Whether this is your first or last baby, pregnancy can be scary and being prepared for your precious newborn can alleviate a lot of unnecessary stress. Planning for you sweet newborn can be simple and it will help you make life happen rather than life simply happening to you.

10 things you can do to prepare for you special and unique baby’s arrival

Belly shot of pregnant woman

    1. DON’T FREAK OUT: Finding out you are pregnant can be nerve racking, and sometime can be overwhelming. The first thing to do is not panic. Take control of your life, and your families life by learning to de-stress. The fewer stresses you have in your life, the easier your pregnancy and parenting will become.
    2. PREPARE A PREGNANCY BAG: This is a more commonly known task-list item. Nonetheless, it is worth mentioning because of how essential it is to de-stress. One of the things we didn’t know when we had our first child was that after the delivery, baby’s mother did not need to stay in the hospital gown provided. Many mothers feel more comfortable having their own clothes they can wear after the new arrival. When putting together your over-night bag, consider the things you would typically put in an over-night bag when staying at a hotel for one to two nights.
    3. RELIABLE and SAFE VEHICLE: Regardless of whether you live where you must rely on public transportation or not, having a reliable way of getting to and from the delivery facility is important. This does not mean you need to have a brand-new, or expensive car. This means you have transportation to and from the facility you will using to give birth. Also make sure the vehicle you use has a way to secure a car seat AND make sure that car seat is not expired (yes car seats expire). Be sure to read the car seat’s instructions, so your precious newborn is safe – many parents do not use their car seats properly when transporting their child(ren).
    4. FAMILIARIZE YOUR PETS: If you have animals at home, especially ones that live indoors? If so, do things to familiarize your pets to a home that has a baby. You can do this by playing sounds of a baby (cries, coos, etc.). You can also show pictures of videos to your pets on the television, so they appear more life-sized. Coupling this with baby sounds is also a good idea. As weird as it sounds, another thing you can do is to have your animal feel the baby move in your belly. Animals often have an innate sense of a mother’s pregnancy. Our dog saw the movement of my belly and perked its ears and gently pawed it and felt it move. After that, he laid his head on my belly and seemed to become more sensitive of my pregnancy. After our daughter came home for the first time, our dog was introduced, very cautiously. From then on, our dog was very protective of her and would howl, or whine, whenever our daughter would fuss. He wanted to make sure we did not neglect our newborn girl.
    5. CHOOSE A PEDIATRICIAN: Prior to your daughter’s arrival, consult with and choose a pediatrician whom you feel comfortable. Though it is not necessary to have one selected before the birth of your child, having one makes things much easier. The hospital requires the Pediatrician on-call to visit and check your baby multiple times while in the hospital. If you have your child’s pediatrician selected, the hospital will get your pediatrician involved from the beginning stages of her birth. By choosing a pediatrician before baby’s birth, you will lessen the stress of having to find one after baby’s arrival.
    6. DAYCARE/CHILDCARE: If this is your first child, and you plan ongoing back to work, you will need to arrange childcare for your baby. There are many in-home care centers and larger organizations that focus on daycare and childcare. Before baby has arrived, you should interview and visit multiple facilities, whether in-home or not. Many in-home centers have lower costs, but also may not have the proper licenses required by your local regulations/laws. Some purport to have everything, hoping/expecting you will not actually followup.
    7. BREAST OR BOTTLE: There seems to be a push to have mothers breastfeed rather than bottle/formula feed their children. While many years ago, it was probably more healthy for your child to nurse, it is not so relevant in today’s world. The bottom line is it is your decision as a parent as to whether you will nurse or formula feed your child. Whatever you choose, stick with it. If you choose formula, stick with the same formula, rather that going with whatever is cheapest. Choose one and stick with it.
    8. BORROW OR BUY: Your baby girl can’t go home naked, and figuring out what to have her wear while keeping it affordable can be difficult. Same thing goes with other necessities for her, such as: bedding, toys, blankets, and stroller, a cradle, and many other things. Many expectant parents believe they need to purchase it all, to be ready. The fact is, your baby needs very little to begin life and many of the things that we believe they need, are for a short period of time in their life. These things may be able to be borrowed, or purchased, used, inexpensively from someone else. Consult with other new-parents to find out what they actually needed when they brought their baby home for the first time and actually needed in the first year. A good rule of thumb is to ask whether your child needs this now and will use it long term, or if you need it once or twice over the next year. If the later, borrow if at all possible.
    9. CLASSES: Hospitals and birthing centers will often provide classes for new parents and/or expectant parents. These classes are usually low cost, if not free. The point of them is to help mothers prepare for the birth of their child, and to help mothers prepare for taking care of their new-born. The largest take-away a parent has with these classes, is to help reduce the stress of the whole experience (pregnancy, birth, and parenthood). The less stressed you are, the better for you and your child.
    10. MAKE A LIST: Perhaps one of the best ways to help you prepare for your baby’s birth is to make a list or things that need to be done before and after her arrival. Don’t keep the list in your head, you already have other things that need to take up your daily thoughts. If you make a list, or do a BRAIN DUMP, to paper, you can then begin taking steps to eliminate and prioritize the things that need to be done. Some things you may want to think about when making your list include: Decide whether you will learn the gender before her birth, name ideas, birthing location (hospital, home, birth center, other), will he be circumcised if baby is a boy, cloth or disposable diaper,

Though this list of 10 things to do to prepare for your baby’s arrival is not comprehensive, it is a starting point. A wealth of information exists on the Internet. One thing neglected in this article is fighting the postpartum blues. Thought this top ten list helps you prepare for baby, there is something you can do to help yourself if you suspect you will, or currently have, postpartum depression. To learn more about how you can battle postpartum depression, see our guide here.

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Least common names

When it comes to naming your baby we recognize you want the best for your girl. You want the best safety, the best delivery care, the safest home and mode of transportation, and you want the best name for her.
We want to make picking a name as easy as possible. Below we’ve provided a list of some of the least common names for girls. We recognize they may not be completely unique, but they are a starting point for finding a name that your daughter won’t have much competition for.

Below you will find the twenty (20) least common girl names in the United States for 2011.

Rank
(Least
common
to
most)
Most Common 2011 Girl Names Name Meanings
1 Damaris calf
2 Yuliana down-bearded youth
3 Milana nice; sweet
4 Galilea sloping hills
5 Anabel easy to love
6 Payten from the peaceful farm
7 Hattie home ruler
8 Amalia work; effort; strain | work of the lord
9 Willa resolute
10 Thalia to flourish; bloom
11 Karma action; effect
12 Karly free man
13 Milagros miracle
14 Kamille alter server
15 Kimber from the wood of the royal forest; from the royal fortress meadow
16 Stacy resurrection
17 Sariyah princess
18 Jaden Jehovah has heard
19 Esme esteemed; loved
20 Alianna harmony; very holy

Finding a unique name for your girl

If you would like to learn how to find a unique name for your girl, check our our posting: Finding a special name for your unique baby girl

Do you have a unique name you’d like to share with us?

We are always searching for new and more unique names that can be shared with the world. If you have a name you’d like us to know about, please comment below.

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We know you are looking for the least common names (we’ll post those soon too). We thought we would provide a list of the most popular girl names for you to compare any names you might be thinking of so you can ensure your daughter’s name is more unique than others.

Below you will find the twenty (20) most common girl names in the United states for 2011.

Rank Most Common 2011 Girl Names
1 Sophia
2 Isabella
3 Emma
4 Olivia
5 Ava
6 Emily
7 Abigail
8 Madison
9 Mia
10 Chloe
11 Elizabeth
12 Ella
13 Addison
14 Natalie
15 Lily
16 Grace
17 Samantha
18 Avery
19 Sofia
20 Aubrey

Also, we are always searching for new and more unique names that can be shared with the world. If you have a name you’d like us to know about, please comment below.

“What should we name her?”

Sleeping baby girl

An all too often question mothers ponder when discovering they are pregnant with a little baby girl. There are many ways to find a name for your newborn baby girl (or boy). Each name is unique to the parents and their child. The name should be special and meaningful, yet many parents have a hard time figuring out the best name for their infant. You are probably bombarded with friends and family wanting to know the gender and what you will name your unborn baby. You may even be wondering that yourself; after all, you want the best for you special daughter.

How do you figure out what to name your child?

There are multiple methods in choosing  a name for your sparkling baby (each method can provide a wealth of unique, or unusual, names):

  1. family heritage or genealogical names
  2. religious or spiritual name
  3. local or national society
  4. basic/common words as names
  5. mix ‘n match names

Regardless of how you choose a name for your daughter, each of the methods mentioned above can provide you with a wealth of special and unique girl names. We’ve compiled some of the best ways of deciding on a name just to help you figure out next steps.

Family heritage or genealogy-based names

One of our good friends has a hobby of researching family history which has turned into a business. She helps people find ancestors from all over the world. Just because you and your parents may come from the same HomeTown, Canada or Hometown, Africa doesn’t mean your ancestors are from the same place. As you look for your ancestors, you may come across names that speak to your heart. If you are unsure of where or how to start from your family tree you can start your research with some of the following websites:

Some unique names we have come across using the resources above include (hover over for the meanings):

*Hover over for meanings where available*
  • Ales
  • Annice
  • Antig
  • Effie
  • Estria
  • Etta
  • Gelida
  • Kiel
  • Letitia
  • Lula
  • Magdalena
  • Mamie
  • Margt
  • Rafela

 

Religious or spiritual belief-based names

Whether you subscribe to a religion or not, there are very unique names found in religious or spiritual texts. One only needs to open the Koran, Holy Bible, or Hinduism belief-based books to find uncommon names that you can use for your child. You should be mindful of a couple things when selecting names from any of these, or other, spiritual-based books. First, some names can be derived from unflattering stories. Be wary of an unusual name that may be related to an unscrupulous story from a religious text. Second, be mindful of your geographic location as a unique girl name in the Philippians may not be uncommon in Canada or vice versa. Keep the geography of your genealogy in mind, as your child may want to visit or even live in a foreign country when older.

Using local society as a base in deciding on a name

Pop culture or societal influence from around the world may be a major player in helping you determine a special name for your daughter. Many Hollywood parents name their children with uncommon names, probably to be more eccentric. Though the names are not usually found in society as a whole, they may speak to your heart and soul. Perhaps naming your child Apple, or Pineapple speak to the inner workings of your stomach, do they really represent your child in a way that helps make them stand out as a special individual? If so, great, there are many societal names to choose unique names from.

Basic words from local foreign languages

While living overseas for a number of years we discovered many intriguing ideas on naming children. One of the methods people in Africa often used in name selection for their newborn child was using meaningful words in their language.

Some example names that came from this method of name selection include:

  • Special
  • Precious
  • Joy
  • Unique (yes this can be a name too)

 

Mix ‘n Match names

Have you always wanted a Junior in your family – only you are having a girl not a boy? Sometime we feel that it is a shame only sons get to carry the title of Jr. or junior. Similarly some parents struggle with agreeing on whether or not baby should be named after his father.

One person we know had parents that struggled with just that when he was born. Father wanted a Junior and Mother did not want two people with the same name under the same household. As a compromise they took a part of Father’s name, Kelly, and combined it with the word “son” to derive the name Kelson, or “Kelly’s son”. When attending a driver’s training course a car-mate of mine had the name Jayson, derived the same way as Kelson.

We have another friend who was named MaryAnn, though the name is not very unique, the spelling and meaning are. Her parents wanted her to have a middle name when she got married and took on her husband’s surname; by combining two names, along with capitalized letters for both (Mary + Ann = MaryAnn), she was easily able to keep her maiden name as her middle name when she got married.

Though these names, in and of themselves, are not necessarily completely uncommon, their spellings and the stories of how they came about are special and have meanings that can pass from one generation to another. If you are still in search of a unique name for your daughter, consider combining words (names or parts thereof) to make something special for your new angel.

Final Note…

As a last note when deciding on the name for your beautiful daughter, though you may find a name that jumps out at you as but you find it to be more common than you would like – you can always use it for a middle or second name.

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Unique Names for Girls: Find and chose the most unique name for your girl

Like every child, every parent is different. Though we have similarities with other people, we don’t want other people naming our baby. We want the best for our child and know that he or she is unique. As parents we recognize our child is special (some more than others), and we want the best for them.

No matter who you are, your baby deserves the best you can provide, from the pretty pink room you prepared for you unique girl, to the special cute clothing you purchase (or even made), to the baby powder and diapers. To you, everything you’ve done is uniquely special and you want the most unique name for your girl – you want the best for her, even the best name.

We have experience with unique names for girls

We have two wonderful daughters, whom we love dearly. Picking names that we both agreed on, and accurately depicted our love for our children was not easy. Though we did find names that we thoroughly enjoy and believe uniquely match our daughters. You have nine months of delightful fun (minus the aches, pains, and nausea), and nine months to ponder on the uniqueness of your child’s needs.

We’ve done some great research in finding the most unique names for girls (after all we have two very uniquely named girls) and we want to share that information with you. We want to help you know your daughter deserves the best, and only you will be able to provide that for her.

Come back often, we’ll be posting some top lists of unique names to help you on your way. We’ll also point you to resources you can use to help choose that special baby name for you girl.

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