More about names (Swistle aren't you so excited)

So I was just asked about naming my kids. The question was, did you pick a name first or wait until you saw the child to put a name with them? My answer is sooo going to irritate some of my pregnant friends right now but it's okay they will still love me tomorrow.

I am a firm believer of finding out the sex of the baby while you are pregnant. Now although I have to find out because curiosity and the cat you know, I have another totally valid reason for wanting to know.

When I was pregnant with Brandon one of the common things I started hearing is that babies are the same outside of your body as they are inside. This scared the living shit out of me since my son was never NEVER EVER KIND OF calm inside of me. Brandon was all kinds of nuts in there. I often joked that he was karate chopping me already in there. We went in for an ultrasound and here was this little person kicking and stomping with major fury and I knew I was in big shit trouble when this little guy came out. I started reading books and baby name websites and nothing really seemed right to me. Then I was reading Tommy Lee's (hubba hubba) autobiography and he was talking about his tattoos. He has these ones on his wrists with his sons names Brandon and Dylen.

DING DING DING DING DING LIGHTBULB

Brandon. That was the name. I mean hello if the bad ass of all bad asses had named his son Brandon it had to be a pretty bad ass name right. Aside from loving the name I started mentally scanning all the Brandons and the only two I came up with were my ex boyfriends little brother Brandon who was a total cutie and a closet bad ass and Brandon Taylor, this kid I went to school with, who was totally nuts and unique and independent. So I decided to try it out. I paid attention to the little man inside of me. I started calling him Brandon and I just knew that was the name for him. Brandon was set in stone. There was NOTHING that ANYONE could do to change his name!

Now two years later I have a son who is to say the least a complete bad ass, very independent and is literally walking around karate chopping everything in site. When he was two weeks old at the doctor they informed me, that I will never be the one making the decisions for this child, and that this little guy was already completly in control of my destiny. Well no shit sherlock. Sooo with Brandon it rang true, he is on the outside exactly as he was on the inside.

But the coolest part of all, is the day he came out, I felt like I already knew him. I had been talking to him and playing him his song that I came up totally based on his personality (Simple Man by Lyndard Skynard gotta be a bad ass to rock the Skynard) and I knew with out a doubt the choice was right. When he came out, it was like saying hi to someone who had been on vacation for nine months that I could only talk to via e-mail. I know now that if I had waited to find out he was a boy, or even found out but waited to name him, I wouldn't have had as great of a bond with him because I think the naming him part is what helped me talk to him and bond with him.

So now here I am I find myself pregnant with another little boy. This little boy so far is polar opposite from Brandon. He is quite, he moves only with a purpose or when he is extremely annoyed (ie when mom is squishing her belly to make him wiggle). He doesn't react to spicy food, but to ice cream instead. He has a mild temper but you have to really piss him off to see it come out (I'm thinking when Brandon steals his toy Brandon better get his ass out of the way fast or he's going to be hit with a death ray). Codi isn't a Lynard Skynard type of guy. I think he will be more artsy and a bit more quite. Codi is going to be like his momma. He is going to wear his heart on his sleeve, love easy and fall hard. Codis song from me, is the Pretenders I'll Stand by you. It's basically a song saying, hey I'm here for you I've been there before and what mom doesn't spend her whole life trying to tell her kids she was once in high school to and once even fell in love after three weeks and I'm just like you, only older and less cool now?

With Codi we went through a lot of names. Rob kept throwing names out and I would try them for a day. None of them were right. He said Stephen. I knew this kid wasn't a Stephen. Not by any means. That doesn't suit his personality one bit! We suggested Caleb and while that is a calm name, there is no hidden bad ass in Caleb. Because you see, while Codi might be a little calmer, this kid is still going to be a hidden bad ass. While I think Codi will be independent and stubborn in a totally different way from Brandon the Boss I also think Codi will let me call the shots a little longer and maybe try not to grow up quite as fast as his brother. Now, when this little guy comes out, I already feel so bonded with him that hopefully he will feel just like another one of my little buddies who was on vacation.

I am filled with curiosity about whether Codi will come out and I will feel instantly as though I already know the depths of his soul like I did with Brandon. The second I heard him cry I already knew him, I felt his soul and I knew he and I were going to be bonded together forever, even if it would be a long journey ahead with us both calling the shots.

Soooo. Long story short. This is how I name my kids. I can't imagine having them be born and looking at them for a few seconds and pretending to know who they are. This is why it is my own personal preference to find out the sex. If Brandon had been a girl, she would have needed some kind of incredible name to hold up to the personality she would have had. I never ever found a girl name for him probably because somehow I knew he wasn't a girl, and because I'm not sure there has ever been a girls name bad ass enough to stand up to the female version of my son.

So now it is your turn. How did you come up with names? Did you wait until they were born, decide based on what you like or what? Are there other methods? Did you simply go with a family name? This has all got me very interested.

Also this whole I versus Y business has been very fun for me. I'm especially amused that you all thought the I was girly but were scared to tell me! You are all silly, from now on, let it be known I can totally take the heat so let me know. If anything it will spark a good debate! But I have to ask since Swistle pointed it out are the names Eli and Levi considered girly to you too or would they be manly if they were Ely and Levy????????