Happy feast (a day late) of Mary, the Mother of God!! And Happy New Year!! Have we ever been so happy to see a new year?!!

Last year was certainly the year of Bad Things. So much suffering, and none of us untouched, though many of us were scourged more than others.

As I started to go back through my posts from 2020, I wondered if this was going to be a bummer of a post — was there anything good that came out of this past year? I was quickly reminded that, yes!, there was so much good that came out of this past year: all your beautiful babies! Sancta Nomina exists for babies and their families — it was such a joy to be surrounded by the hope and love of each of you as I reread your stories. What a beautiful way to begin this new year! I know you’ll love to do so as well:

• I did 66 baby name consultations in 2020, 25 of which I was given permission to post! You can find them (and all previous consultation posts) here.
• I posted birth announcements for 40 babies! (All birth announcements can be found here.) Welcome again to Perrin Fae, Bosco Anthony, Michael Gabriel, Barbara Josephine, Lillian Joy, Liliane Cruz, Anna, Claude Indiana Emmanuel, Chiara Maris, Valor Joseph, Magnus Craig, Marigold Azélie, Lolek Augustine, Felicity Colette, Levi Nathaniel, Jeffery Sherwood, Charlotte Avery Katherine, Thérèse Lourdes, Noah Anthony, Benedict Campion Marie, Evangeline Truth, Elanor Josephine, Felix Owen, Sojourn Hyssop Arise, Magdalene Anne, Arthur Paul, Michael Augustine, Iris Miriam, Bernadette Frances, Henry Kapaun, Aurelia-Rose Celeste, Titus Joseph, Magdalen Gianna, Tristan Raphael, Oskar Karl Wolfgang, William Daniel, Judah Abraham, Ann Margaret, Philip Charles, and Agnes Therese Marie! Some of our favorite public Catholic personalities and businesses are represented in this list of new babies, including Studio Senn, Catholic All Year, Just Love Prints, Rose Harrington Art, Philip Rivers, In Honor of Design, Leah Darrow, Camp Patton, and Trials of Faith (I love supporting all of you who are doing your part to be light in the world!). Some of these babies join older siblings who had previously been celebrated on the blog — it’s such fun to see families grow! I love welcoming new families as well — thank you for sharing your baby joy!

The hardships of the past year weren’t absent from the blog, however. I wrote specifically about the wretched virus a couple of times:

• Saints that are helpful for epidemics generally and this pandemic specifically (St. Corona, St. Bernadine, Sts. Rosalia, Rocco, Patrick, and Our Lady, Crowned, and the Sacred Heart of Jesus)
• The parents of a few of the babies whose birth announcements I posted explicitly noted that the names or births were specifically affected/influenced by the pandemic (Noah, Elanor, Michael)
• This article I wrote for Nameberry: Babies Named Corona Are No Joke
• These articles I wrote for CatholicMom: Babynaming in the time of coronavirus and Others’ Long-Ago Suffering Provides Hope In Hard Times

I shared resources for continuing the fight to overcome racial injustice:

• These powerful prayers
• The certain non-coincidence that the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus fell on Juneteenth in 2020
• Several articles about Black names and naming
• These powerful patrons: Venerable Pierre Toussaint, Servant of God Mary Elizabeth Lange, Venerable Henriette DeLille, Servant of God Julia Greeley, Venerable Augustus Tolton, Servant of God Thea Bowman

And I wrote about the sad life of Norma McCorvey (Jane Roe) and the sad deaths of Kobe and Gianna Bryant and their co-passengers.

In the business-as-usual category, I shared some thoughts on the 2019 name data that was finally released by the Social Security Administration after a several-months-long delay. I was so grateful to be able to take my annual St. Anne pilgrimage to thank her for her care for us all. I posted some Fun Friday questions:

• What is your Name Fuss threshhold?
• Did Mom name the girls and Dad the boys?
• Did your devotion to your children’s name saints come first or second?
• Catholic names for pets

I did some name spotlights:

• Magdalene
• Willow and Willa
• Romilly
• Quinn
• Hildegard
• Names to honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus

I shared these name stories:

• Eden, Abrie, Bradley, Blaise, and Valen
• Porter Joseph (note that this beautiful story may be difficult for some as it’s about stillbirth and contains photos)

I welcomed one “celebrity guest”:

• Pauline, who started reading as a daughter and continues as a mama!

And I pulled together these meaty posts:

• Saintly nickname names
• Feminine-feeling nicknames for boys
• Spellings that signal gender in names that sound the same
• The power of names in literature and the bible
• Notes from Scottish forenames
• How to name an entity
• Irish family names from a certain era
• a Becket, a Kempis, a Cruce
• Names of some of Bl. Solanus’ confreres
• What’s in a (Catholic) name? {An interview with Sancta Nomina by Jenny Uebbing}
• New names for Brothers of two religious orders, and a question about religious name changes
• Nicknames for Lawrence
• Disrespectful to use names for God?
• Odds and ends: Marian edition
• Names for St. Joseph
• Advent/Christmas names, St. Joseph, St. Andrew, et al. (includes nods to St. Audrey and St. Olaf/Olave, and a fun discussion of the popularity of Bartholomew in England)
• The naming of Jesus, SN in Croatia, and Irish naming trends

I continued writing for CatholicMom.com:

• Celebrating Catholic Schools
• Saintly Nicknames as Given Names
• Babynaming in the time of coronavirus
• Others’ Long-Ago Suffering Provides Hope in Hard Times
• Saints’ Birth Names: Great for Babynaming
• A Litany of School Saints: Protection and Help for the Academic Year (my family and I have prayed this so fervently since school started!)
• Book review: Miraculous! Catholic Mysteries for Kids by Kathryn Griffin Swegart
• Praying the Rosary With Children (this got picked up by a Croatian site!)
• Gruesome Saint Stories: Off-Putting for Parents?

And Nameberry:

• Babies Named Corona Are No Joke
• Best Cool, Unique Saints’ Names (repost; originally published June 2016)

I again offered my now-annual and super-popular (thank you!!) Black Friday/Cyber Monday baby name consultation deals, and instituted the Consultation-for-Book deal, which will continue indefinitely!

One weird thing that happened is that WordPress did some sort of site redesign that has affected my ability to see comments on posts as they come in — by the time I realized this a few months ago, I’d already received a whole bunch of comments, and as anyone who has ever emailed me has likely encountered, when I have a backlog of something (emails, comments) it takes me a looong time to get caught up. I’m still not caught up on post comments — I’m at least a couple months behind. I’m so sorry! I’ve always loved the conversation on here in the comments, and I’m always writing, “Catch up on blog comments” on my daily to-do list. I’ll keep plugging away!

For 2021: It’s the Year of St. Joseph! I can’t wait to see all the babies named for our good St. Joseph! And I have some new ideas for Sancta Nomina that I think you’ll love! Keep your eyes peeled over the next couple of months, and in the meantime, I hope you continue to enjoy the content that we all love: consultations and birth announcements and I’m always happy to receive name stories about the beautiful ways you’ve reflected our faith in your children’s names, whether you’ve had a consultation or not!

As always, my every-year word for Sancta Nomina is gratitude: for all of you, for this beautiful ministry I’ve been allowed to have, for the joy and hope your babies and the names for our faith provide, and for the love God has for each one of us. ❤ ❤ ❤

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My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon (not affiliate links) — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

Happy New Year’s Eve everyone!! 🎉🎉🎉

I look forward to doing my Year in Review posts every New Year’s Eve/New Year’s Day — it’s SO FUN to look back on all that was accomplished in the last year!

I’m describing 2019 as the year of “scrabbling back,” since much of it was devoted to healing physically and mentally from the baby’s birth in September 2018, which meant my efforts on the blog were slow and erratic, especially in the beginning. Worse, I had to keep putting off returning to baby name consultations — I knew you all understood, but it was so painful to me to know there were mamas (mostly, but papas too!) who were hoping for help naming their sweet babies, and I couldn’t do so! But I gained steam as the year drew to a close — take a look!:

• I did 52 consultations (a mix of public and private) in 2019! Fifty-one of them were done since I reopened consultations on May 1! (The other one was in February — an emergency consultation/dipping my toe back in.) I’m pretty thrilled by this, especially since I only did 55 total in 2018! (Perhaps not the best comparison though, since 2018 was the year of all-day morning sickness and then newborn days. But still!) I posted 23 of them here on the blog, including for some mamas you know (Genie from Barefoot Abbey, Kendra from Catholic All Year, Kortnee from Studio Senn, Meredith from Daily Divine Mercy and Catholic Sticker Club), several repeat clients (Laura, Lily, Amy, Genie — I love seeing your families grow!), and even a TV character! (I can’t wait to watch this show! It’s already my favorite!)
• But I posted even more birth announcements! Thirty-nine babies from among our Sancta Nomina community! Eighteen were the baby siblings of little ones I’d previously posted birth announcements for, three were for families I’d previously spotlighted on the blog, and two were for twins! Among those thirty-nine were the babies of well known mamas Grace from Camp Patton, Rosie from A Blog for My Mom, Kate from The Rhodes Log, Sharon from Baby My Love, Dwija from House Unseen, Genie from Barefoot Abbey, Jenny from Mama Needs Coffee/Off the Charts, Mandi from A Blog About Miscarriage, and Meredith from Daily Divine Mercy + Catholic Sticker Club. Look at these beautiful names — you guys have fantastic taste! 

Henry James
Felicity Victoria Kathleen
Michael Dominic
Greer Eileen
Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn (alt characters used for privacy)
Christian Gabriel
Noelle Katherine
Perpetua Carolyn
Bridget Marie
Reina Grace
Basil Anthony Philip
Christopher Rex called Rex
Damian Nicholas Elijah and Isaac Anthony Cosmas
Basil Grace
Linus John
Helena Faustina James
Clement Joseph
Lucy Adelaide
Peter Joseph
Sunday Josephine
Hildegard Edna Marie
Abigail Violet
Genevieve Immaculee Grace
Solan Peter and Magdalen Anne
Helena Mary
Cecily Germaine
Cl3m3nt Mich@el
Theodore Luke
Rosemary Ruth
Ariston Blaise
Finnian Agustin
Benedict Reid
Elizabeth Ríonach called Liesel
Alden Edward
Maria Therese called Maite
Penny Annalise Mariae
Lincoln David

• I posted about two new celebrity babies (Santino Rafael [Mario Lopez] and Valentina StellaMaris [Rachel Campos-Duffy]), and the name announcement for that TV character we all helped name!
• I also posted Name Stories for two different families with amazing taste: here and here
• Eleven CatholicMom posts (I started veering off of the topics of names occasionally this past year!)
• Four posts chronicling my trip to Ireland for my sister’s wedding: Edel, Radek, Anne, and Thaddeus
• Four Fun Friday Question posts: Who were you almost? (and follow-up), How different are your parents’ taste? (and follow-up), What name pocket are you in (if any?), and What name “rules” have you heard?
• Three Black Friday Specials
• Three giveaways
• Three Name Spotlights: Cosima, Agatha, and Agnes
• Two posts on “proper” pronunciation: Lisieux and Elisha
• One book review
• One article in Radiant Magazine
• One appearance on Jon Leonetti’s Morning Show
• One new term that a reader used for her baby-on-the-way that I think is fantastic and I want to start using: “Sine Nomine” (“without a name”) 😂👏👏👏
• One St. Anne pilgrimage — in Ireland! Perfect for my FIFTH BLOGIVERSARY!!

Speaking of St. Anne, she’s been our patroness since almost the beginning, and this year I also dedicated Sancta Nomina (blog + social media + all associated work) to Our Lady — I should have thought to do so before!

What a year it’s been! I am, as always, so grateful for this little space, and for all of you. I love how wholesome and good it is here — it is such a great antidote to all the bologna, isn’t it? I know 2020’s going to be an amazing year! The word I got for 2020  by Jen Fulwiler’s Word of the Year Generator was THRIVE*, which seems perfect following a year of “scrabbling back”! I hope you’re looking forward with as much hope and joy as I am! Happy Eve of the Feast of Mary, Mother of God!!**

❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

*Be sure to try out her Saint Name Generator as well! (I got Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati!)

**Don’t forget Jan. 1 is a holy day of obligation!

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My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Happy New Year to you all!! And happy Feast of Mary, Mother of God!!

What a year 2018 was! I’m calling it the Year of Big News because I can’t think of any bigger news than a baby and a book — and I had both in 2018!

 

Starting with the baby: it was so fun to announce to you all that he was on the way, to have Abby from Appellation Mountain do a name consultation for me, to articulate the challenges that come with naming a seventh boy, and then to announce his birth and naming (on Instagram first, then here)! He’s a dream and a prayer come true. ❤

Then, my book — my non-baby magnum opus: I can’t think of a greater onomastic honor than to write a book of Marian names, a book for Our Lady. From finally being able to share the news with you all that the book was being published — and by a publisher that has impeccable Marian ties and has published so many authors I admire! — to all the amazing endorsements and reviews I received, to the book signing I did at my local Catholic book shop, to the other ways the names for Our Lady were shared (articles by me [here, here] and others), my foray into the world of I-wrote-a-book-that-got-published has been thrilling. Thank you all for the ideas, inspiration, and encouragement you gave me along the way!

As with past years, I also wanted to share some of the 2018 Sancta Nomina stats with you — even with being mostly absent from here for nearly half the year because of the baby, I’m still pretty pleased with what was accomplished:

• 55 consultations done (a mix of public and private), including 29 posted on the blog. These included ideas for a couple of our favorite public personalities — Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas and Sharon from Baby My Love — as well as ideas for a repeat customer (so fun!) and twins (double the fun!), and one that helped back into a patron saint for an already-named baby (so cool).
• 27 birth announcements posted, including four repeat families (here, here, here, here — this one is our girl Lindsay from My Child I Love You, she’s had such a hard time since her little guy was born — please keep them both in your prayers!); twins (different from the ones mentioned above); our friends Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas, Blythe from The Fike Life, and Amy from Our Family Fiat; the nationally famous all-boy Schwandt family (boy no. 14!) and Campos-Duffy family, and the internationally famous prince (which included my name prediction — the actual name announcement followed a few days later [spoiler: my prediction was wrong]).
• 4 name spotlights: Cecilia, Faustina, Helena, and Shepherd.
• 1 celebrity guest.
• 9 CatholicMom articles.
• 2 Nameberry articles.
• 1 Writing Contest (second annual).
• 1 St. Anne pilgrimage (fourth annual), to thank her for her patronage and prayers.
• 2 giveaways (here and here).
• 3 stories of St. Gerard’s intercession in having a baby (here, here, and here).
• 3 name stories (here, here, and here).
• 1 Sheenazing Award for Best Kept Secret (Blog)! (I’m still amazed!)
• 2 radio show appearances: Mater Dei Radio (aired on both Coffee & Donuts with John & Mary and Morning Drive), and Jon Leonetti in the Morning on Iowa Catholic Radio.
• 1 article about the “poetry and pro-life power of baby names” that mentioned yours truly and appeared in diocesan publications across the country.

What a year! 2019’s got some big shoes to fill! I hope you all have a wonderful New Year’s and Marian feast day (giving birth today? There’s a book for that 😉 )!

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My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!