The Name Game

Stryder Jayton Crouch - that is the name that we chose for our precious baby boy. We gave the impression that we were pretty undecided about baby names all the way up until his birth. This was mostly true. We were never quite sold on any girls' names. Of course we had a few we liked, but nothing that grabbed us. Interestingly enough, we had pretty much decided before we even got married that if we had a boy, his first name would be Stryder. We have been asked many times where this name came from. The truth is, when Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring came out to theaters in December of 2001, I went to see it with my family. It was then that I fell in love with the name Strider. You see, not far into the movie we are introduced to a mysterious, masculine, heroic warrior with this name. He is later called Aragorn, which is how most people know him. I thought it was a great name for a man, and decided that, if my future husband approved, I would name my baby boy Stryder (with a "y", not an "i".) I am not, by any means, a LOTR fanatic, I just loved the name and the character that it represented.

When I met Mark in 2006, it didn't take long before we knew we were meant to be together, and would eventually get married and have kids. I told him about my love for this name, and he loved it too! (I also made him watch the movie so he would know who the character was that it came from.) So, the first name was decided pretty easily, but kept secret because we didn't want any one else to use it before we had kids. :) A middle name did not come so easy. We actually didn't decide on Jayton until 2 days before Stryder was born. I used to love the name Jayden, but then it became so popular that I just put it out of my mind. So, we talked about Jonathan, Jaxon, Payton, etc., but we couldn't agree on any. I then saw Jaxton in a baby name book, and we liked it, but again we weren't quite sold on it. We wondered about swapping the x out for a y. Amazingly, we both liked it and Mark said if we had the baby that day, he would be happy with that name.

There you have it - the name "Stryder Jayton" was decided on July 25th. I sure hope he likes it! ;)

Where I am at...7 weeks later.

WOW! Stryder was born over 7 weeks ago and I don't know where the time has gone. Obviously it was not spent blogging, as I am way behind. Instead, it has been full of kisses, feedings, naps, kisses, diaper changes, vistors, kisses, swaddlings, sweet bedtime prayers, and many more kisses. :) Seriously, I cannot get enough of kissing his sweet little cheeks! I wonder if Stryder ever gets sick of me kissing him and saying "I love you" over and over again. I just can't help it. These 7 weeks have flown by and I know that time is not slowing down. I feel the need to make sure everyday that he knows his mama loves him. I think he knows now. He has just started smiling and it is adorable!!! It feels like his way of saying I love you back to me. He is also "coo-ing" and making all kinds of other cute noises (as well as some other not so cute noises that sound like they are coming from an adult - if you know what I mean.) This boy is so much fun!

When I was pregnant, people were always asking what I wanted, a boy or girl. I always said that I just wanted a healthy baby (although there were a select few who knew the true desire of my heart.) I felt as though I couldn't really say aloud that I wanted a boy for two reasons. One, if the baby was a girl, she would hear me in the womb and then her whole life she would think she wasn't wanted. (A bit extreme, I know.) Two, if I had a girl and people knew I wanted a boy, they would think I was disappointed and that would just be horrible. But now, I feel the freedom to say to all that I wanted to have a baby boy so badly and always have! It was so amazing to hear the doctor say "It's a boy!" In that moment, I thanked God for granting all of my silly desires. You see, I also really wanted a July birthday. In both of our big extended families, there are no July birthdays. We have every other month covered except that one. So, I was hoping to have the baby early for that reason, and because I love the ruby birthstone. I know, I know - I am a bit crazy. But, I wasn't due until August 8th and so many people told me I would go late since this was my first child. Thankfully, they were wrong. God blessed me with a healthy, gorgeous, July 27th born, baby boy! I am proof that God does listen to our prayers - even the silly ones. :)