NOT Jackie and Louie

Okay, so, we are naming the babies. A few days after the miscarriage - on a slow evening with just our family - we asked the kids to help us come up with a name for a girl and a boy. In the past, Joe helped me name the other little souls I had miscarried, and I wrote the names in my journal. He took it pretty seriously, back then.

Notsomuch this time. Maybe it's because we were in the car. Usually, that's a good place for conversation because we have a captive audience. But this time, they must have been in a loopy mood. Cayna piped up right away with "Jackie" for a girl. "Because it's pretty," she said. Then Joe contributes "Louie." This is thanks to the old-time radio show he's been listening to on CD - "Baby Snooks". Turns out Baby Snooks has an uncle Louie. (I suppose I should just be thankful he didn't suggest "Snooks".) It's one thing to get silly when you're naming, for instance, a pet bunny. But it starts to seem weird when we're discussing two little souls we won't meet til heaven. Ai yi yi.

Can't do Jackie and Louie. Those names sound like main characters in a 1950s sit-com.

A couple more nights have gone by and I want names. So I chose Justin and Elizabeth based on feast days around my original due date as well as the date of the miscarriage. So there you have it. Justin and Elizabeth. NOT Jackie and Louie. I don't even think they work well as middle names.

Somehow I have a feeling Jackie and Louie will come up again. Let's hope it's not til we go to name our pet bunny.