and he will be called...

c/o Alyssa Alig Photography

c/o Alyssa Alig Photography

     I was incredibly excited to begin the process of naming our little one and am so happy to announce his name to the rest of the world! 

I have a fascination with names and family genealogy, especially the patterns and traditions associated with the naming of children, so having the opportunity to name our child was a thrilling prospect. Both Nick and I wanted his name to be meaningful, both in and of itself but also in its origins and history, while at the same time being unique enough that he didn't get lost in the crowd. We are both drawn to more classic names that avoid being too trendy and that grow well into sophisticated adult names. With all of this in mind, we knew we had a big job ahead of us and had started talking about names, admittedly, long before we were pregnant. While we had lists of both girl and boy names, there was really only one name that we ultimately became really attached to. We thought it was fate that it happened to be a boy name and that we were having a little boy (shout out to my friend, Meghan Nichols, who told me that the name we got attached to was a sign of the sex of the baby. You were right, Meghan!)... here is the story of how we named our little man: 

   While I was working at the CDC this past summer, I was assigned a project that required me to sift through very long lists of CDC employees. Since we had just recently found out that we were expecting, picking out a name wasn't at the forefront of my mind. Even though I was focused on other things, I happened upon a name that grabbed my attention and stuck itself in my mind- Alden. I mentioned it to Nick, wrote it on our list of names and let my mind wander away to other things for a few weeks. 

   Later, I was reading a book that had captivated me from page one and that I had quickly fallen in love with, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. On the last page of the book the author reveals the main character's middle name and, lo and behold, there was the name I had found so attractive in CDC's list of employees- Alden. I swore it was a sign and excitedly shared the story with Nick, telling him that I was getting really attached to this name and that maybe he should seriously think about it as an option. He started doing a little research into the name's origins and was pleased to find that the name had English roots (I am of mostly English ancestry), meant a "wise, old friend" and, my favorite "cosmic coincidence", was thought to have evolved from the word Haldane (a middle ages-era English word) which means "half-Danish"(what a wonderful happenstance!). After Nick had found all of this information, it was pretty much decided. 

   All of this felt even more serendipitous when I glanced over at my classmate's name card during our graduation ceremony and his middle name was Alden. I asked him about it and he told me that his mother had loved the name and that he had never met anyone else with the name. Three different experiences with such a rare name in a matter of weeks? Hello, fate! 

We had found a name, or more accurately, a name had found us, that was classic, meaningful, full of history and sophisticated enough for our little guy to grow into with ease. 

It was meant to be :)

  His middle name is a tribute to Nick's grandfather and uncle, who were both named Peter, and with whom Nick felt special bonds. They both lived in Denmark and were wonderful men. I never had the pleasure of meeting Far Far Wiese (Grandfather Wiese in Danish) but he served as Permanent Undersecretary of State to the Prime Minister and was a well-liked and much-loved man, both personally and professionally. I am fortunate enough to have met Uncle Peter and to have spent time with him on our trip to Copenhagen in 2008. He was quick witted, very funny and worked as a psychologist in the city. Nick always felt very connected to his Uncle Peter and was very sad to lose him, especially since Peter was so young and full of life when he passed in 2009. 

  It will be wonderful to have a reminder of these men in our son's name and to have a connection to his Danish roots through his namesakes. 

We hope that Alden loves his name, and the meaning behind it, as much as we do. 

much love, L&N

p.s. more maternity photos to come!