An Important Introduction or An Accidental Announcement

As you may know, we’ve called this little baby, “joey”, for the entire pregnancy. Because he is in my kangaroo pouch…get it?! That means each baby is a joey. And any more babies we may have will probably be called joey too. 

Until they have a name, of course.

Anyways, we haven't had a name and didn't discuss options with others because we knew that we would be influenced and swayed by outside opinions, ideas, and reactions. We feel a full responsibility, one we are ridiculously proud of, to make the first giant decision in this tiny life. We, as his parents, will be giving him his name. We hope this is at least understandable and are sincerely grateful that you have gracefully allowed us to take our time.

From the beginning, Hubs didn't think we would name our baby until we met him. And, within a few months into the pregnancy, I wholeheartedly agreed. How was I supposed to name someone when I can't see their sweet little face?

We had a working list of names, but it felt strange to try to identify him without seeing him. Like some weird internet dating thing or something. But I wasn't worried. Hubs and I shared the same likes and dislikes and intentions in the process. I knew once we met him, we would agree. And I have a pretty good feeling that once I see his unimaginably good-looking little self, I won't even remember what it was like to not know.

But, for the last two months, we had somewhat unintentionally narrowed down the list to two. The other names just weren't his. I was certain that, on his birthday, we would see him and know which one his was. We started calling him by these names. I prayed that God would clearly cast His vote. We considered the meanings and origins. We made sure his initials wouldn't spell something dirty. We tried our best to confirm his name wouldn't rhyme with anything that mean-middle-schoolers could use to be meaner. It wasn't grueling or rigid. It was fun and a natural part of the process.

And what a precious time to have those whispers and wonders of all the possibilities with your best friend, knowing that it is just between the two of you. Knowing this is something you are creating together.

We ended up calling him one name noticeably more than the other. I think- at least in part- because we've gotten to know him. He rolls around, he kicks and jabs, he gets the hiccups. He can hear us, and see light, and suck his thumb.

He is a little person in there, and he is already so much more than what he looks like. It might sound hokey, but it really did just feel right. It's his name. We both knew it. We didn't even have to get a good look at him like we thought.

Well, we've accidentally named our little joey.

So, without further ado, Andrew and I would like to introduce you to our son.

Eli Andrew Woodard

Eli (Hebrew)- offering, lifting up

Andrew (Greek)- a strong man, warrior