with our daughter we so grateful yearn for. And having our daughters linked through their flower names is very special to me. Regardless of boy or girl, I’d really appreciate a name that nods to Lily’s memory somehow, if possible.”

It was such a special thing for me to be able to offer some thoughts and ideas for this beautiful family, such a gift.

She continues,

“We are unaware of the baby’s sex, but feel especially called to solve the dilemma of keeping or scrapping the flower trend, should the baby be a girl. We also have chosen all saint’s names, other than Lily, who most likely would have been Lillian. We prefer to link each child to a saint.

It seems we also prefer a name that can have a nickname- and are open to the more “non-traditional” nickname options. (Two examples of yours that we LOVE are Miles for Michael and Pierce for Peter.)

We would not consider a “D” first name, and family names to avoid would be: Elisa, Conor, Jameson, Colin, Finn, Cecilia, Mary.

So, the question is, to flower or not to flower?“

Laura also said I could share with you all the one photo of they have of the whole family, including Lily:

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So I wanted tackle their “to flower or not to flower” question first: I love that they have a flower theme, and it sounds like they love it too—if Laura and her hubs were to continue with a flower name for all their girls, their Lily would always be looped in in a way that Laura said is “very special” to her. So my vote is to keep it! Sometimes themes like this can start to feel constraining, even suffocating, if a family continues having a bunch of kids and it becomes increasingly difficult to find names that fit. But I think there are a few ways to work with this theme in such a way that it doesn’t have to feel so. First, there are so many great floral names for girls! And if they opened up their theme to either first or middle name (rather than just first), some of the more unusual options become more doable. Second, if they were to extend their theme to “plants” rather than only “flowers,” or even more broadly to “nature” names, they have a lot more options that can be just as beautiful as flowers. Third, they could choose names that could nickname to flower names, which also loops Lily in an extra way because Lily—though it can be (is) a name on its own—is also traditional nickname for Elizabeth (which also connects Rosie and Lily in a special way!). (I have a suggestion of how to do this below.)

If Laura and her hubs decide the flower (or possibly plant/nature) theme is too restrictive, they could decide to do *Marian names* for their girls instead. Both Rose and Lily are considered Marian names, since they both are symbols of Our Lady, so it wouldn’t be any fuss to change mid-stream as it were and give this baby a Marian name—she’d fit in nicely with both her sisters. I’ve included a non-floral Marian suggestion that I think they might like below as well.

Alright, so first, I had some ideas about how to nod to Lily for both a girl and a boy. I’ll do boy first, since there aren’t as many ways to do so:

(1) Leo
I was trying to think of ways to connect to Lily through name, and one way that parents sometimes honor people is by using the same letter of their first name. After looking up the names Laura and her hubs have used and those they like in the Baby Name Wizard (which you all know is how I start each consultation, as the BNW lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity), I actually already had Leo on my list for this family. I also like that, in addition to starting with the same first letter as Lily, it’s short and two syllables, just like Lily. Pope St. Leo the Great is a 
 *ahem* 
 great (!) patron as well! 😁

(2) El(l)iot(t), Elijah, Eli, Elias
That first jumble of letters is meant to be Eliot! Or Elliot. Or Elliott. Haha! I thought it could connect to Lily through her traditional usage as a nickname for Elizabeth, drawing on the similar beginnings between Elizabeth and El(l)iot(t). Elliot is also a style match for Miles, which Laura said they like, so Elliot seemed a name they would like. However, I’m also sensitive to the fact that their other kids have names that I would classify as Catholicky Catholic, and Elliot doesn’t really fit into that, so I could see them not loving it as a first name, but having it in the middle spot would be a fine place for Lily’s honor name. Or, perhaps a different El- name that doesn’t seem as similar to their names they like but is more obviously faithy, like Elijah and Eli or, maybe the best fit, Elias (which is the Greek form of Elijah, and is actually where Elliot comes from—Elliot is a medieval diminutive of Elias).

(3) Hawthorn
This is also probably a middle name pick, but I was trying to find what month lilies are the flower for, and I could only find lilies of the valley—one of the flowers of May. Interestingly, May has another flower as well, which is the hawthorn. I’ve actually seen Hawthorn used as a name for a boy (the family that I saw use it—on a name discussion board years ago—used Hawk as the nickname, which I thought was so clever!), and I think for this family it would make an amazing middle name with a really cool tie to Lily. An added fun fact is that there are several titles of Mary related to hawthorns—Our Lady of Arantzazu in Spain is a title for one such apparition (the “arantza” part means “hawthorn” in Basque, and a variant of it — Aranza — which began as a name in honor of OL of Arantzazu was one of the fastest rising girl’s names in 2014 because of a character on a telenovela!).

(4) Pierce or Simeon
Laura already mentioned that they like Pierce, but I think it would make a really nice way to nod to Lily, although in a sad way—this reader said she knows a family who named their son Pierce for the prophecy of Simeon—how Mary’s heart would be pierced by a sword. That’s pretty fitting for a mom who’s lost a baby! Simeon could also work, being the name of the man who prophesied the piercing.

Those are my ideas for first or middle names for boys that can nod to Lily, but I also had some more ideas of first names that they might like. I usually start with girls, but since I’m already talking about boy names I’ll go ahead and do them first:

(1) Xavier
According to the BNW, Xavier’s a style match for Blaise, and its Catholicness also makes it a great match for Augustine. It’s a really fun first name too—you can’t beat that X initial!

(2) Thaddeus
At first I was going to suggest Theodore, as it was listed as a style match for August (as a stand-in for Augustine, as the BNW doesn’t have Augustine) and I liked that it was long, like Augustine, which brings some nice balance to sib set as a whole, but I thought it wasn’t quite right. I often think of Theodore and Thaddeus as two sides of the same coin—they’re so similar but different enough that parents tend to pretty clearly prefer one or the other. The obvious patron is St. Jude Thaddeus of course, but I also love Bl. Thaddeus Moriarty—an Irish Dominican priest martyred for the faith.

(3) Isaac
I really really like Isaac for Laura and her husband! I’ve had it on my own list for ages, and St. Isaac Jogues is the inspiration for me. I know the name is really Old Testament, but to me it’s so saintly—in fact, I overwhelmingly think of St. Isaac before the biblical Isaac. I live near the North American Martyrs’ Shrine, though, which is where he and his companions were killed, and there’s a local church named after him, so it could be a regional thing on my part. I know two little Isaacs — one a brother to Oliver, the other a brother to Owen, so it’s definitely getting use outside of the heavy biblical namers.

(4) Sebastian
As I mentioned with Thaddeus, I was trying to think of longer names that could loop the long Augustine back in with his shortly named sibs Thomas/Blaise, Rosie, and Lily (the nickname Gus is perfect with the others!), and Sebastian came immediately to mind. I think it has that same Catholic cachet as their other names, and some great nicknames too: Seb(by), Bash (like Grace Patton’s Sebastian/Bash), Baz.

(5) Campion
My last idea for them for a boy is Campion, like St. Edmund Campion, but what made me first think of it was when I was trying to think of ways to nod to Lily, I was hung up on finding some flower names that could work for boys (for some reason I’d conflated “nodding to Lily” with “flower names for girls” and was thinking flower names for everyone!)—campion is a pink flowering plant. But then I thought I’d keep it in anyway—St. Edmund’s a great saint, and Cam’s a great nickname, and as I noted in the consultation I did for Jenna at Wilber Huset, Campion means “champion,” and is also of course the last name of St. Edmund Campion. Ancestry.com even says it originated as a “status name for a professional champion,” which is great for a boy—he wouldn’t even need to know about the pink flowers!

(6) Benedict
Nope, I lied—I’m adding one more in. Benedict has the same feel to me as Blaise and Augustine, and Ben is one of the friendliest nicknames, very in keeping with the feel of Gus. It’s also for Pope Emeritus Benedict of course, who I love, and since it means “blessed” they could also think of it as an apt name for being blessed with another baby after losing their Lily.

Now on to the girl names! I came up with loads of flower/plant names that I thought could work with their theme of wanting their girls to have those kinds of names (if they decide to stick with it). I think they’ll see there are a lot of options!

(1) Jacinta
Jacinta is one of my FAVORITE names—I took it as my Confirmation name, and if I’d had a bunch of girls instead of a bunch of boys, Jacinta would have been in there somewhere! Jacinta is the Spanish and Portuguese form of Hyacinth, which is of course a flower, so it sticks with their theme, and also—how perfect to include Jacinta in a name for a girl born right after St. Jacinta’s canonization! Also, Jacinta was such a little girl when she died, and she died alone—Our Lady told her she would, and I saw the most beautiful artistic depiction of her Mary carrying Jacinta to heaven—I’ve found that image so comforting when I think of the baby I miscarried, and I wonder if it might be really meaningful to Laura and her hubs in memory of Lily. I also sort of think of Jacinta as the patron of those who suffer in secret, and the devastation of losing a baby isn’t always as obvious to the outside world. And since they love creative nicknames, Jacinta might be extra perfect for them! I did a spotlight of the name here, along with nickname ideas.  If Laura and her hubs like this idea but not Jacinta exactly, they could also just do Hyacinth, like the Pioneer Woman’s BFF, whom she often refers to as “Hy” on the show.

(2) Violet
Violet was actually a style match for August (standing in for Augustine), Rose, Lily, and Lillian. It’s also considered a Marian name, and would be a perfect sister for Rose and Lily! The only problem with a name like Violet is that it’s so *obviously* floral that it really might make them feel wedded to a style that’s hard to keep up with.

(3) Iris
Iris is also explicitly floral, but it also means “rainbow,” which is so suitable for a rainbow baby and by its very meaning points to the baby who came before. It’s not obviously faithy though, so if they like it maybe they’d prefer it in the middle?

(4) Juniper
If Laura and her hubs wanted to branch out of flowers into plants generally, Juniper’s a great one to consider! St. Junipero Serra’s canonization last year has put this one on the radar of a lot of Catholic families, and Junie is the CUTEST nickname! There’s also a lovely pious tradition that the juniper tree hid the Holy Family from Herod’s men during their flight into Egypt.

(5) Azelie
This name is super saintly (to people like us anyway), like Blaise, Augustine, Rose, and Lily, and also floral without being in your face! A lot of people take Azelie to be a French form of azalea (it is, of course, part of the given name of our St. Zelie—she was born Marie-AzĂ©lie). In fact, Lindsay from the blog My Child I Love You has a Rose, Lillie, and Zellie (that’s how they spell them), and she said she loved that the three of them are like a bouquet of flowers.

(6) Margaret or Marguerite nicked Daisy
This is the name I mentioned above that would fit into my idea of having the flower connection come from a nickname. Daisy is a traditional nickname for Margaret! The French form of Margaret, Marguerite, is actually the name of the daisy flower in French! Since Laura and her hubs like creative nicknames, this idea might be right up their alley. There are some great Sts. Margaret too, and it’s obviously saintly like the rest of their crew.

(7) Susanna
I’m not sure if this is overkill or perfect, but I couldn’t not suggest it! According to Behind the Name, Susanna comes from the Hebrew shoshana, which means lily AND it also means rose in Modern Hebrew! So Susanna can tie the other two girls together in one name! Again, I’m not sure if that’s brilliant or just way too much, especially when they consider what to do if they have a fourth girl? As far as saintliness, not only is there a St. Susanna, but the church in Rome for American Catholics is St. Susanna’s, I love that.

Okay! Those are all my flowery ideas for them for a girl, but I had a couple other names that I thought I’d suggest in case they want to put the flower name in the middle and do a non-flower name for the first name:

(1) Clare or Chiara
I probably wouldn’t have included any other ideas than flower ideas except for the fact that Claire and Clara and the next name (Hope) were style matches for them in my research. Clara is a style match for August (standing in for Augustine) and Lilllian, and Claire for Lily, but I thought the variant Clare—often said to have the saintliest feel of the Clare names—was closest to what they’d like. BUT, then I thought maybe the variant Chiara would be an even better fit! It’s got a little more of that heavy feeling that Blaise and Augustine have, and can be for St. Clare of Assisi (whose name was actually Chiara—Clare is an anglicization of it) or Bl. Chiara Luce Badano, who’s such a great patron for modern girls because she herself was a modern girl (she died of cancer as a teenager in 1990).

(2) Hope
Hope was listed as a style match for Pierce, and I immediately thought it was a great idea for Laura and her hubs to consider. It can signify the hope of a new baby after losing their Lily, and can also be for Our Lady of Hope, if they decide to go Marian instead of floral (or even if they do stick with the floral theme! Hope would be a great first or middle coupled with a floral name).

(3) Gemma
I actually didn’t see Gemma listed as a match for any of their names, but it just struck me as one they’d like, and when I looked it up I saw that Violet and Clare are both style matches for it! St. Gemma Galgani is a great patron for a girl and—you guys, get this — when I looked her up I got holy bumps because lilies and roses are two of her symbols! And she’s also known as the Flower of Lucca! Ohmygoodness. Whether they use the name or not, these are such fun details to discover!

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What name(s) would you suggest for the little brother or sister of Thomas Blaise/Blaise, Augustine/Gus, Rose/Rosie, and Lily that can also nod to Lily?

72 thoughts on “Baby name consultation: Remembering Lily in no. 5’s name (boy or girl)”

  1. So many good ideas in this consult! I especially love the idea of continuing the girl names with either flower names or Marian names.

    When I think of lilies, St. Joseph comes to mind as he is often holding them in pictures and statues. Some pictures show him holding both the child Jesus and lilies at the same time, which I think might be a comforting image. I don’t know of any non-traditional nicknames for Joseph, but it might fit nicely as a middle name. Maybe it could be matched with a non-traditional first name? I thought the Hawthorn suggestion was particularly creative and meaningful.

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  2. I really like your suggestions, Kate. The only comment I would add is that since Lily is such an Easter name, any name that ties to Easter could also be a nod to Lily. Anastasia means resurrection and could make a meaningful choice.

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    • Another Laura? Awesome! Team Laura!! 🙂
      Thank you for your suggestions. An Easter name is a clever way to incorporate Lily since she’s in “full bloom” during the Easter season. I’ll have to give that more thought. Thank you.

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      • Funny that you called me Another Laura because that’s my user name on the baby name wizard site – her name is also Laura. Team Laura for the win!

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  3. We had the same flower name dilemma as well! Our two older daughters are Eleanor (Ella) Rose and Liliana (Lily) Grace. For girl #3, the hard part was not finding another flower name (I love so many!) It was finding one my husband agreed to! We ultimately decided on Margaret (Molly) Joy. I like that all the girls have flowers in their names but all in different ways. Ella as a middle name, Lily as a nickname and Molly as a meaning/definition. Other flower/plant ideas we considered included Azealea or Hazel both nn Zelie, Magnolia nn Maggie or Molly, Violet nn Ollie, Clementine nn Clem ( or Emmy). My husband also loves the name Zita so I had the idea of a P- first name (like Penelope or Philomena) with the middle Zita and then using the mashup nickname of Posey (Po-Z ) but I never found a P name that worked for us. The possibilities really are endless though so if you like how the flowers tie them together, I say go for it!

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  4. What a beautiful family and such a meaningful task finding a name to honor their Lily. I love your suggestions, and I’m really intrigued by the idea of a boy name that honors Lily. I saw that the botanical/Latin name for lily is “Lilium,” but that’s probably still too much of a stretch for a boy, even as a middle…
    What about Liam or Linus as a masculine nod to Lily?
    Albus means “bright/white” and since lilies are often white/a symbol of purity, there’s a connection there. Also the Madonna lily is sometimes called “Lilium album.” (Bonus if they’re Harry Potter fans! ;))
    There’s a list of a bunch of different types of lilies in this wikipedia article… including a St. Bernard’s lily and a St. Bruno’s lily (neither of which are technically in the lilium genus, but anyway….): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lily_(disambiguation)
    A name with “lis” in it could be a good choice given “lis” is French for Lily. How about Alister/Alistair (a form of Alexander)?
    I feel like I should stop now before I get too carried away. 🙂

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  5. I love love Susanna for them! It makes perfect sense because of its meaning.

    For a boy, what about Anthony? Technically it isn’t flowery, but the name has been associated with the Greek word for “flower”. Plus, St. Anthony is often pictured holding a flower (is it a lily?).

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  6. I just wanted to chime in that Iris is a Marian symbol—the Fleur-de-lys, a common Marian symbol, is meant to be an Iris! I learned this from a long ago post here, with a link to another site with floral Marian names. So perhaps it isn’t commonly thought of as a Catholic name, it IS explicitly faithy!

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    • Grace,

      Thank you! I just met a mom with an Iris and wondered if it was a sign. And now that it’s Marian, and means rainbow, it might just need to be a top contender. Side note: Grace has always been one of my favorite names. 🙂

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      • 💗💗💗
        Iris was going to be our last baby’s name if he had been a girl, although it doesn’t work well with our last name so I think we are moving on to a different Marian name if we are blessed with another daughter. It does seem like an absolutely beautiful fit for your family.

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  7. For a boy, how about Gabriel? The archangel Gabriel is often depicted holding a lily.

    We have a flower theme with our girls. They are Elanor, Violet, and Laura. Laura is probably out for this family since it’s mom’s name, but maybe it could be used as a middle? Elanor is a little more subtle since it is actually a fictional flower in the Tolkien universe, but IMO it still fits. And Violet is self-explanatory (it’s also my grandmother’s name, which is the primary reason we chose it). We actually have Lily or Lillian on our list for future girls, if any!

    Other suggestions for a girl, if they decide to continue the flower theme:

    Flora
    Margaret nn Daisy, a la “Little Women”
    Marigold
    Zelie, which is a form of Azalea
    Marigold (especially if they are Downton Abbey fans)

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  9. Personally, I worry slightly about using another flower name. I think they need to make sure they love and want to use a few more flower names, beyond just this one. Because it would be sad if they had Rose, Lily, and Violet and then God blessed them with another girl and they hate all the other flower names. Just my thoughts! If they love other flower names too, I say go for it 100%!

    I think all of your suggestions were perfect Kate! I think Violet is my favorite for flower names and Hope is my favorite name of the non flower names for girls 🙂

    As for boys, your suggestions are just spot on! They could not go wrong with any of these names!

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      • Oh yes, there are lots for them to choose from! I just wanted to suggest to be more forward thinkings. Because like, personally, I only like Rose, Lily, and Violet. Iris, Azelea, Zinnia, Linnea, while all gorgeous, do absolutely nothing for me in terms of actually using them for me in the future.

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      • Hi, Graces!
        Totally agree that another flower could be tricky depending on how abundantly “blessed” we are with girls. 🙂 That’s why I called in the expert(s)! Thank you for weighing in on both sides.

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      • Either way, if they went with a flower this time, they could still move away later. Many people who don’t know their story may think that Rosie and (let’s say they go with Iris) are the only two floral names, so I don’t think it forces them to stick with a pattern.

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  10. A beautiful consultation. Such great suggestions! What a wide variety of ideas. Hawthorn is great! And Jacinta. My only thought was for a boy middle name, Lyle is similar to Lily (though with a different meaning.) Means “an island”. Best wishes to their family.

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  11. Jacinta is such a pretty name and a beautiful saint. I know a little Jacinta called Jaycee (spelled Jaci). Azelie or Azalea too.

    Another idea would be Mae or May, which is a nickname for Mary or Margaret and also a kind of flower – the mayflower. It’s a sweet little blossom and the state flower of Massachusetts.

    A patron “saint” for Violet could be Little Nellie of Holy God – the Violet of the Holy Eucharist.

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    • Mae/May sounds so sweet and has lots of appeal. And depending on the induction date, would be a great name for a late May baby.
      Thank you for linking a saint to Violet- very helpful should we go that direction. I’m amazed at how much you readers know!

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  12. I’ve seen Jacinda as a Jacinta variant. I also interviewed a little girl named Hyacinth.

    Penelope with the nickname Poppy is traditional in Greek families, though the nickname is actually spelled Popi.

    .

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    • I wondered if someone would suggest Poppy! 🙂 It’s such a snappy name and Rosie would love the Trolls reference, ha! We tend to like the “-Y” ending for girls, so right up our alley. Thanks, Andrea!

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  13. For a boy they could go with Florian! It’s a saint name and is derived from a Latin word meaning flower. And you could totally use the great nickname Ian!

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  14. Gosh I don’t know why but I love Felix/Felicity for your family style wise. Fortune following loss can be read as profound, and yet these names are lighthearted and seeing your other children’s sweet faces makes me think a little Felix or Felicity would fit right in 🙂

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  15. From the list, Susanna just seems a little too well-connected to Lily. While I think a slight nod to Lily is sweet, I would worry that a direct connection like that could be burdensome to this child.
    My favorite name on Kate’s list is Iris. All the girls would have connections then – four letters, flowers, Marian. The theme could be widened by those connections then by going with a Marian name or with a four letter name for a possible next girl. Plus I like the rainbow nod to Lily, not to mention the decor possibilities. Rainbow lunch boxes. A Rainbow mobile.
    I also like Laurel. Keeps Lily’s initial, but widens that theme to nature. This name is less Saintly, more biblical. Don’t know how you feel about that. Check out 2 Timothy 4:7-8, where Paul references Laurel. Plus it is a nice. I’d to you, mommy.
    If you wanna give us the theme entirely, one of St. Catherine of Siena’s symbols is a Lily.

    For boys, I notice your name/nicknames end in an S sound. For that reason, I like Kate’s suggestion of Elias. I also love the name Cyrus, but can find no Lily connection.
    Anthony is sometimes depicted with a Lily and he is the patron of lost things, a nod to Lily, although I don’t know if that would be sad, or just a reminder that St. Anthony will help you find her again in heaven.

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    • Yes, you’re right, we do seem to favor that “s” sound, how perceptive. St Anthony finding Lily is a peaceful image. I appreciate your feedback, JMV.

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  16. PEARL. Go with Pearl. First off it is Marian. Plus the imagery of the pain of a small piece of sand turning into this new thing of great beauty/value in your family captures how I think you might feel. My miscarriage happened too far from my next pregnancy for me to truly understand how you must be feeling. It opens up the theme for you a bit, too.
    Good luck!

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  17. for a boy I love William nicknamed Liam, maybe William Jacob as a nod to Lily’s godfather and name. It’s not obvious but it’s meaningful. I also love Felix for a rainbow baby (and in general).

    for a girl there are so many great options, Iris and Susanna are just amazing. Isabelle/Isabel/Isabella is possibly a form of Elizabeth that I think works if you wanted to leave the flower theme. I know sisters Elizabeth, Susanna, and Isabella. I also like how using rose, lily and zelie would allow them to use more “modern” catholic names next, like kateri or fulton.

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    • also, just because I find naming rainbow babies so special: one child I know of got the middle name Violet because it was her sister’s “special” colour, another got the middle name Rose to honour her sister’s Rosalie. Another baby got the same initial as her big brother, and yet another was named after the same people, but using different names. you’ll find your own way to honour Lily and I’m sure it’s going to be beautiful.

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    • William Jacob would totally work with our current lineup, and honors some of our family’s greatest guys.
      Thank you for adding the ideas you’ve seen for “rainbow” baby names… Having some connection (great or small) just ensures Lily isn’t forgotten in the lineup and keeps her united with her siblings. Thank you for recognizing that importance.

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      • you’re very welcome ❀ I also loooove the suggestion of Oliver or Olivier. If you like Oz (Ozzy <3) you could use Oliver Zachary: Zachary is the name of a pope, AND it means "God has remembered", what an amazing name to remember Lily.

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  19. Normally, I don’t comment, but I just have to say that I LOVE *Oliver* for this family! Like Lily, it honors Our Lady using a plant-inspired name (olive) and Oliver even has a “li” part connecting it to Lily. If Oliver is not “unusual” enough like Blaise and Augustine, maybe Olivier or Olivero (Blaise, Augustine and Olivier is
 perfect). Or maybe the nickname Ollie is not for them, what about a nickname from the boy’s initials? Obi, Oz or Otto (OB, OZ, OT respectively). If Oliver is not Catholic enough, I ask them to consider using Oliver as the given name, but calling him by his [more Catholic] middle (as they do with their first son, Blaise). I have no idea why Laura and her husband decided to call Thomas Blaise just Blaise, but I am going to guess that Thomas is an honor name (after the father, I presume) and if they decide to go with Oliver, it would be an honor name as well [plus I think Thomas and Oliver match beautifully].

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    • Wow! It’s like you know us! 🙂 Yes, Thomas is an “honor” name in reference to my husband. And yes, Oliver ties in with all of the sibs very well, especially with one of the cool nicknames you suggested. 🙂 Oz!
      Thanks for commenting, Percy, and for all of the consideration you put into it.

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  20. These are all great suggestions. Love the flower names, especially Daisy for Margaret. Two of our four daughters have flower middle names, Rose and Lily (Lily is Susanna Lily, a bit redundant : ).

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  21. Hello –
    Best wishes to you & your new little one!
    There was mention of the lovely name Hyacinth for a girl but were you aware it is also a boy’s name?
    For example, there was St. Hyacinth of Poland.
    Also, if I’m remembering correctly, one of St. Francis’s original followers was a monk named Hyacinth.
    As a boy’s name it could be shortened to Hy.
    So many creative & original names have been offered; what a blessing to have so many from which to choose!
    I love Zelie & Liam & Anthony (as my own son was born on St. Anthony’s feast day).
    Good luck & much love to your growing family.
    Mary

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