I wrote the story of how we came up with Roman's name shortly after he was born, so I thought I should do the same for our baby girl. Hadley was actually one of our girl names when we were pregnant with Roman. Since we didn't find out what we were having with him, we have it written on my "labor poster" I made for motivation before Roman was born. I think I originally saw the name on Pinterest, and mentioned it to Brad. He liked it, and we kept it on our list. It wasn't until we were pregnant with Hadley that we realized it was actually a combination of both our names. Hannah + Bradley = Hadley. Even though that name was at the top of our list, we still didn't settle on it as quickly as we did Roman. We only had one boy name picked out this time, Maverick Theo, but a few girl names. Once we found out she was a girl on Christmas Eve, I went to work narrowing down the list. The name I loved forever, Averie, was becoming more and more popular. Another name we loved was Berkley, but it didn't have any sentimental value and I didn't want people calling her Berk. For awhile I was set on the name Grae Lynn. It was a combination of all my sisters' and mom's middle names; Grace, Rae, and Lynn. It meant so much to me, and I wanted to keep it a surprise from them until the birth, but Brad could not get past the name Grae. He thought it sounded too dark and depressing. I kept trying to get him to change his mind while I was pregnant, but he wouldn't budge. One day we were randomly watching a women's surf competition on TV and there was a surfer named Lakey. We looked at each other with the, "What do you think?" look. We loved that it was unique and sporty. We also loved how in incorporated "lake" since we first met on Table Rock Lake in Branson, MO. I added it to my list and for a few months our top three names were Hadley, Lakey, and Grae. I even put all 3 names in a hat one night and made Brad pick one. He pulled out Hadley, of course. I couldn't believe we were having so much trouble picking a name this time. We eventually threw out Lakey, because we thought it sounded too much like something you might name your dog. And Grae of course, because Brad didn't like it. Over and over we kept coming back to Hadley. I liked it, but I worried that it sounded too much like Hannah. I wanted to make sure if this was our last baby and only girl, that I absolutely loved it. As my due date got closer, and people asked if we picked a name yet, I always said, "probably Hadley." I didn't want to name her yet, because I was afraid I would get attached and I wanted to leave my options open if she came out not looking like a Hadley. Now that we had a tentative first name, we had to decide on a middle name. "How about your middle name, Marie?" Brad suggested. "No," I said. I never loved my middle name, I always thought it was a generic 90s middle name (sorry mom and dad!), and I wanted something a little more unique. I also wanted it to be one syllable like Roman's. However, Brad brought up the point that Roman had his middle name, so it would be cool if our daughter had mine. I considered Hadley Tay, for my maiden name Taylor, but it just didn't feel right. The more I thought about Hadley Marie, the more I liked it. I liked the idea of both of our kids having our middle names, plus Marie is Brad's sisters middle name. I decided if her middle name was going to be Marie, it was going to be after her mom AND aunt Kristen. There is no other woman I would want my daughter to be like than her. She is the epitome of a Proverbs 31 woman. Anyone who knows her can attest that she is the most Godly, humble, unassuming, and servant-hearted person you have ever met. I am honored to have my daughter share a name with her, and I hope she shares her heart, too.
One day, as I was feeding Roman lunch, I asked him what the baby's name was. He knew there was a baby girl growing in mommy's belly, but we had never told him a name yet. "Hadwey," he said confidently. It was right then I knew. I don't know when he heard us talking about it, but he had made up his mind that her name was Hadley, and so it was. I knew I could never "change" it on him, and it was just the divine intervention we needed to commit. Plus, the way he says it is just too cute to pass up. The minute Hadley was born and they laid her on my chest, her name became hers like it was meant to be all along. She looked like a Hadley, she acted like a Hadley (whatever that means), she was Hadley! We love you so much, baby girl. We pray you get the best of us and aunt Kristen, but also that you find your own way and live life to the fullest! (P.S. Sorry if you think Marie is a generic 90s name).
