A report from the trenches:
I just got home from my niece’s dance recital. Some of the horrors I found in the program:
Kaelie
Kaylee
Brielle
Ashlee
Ashlynn
Mikaylah
Payton
and the winner: Chealsee
So what’s that, 4 votes for Lauren? I guess I should just name the baby Jennifer. :rolleyes:
Liza (which sadly, was my birth name)
Missy
Katherine/Kathryn/ Catherine, mainly because I’ve never met one who wasn’t bathouse crazy and sneaky and mean (sorry if you are the exception to this rule)
Eugenie
Craig
Samuel
Magnolia (I threaten to name my first daughter “Magnolia Thunderpussy” but only to upset my family)
Randolph
Jesus
Anakin (I know someone who named her son, born last December, that)
Any stripper-esque name- i.e. Candi, Sierra, Tiffany, etc.
Oh, I could go on, there are some really bad names out there
I’m sorry, I am not quite done.
Shawn (as opposed to Sean, which is OK)
Shenequa, Loqueesha, Cam’ron, and similar
Dwayne/ Duane
Did anyone else, without otherwise reading the thread, Control-F their own and/or their SO’s name? 
(Both absent, FWIW 
)
Or how about Dickensheets, a surname my daughter and I saw about a week ago that sent us into hysterics for ten minutes (Hey, it was late at night. Everything seems more funny then.).
One name i simply cannot stand
Briony
I just think it sounds stupid, and cannot understand a desire to name your child that.
Ashley
Charles
George
But I think it’s less about the name and more about how I feel about specific people with those names.
I used to know an awesome Ronda.
Every time I hear the name Sheldon I think of that scene from When Harry Met Sally.
Harry: Shel? Sheldon? No, you didn’t have great sex with Sheldon.
Sally: I did too.
Harry: No you didn’t. A Sheldon can do your income taxes. If you need a root canal, Sheldon’s your man, but humpin’ and pumpin’ is not Sheldon’s strong suit. It’s the name. “Do it to me, Sheldon. You’re an animal, Sheldon. Ride me, big Sheldon.” It doesn’t work.
As a Kelly, I have to say POOOOOOOOO. I’m way older then 8!
I was born in 1966, the only other kelly I ever “knew” was from Charlies Angels. My grandmother told my mum off for naming me Kelly…it was a boys name to her. I never met another Kelly until I was 28.
Of course my grandmother also told my mum off for giving my brother a “girls” name, Dale.
Both names were fairly unusual for the 60’s but we coped.
I loathe the name Jordan. I have never met a nice Jordan…it’s like the label “naughty boy” attaches itself to the name.
I apologise to anyone with a child/relative called Jordan.
Leeanne!
Never knew one that didn’t chew gum and twiddle her hair constantly.
That remains to be seen. 
And my brother’s name IS Carter–named way back in 1960, when it was practically unheard of… 
I hear ya on the Irish names…yikes!
As for Lauren–you aren’t having your baby in the late '80’s-early '90’s. I know at least 4 pre-teen and freshman Laurens. Very trendy here at that time.
I know a girl whose name is spelled Meaghann…could we add any more letters to it?
And I was at a soccer game yesterday and there was a girl named America–and no, the parents are NOT FOTB*. Made me wonder about sisters…Asia? Antipodes? Antartica? Africa? What the heck?
Kelly --different countries. Kelly is HUGE here (or was in the late '80’s)–it was the start of the Irish-naming of all the Midwest. I know at least 3 Kellys–all girls–all freshman in high school.
Kelly at least has the dignity of not being able to be shortened. I believe I may have seen a Kellee somewhere…
Names are a funny thing. I have dislikes toward names that have associations with people who I either didn’t like or who teased me as a kid etc. But it is all a very minor matter, and I promise, that if I were to meet any of those whose names I have denigrated here, I am sure that you could be the one to change my mind.
Thrown in for the hell of it:
Judy/Judith
Craig–it’s such an ugly name–has anyone cool ever been named Craig?
Elliot–like John Cusak said in “The Sure Thing”–Elliot’s a kid who eats paste in you kindergarten class…
George
Humphrey–even Bogie couldn’t make this one trendy.
Paige–what are you? A medieval servant or what?
Miriam-sounds like a mumble+stutter to me
Dana/Lana/Anna–they are all pronounced differently…whatever
Minnie–ugh
Louisa/Lois/Louise–gesundheit!
Cherry–welcome to the career of call girl
I could go on and on…
*Fresh Off The Boat (quick way of saying first generation Americans)
Trey. Usually a nickname for a boy who is the “third” of someone, but I have seen the name used as an actual first name.
I’ve only ever seen Trey used as a name! :eek:
One last thing:
girl names after rock formations(Jeebus, what is it with girl’s names?)
Ruby
Opal
Pearl
etc.–these are from a generation ago, at least, but I still puzzle over the trend.
(I’m thinking this generation will have a girl named Swarovski!)
I have ancestral twin aunts (many great’s involved there, not sure how many) who were named America and Amalia. Their parents were FOTB, and the girls were born just weeks after their parents arrived here in the US.
If the parents are hard-core birdwatchers, I wouldn’t bet against it.
That ain’t nuthin’. My MIL named all four of her sons so that they all have the same 3 initials. 4 RWJ’s in the same family.
I have no idea what she was thinking.
My husband’s name is Mark Vernard Smith - thank goodness his parents gave him a rather unique middle name.
I hate the nickname “Maddie” which a lot of people will shorten “Madeline” into - because I hated the character in Moonlighting. I will actually tell people I will not answer to that name. I don’t like “Red” but will answer to it.
I hate any name that looks as if the parents took the Scrabble tiles and said “whoever comes up with the highest score gets to name the baby.”
I like Lauren. Makes me thing of the marvelous Lauren Bacall.
Of course I chose my own name, and it’s both a foreign name and the less standard of two possible transliterations so I’m breaking every rule in the book!