After 33 hours of Labor...

Born: 11/20/2010
Weighing: 9lbs 2 oz!! 
Length: 22 inches

Why we chose what we chose....

In case you haven't realized people are really passionate about names. They either love a name or hate a name and they will go to great lengths to explain their likes or dislikes. Its for this very reason that Hector and I kept our mouths shut (for the most part) about our daughters name until she was born. We also wanted to meet her before making any concrete decisions in case we changed our minds. So because of this I wanted to name her something that came from us as parents and wasn't influenced by our family and friends dislikes or likes. It's really hard to keep a name when an Aunt, Grandmother or really close friend explains how much they HATE a name you have chosen as a possibility. However, most people will keep their mouths shut (at least to your face) if the child has already been born and the name announced. So please take note that if you don't like this name I DON'T CARE and I DON'T want your negative opinion about it. Eliana is not your child and thus not your responsibility to name so deal with it. Also it's not like I named her Egypt, Apple or Bon Qui Qui... I mean really it could be worse.

So this is how it all began...

We first fell in love with Eliana because of how it sounded and the fact that it is a Spanish name. I have no idea when or how we found it but we stumbled upon it and it was always the #1 name in the back of our heads. Other contenders were Liliana, Isla, Alexis and Eva, but none of them really captured us like Eliana did. After doing some research on what the name meant I was pretty much sold for several reasons.

First - In Hebrew Eliana means "God has answered me" or "God has answered my prayer". I thought that was awesome. We definitely prayed that getting pregnant wouldn't be hard and that we could have children abundantly, but you forget that God answers those prayers and its not just "luck". Secondly - In Latin it is derived from the family name Aelianus meaning of the sun. This is a random association, but for those of you who don't know, my sorority pledge name is Sunstone and my nickname has become Sunny. Thirdly - In Greek it is associated with meaning "daughter of the sun" and Lastly - in Arabic it means "the Bright". Overall I loved every single meaning I could muster up on the internet. So I was happy I wasn't naming her something that meant "a grassy knoll" or "black tar".

Then we moved onto middle names. The middle name was the hardest to find, but the easiest to eventually decide on. I love unisex names and I also like names that aren't necessarily on the top 100 list. So I had names like Riley, Quinn, Blake, Parker and Berlin on our "middle names" list. After throwing around Reese for a few days I found that I had really wanted a middle name with 1 syllable since her first and last have many.  This creates a name that is easy to say in comparison to one that is a "mouthful" and seems wordy. Her full name is 4 syllables, 1 syllable and 3 syllables. So it flows well. I know it may seem crazy to have so much thought put into a name, but seriously its not like she is a dog that I can name anything and it doesn't really matter. Then lastly, I fell in love with the meaning of Reese as well. In English it means "Fiery/Ardent" and in Welsh it means "Enthusiastic". I thought both would be fitting for her :)

So in the end we know that she probably won't always be called "Eliana", but we are more then open to all forms of nicknames including but not limited too - Elle, Ellie, Liana, Elia, or even calling her by her middle name Reese because I love it that much. I am sure my family will find several nicknames to call her that don't even pertain to her real name. Example: My entire family (on my Dad's side) calls me "Stubby". I am not even sure if I have ever heard them call me Melissa. My Uncle even made up a song that incorporates my nickname into it. Personally, I love it :) It shows they love me and makes me feel special. To me nicknames are meant to be a form of endearment and some of her "Auntie" and "Uncles" from the sorority and fraternity have already dubbed her "Cholula". And truth be told if Uncle Cho wants to call her Cholula I am 100% in support of it.

So that is the story of how we came to name our first born daughter. I hope you enjoyed it :)