What's Your Name?

Chip and I have been contemplating names for our second child since we decided to try for another baby. From the moment we found out we were pregnant with twins at about 5 weeks along, we were excited to discuss possibilities for TWO BABIES! It has been a long process to come up with what believe are the perfect names for our sweet little babies. We went back and forth on many combinations of first and middle names, there were some compromises (ahhh, all part of marriage) and we made a final decision on our boy/boy names just a couple of days before our ultrasound. So where did we come up with our children's names?

Patrick Jefferson Parish aka "Baby B"

Patrick: Chip came up with this first name. We both have a passion for the Celtic culture and have a mix of Scots and Irish in our backgrounds.  The love for Scottish and Irish culture is something we discovered we both loved very early in our relationship. I grew up receiving Claddagh jewelry from my parents. My grandparents brought me a "piece of the blarney" back from Ireland on a trip there when I was a child. I called my paternal grandparents "Gran" & "Da" which are tradition Irish grandparent names.  I grew up surrounded by Irish flags through my dad's family and my maternal grandfather always boasted being Scotch Irish although we discovered in recent years there was more Scots in that tale than Irish. Chip comes from a long line of Scottish ancestors and I believe there are some Irish as well and he too, has a passion for Irish and Celtic culture.  So Patrick was chosen as a "good ole Irish name!"

                                                  

Patrick: Irish meaning "Noble"

Jefferson: There is a connection between my paternal grandfather, John Cornelius McLoone and Chip's maternal grandfather, Ernest Joseph McCraw.  Not only were they both medical doctors, they both attended Jefferson Medical College and their time there overlapped. I really wanted to honor this connection in the name of one of our children and so Patrick JEFFERSON Parish became the name of what is assumed will be our third born son (second born of the twins). 

"Da" McLoone & "Grandaddy" McCraw

Jefferson: Normally used as a surname, means son of Jeffrey. Jeffrey: Peaceful Pledge, Traveler

Rory Mark Parish aka "Baby A"

Rory: My maternal grandfather was Roy Edward McDonald and one of the greatest men that ever lived. He was loving, outgoing, colorful, generous, selfless and just all around amazing. He also had a temper that would explode in rainbow of color but always managed to cool off as quickly as he blew. He was my classroom mother and chaperone, very active in my school all the way through high school until he died just before my senior year.  I can count on one hand the number of times I had to take the school bus because not only did he drive me anywhere I needed to go, he always drove me and picked me up from school. His giving nature and love was well known throughout our family and I do believe he was the "glue" that held our family together. I don't think any of us ever fully recovered from losing him and I am thrilled to honor him by naming our anticipated second born son after him, Rory, which is a derivative of Roy. We chose Baby A to have the name Rory because baby B has been the "shy" one during ultrasounds and Poppy, as he was called by his grandchildren, was anything but shy!

Rory: Gaelic for "red king"

Mark: Another great man in my life is my Dad, J. Mark McLoone. He has always led by example. He is a kind and generous man full of integrity, work ethic and family values. His love of family and family events is unsurpassed. We often joke that he is the "Clark Griswald" of our family, showing enthusiasm for everything from picking out the "McLoone family Christmas tree" to driving the family on vacation to Hilton Head. He is incredibly hard working because he wants the best for his family and specifically for his children. His love and enthusiasm for our first son, Elijah has been so much fun to watch and I look forward to seeing him enjoy all three of his grandchildren. I have often though that Poppy and my Dad were an awesome combination and I was so blessed to have had both as my male role models growing up. 

Mark: Biblical name meaning "Polite" and "Shining"

“I read in a book once that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I've never been able to believe it. I don't believe a rose WOULD be as nice if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage.” 
― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables on the importance of names

***At the time of this posting, Rory was B and Patrick was A. They switched soon after our gender ultrasound and remained in their new order. Twin order is determined by how close each baby is to the cervix. Once our children were named, they retained the name they were given. To avoid confusion when looking back, I edited this blog post so the labeling of Baby A and Baby B as well as "second son" and "third son" would be accurate.