MalcolmThings I have done this week: bought back-to-school supplies, attended the last day of ice hockey camp celebration for my son, booked tickets for Christmas break travel.

Yup, summer is winding down.

So let’s start the Sunday Summary with a Big Question.  I’m staring down a list of nearly a dozen projects for the site over the next few months, and I can’t decide where to start.

I’d love to know what you think would be the biggest addition to Appellation Mountain:

I’d like to tackle all of them – now, right now! – so this isn’t exactly an either-or situation.  It’s just a question of which project comes first.

Thanks for taking the time to answer, and comments – and off-the-wall ideas – are always warmly welcome.

Now, on to the baby name news and such:

  • Interesting to hear the oh-so-wise Malcolm Gladwell talk about his name.  He likes it!  And I like what he has to say about Malcolm.
  • Did you think about the number of children you might have before you started your family?  Did that inform the names that you chose?  It did for us, even though we knew that we’d run out of go-to boy family names after our first son, and would have to get creative.  (We could name girl octuplets from our family tree without difficulty.)  In an older episode of 19 Kids and Counting, mother-of-many Michelle explains that they stumbled into their all-J name pattern when they decided on Jana and John David for their twins.  The family also brainstormed more J names:

But no, they’re not expecting – the baby that they were trying to name turned out to be Jubilee.

  • Looking for a Sunday paper devoted to all things baby naming?  You’re in luck.
  • I’m a sucker for star names.
  • And, while we’re looking up, For Real spotted a Cielo in Montana.
  • Clare finds the best new baby name sources!  But I’m most intrigued by her comment here:
Englyn would fit on this list.  It’s a type of short poem in Welsh.  Which reminds me, I spotted an author named Novella in the bookstore the other day.  Novella Carpenter is an author/urban farmer.  With a name like that, you’d have to have an interesting life, right?

Speaking of themed weeks, this upcoming week is 80s week at Appellation Mountain!  So get your leg warmers and your jelly bracelets ready, because we’re talking Kyle, Lindsay, Justin, Amanda and more.

And for those who asked, yes!  We’ll have a 90s week before the year is out.

That’s all for this week.  As always, thank you for reading – and have a great week!

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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12 Comments

  1. I’m with Anna. I could hardly choose in the poll as I think they all sound so exciting. I want you to do them all now, too!!

  2. Ooh, some exciting new projects in the pipeline!

    I voted for the e-course, just because it seemed very new and fresh, as I can’t think of anyone else doing it. But I suppose it would take a little while to set up, whereas a vlog you just film yourself and upload, and name consultations don’t take any time to organise. So maybe you should do those first.

  3. Have you heard that Robert Downey Jr. and his wife are expecting? It’s going to be the first daughter for both of them. To be honest, I was slightly disappointed with the choice of Exton (because I loved Indio so much, but that was with a different mother) but I’m still excited.

    1. Yes! So excited about the potential, but I agree – Indio was perfect, so Exton was a let down. But maybe anything would’ve been a let down after Indio …

  4. I need help. Maybe your facebook readers can introduce some new ideas for me. We found out on Thursday that baby the last is a girl (we teasingly call her Ultima, or Badgerina because we were going to call her Badger if she’d been a boy). Hubby and I are sort of stuck for names. We used all our favorites on the first six kids! Any ideas to finish out our phenomenal (IMHO) sibset?

    Miriam, Cowen, Emeline, Eli, Harriet, and Oskar.

    Middle name will be Mildred and last name is one syllable and common. I wanted Flannery but hubby says no. 🙁 We’re just really, honestly out of ideas.

    Thanks!

    1. This is a great sibset. How about something with a strong U for Ultima: Ursula, Luna, Uma, Justina, Juliana, Eulalie, Eudora, Tallulah. Or Badgerina: Bettina, Georgina. Combining the two gets me to Beulah, which you’re either completely hip enough to pull off or you think it’s a completely old-fashioned name. (Beulah Mildred, or Mildred Beulah, could get you to Milly Boo as a fun nn.)

  5. Englyn looks like it wants to be “Englynd” (England) to me. I would choose Emlyn over Enlyn.

    1. That’s a problem, isn’t it? And I agree – I think Emlyn is more pleasing than Enlyn …