THINGS I DO NOT LIKE

the look of disapproval 

when people get death eater tattoos

hospitals at night

tampons

pulling out dry tampons

periods in general

the current trend of painting everything white (kitchens, bedrooms, living rooms, EVERYTHING)

black coffee 

weather above 75 degrees

weather below 50 degrees

Donald Trump

when men wear flip flops

the fact that q-tips aren't meant for cleaning ears

birth control

Hillary Clinton

when people tell me I'm irresponsible if I don't vote for Hillary Clinton

greasy soup

Til next time

Charlotte

Person: Alison

P sure she'll hate me for this, since I cropped myself out.

I don't even know how to begin writing about my friend Alison. (Sometimes I call her "Palison" since she's my pal.) I usually don't like to play favorites among my friends, but... there's something about Alison that makes me instantly like her. I love all of my close friends, obviously, but I can't think of Alison and not smile. I'm sure she'll love reading that. (She's probably puking in her mouth.) 

We get along astoundingly well considering how we've always been at different stages in life. She's a couple years older. I was like a horrible student who never went to class when we met, and she was not. Now she's married with a good job and I'm over here fumbling around trying just to function. And yet, we click.

Not the best quality ever, but it'll do.

I think Alison finds me more amusing than any of my other friends do. (I could be wrong and maybe she's just being nice to me to preserve my feelings?) She laughs at most of my jokes. If they aren't terrifically funny, she at least gives me a look that tells me she appreciates the effort (unless it's at an inappropriate moment). I find her funny, too, but in a much subtler way. She's less of an outright dick than I am. 

I had a surgery a few years back and a few of my friends came along. She was the only one (I think?) who didn't do a-hole things like tell me I was gonna die from the air bubbles in my IV (I'm looking at you, Liz). Also, I..... vaguely remember needing help getting dressed after surgery. I even vaguely-er remember being like, "No! I don't want help getting dressed!" As Alison and another friend (if I'm remembering correctly - I was full of drugs) helped me get dressed. It doesn't sound funny, but my fuzzy memory of it is hilarious. 

She's sort of selfless but it's annoying as fuck because, like, she won't tell me her birthday! I believe it's in June, but I'm not sure (if I had to guess, I'd say June 25th.. so it's probably February 3rd). I LOVE SENDING PEOPLE GIFTS AND/OR CARDS FOR THEIR BIRTHDAYS. IT IS ONE OF THE WAYS I SHOW MY LOVE. AND THIS B IS MAKING IT SO I CANNOT DO THAT. I should send her a birthday card once a week just to annoy her. 

I am definitely going to start doing that. 

But yeah, she also has like zero pictures of just her on Facebook (other than ones where she's mid-running), which is why I had to crop that photo up there. Here's the original: 

This picture was taken on my birthday a couple of years ago. It sums up our relationship unbelievably well. 

Al is the classiest person I know. I think. I'd call her style simple-elegant. (Yes, Alison? Do you agree?) She'd probably be just fine having Kate Middleton's closet. Also, and yes, I know, external beauty is not all that matters, but I'd be remiss to not mention that she's annoying gorgeous. I've told her this before an she usually rolls her eyes. One time after she hung out with some of my friends, I asked a friend what she thought of Alison, and the response literally was, "She seems nice. Also, I have never seen such a perfect face." She is not the only friend who has had that kind of response after I've introduced them to Al. I'm sure Alison is mad at me for even writing that (or at least annoyed/blushing/whatever), but it's my blog and I'll say what I want. One day she and her husband will end up having babies that come out six feet tall with the faces of porcelain dolls.

Really adore the fact that I look pregnant in every picture we have together. -_-

When we first met, I liked her but also assumed she'd be condescending. I don't know why? Maybe because she and my then-roommate (which is how we met) asked me a bunch of questions and told me they had stalked me online before I moved in. (They also told me they thought I'd be awful - prob why I assumed she'd look at me with fiery scorn.) But it turned out that we got along well and she doesn't (to my knowledge) judge me for any of the things. 

We had this fun thing going where we wrote to each other all the time (old school) but I dropped the ball on that after the last letter. oy. Gotta get my act together.  

Before her wedding we were all at her house and her parents, who are very nice, marked our heights on the wall. This gives me such an immense feeling of satisfaction for some reason. I think it's because my brain is all, "Haha, Alison, I'm on your wall now. You're friends with me forever now. No escaping it." 

Over all, she's pleasant, but not in a bubbly way (like Stephanie). She's sarcastic and humorously cynical, but when it comes down to it she is very supportive. I mean, like I said, she helped an annoying drugged person get dressed after surgery. She can't not be a somewhat nice person. 

My friend Liz and I have joked before that Liz's boyfriend, Sean, is like the older brother I never wanted. Well Alison is like the older sister I did want. We probably don't talk as much as we should. Next week, when I send her the first of 52 birthday cards she's getting, I'll mention it. 

xoxo

____

Charlotte  

Currently Reading (May 2016)

I've noticed that every time I leave the hospital, I go a little haywire when it comes to my previously well-honed habits. I have no clue why, and I realize the opposite should be true (as in... I should continue fasting from soda after I leave the hospital where I had been admitted for abdominal issues instead of abandoning that habit and drinking it once a day..). Theoretically a hospital stay should just strengthen my resolve to form and keep good habits. But it's always true that for at least two weeks post-hospital, I'm a mess. Not even a hot mess. Just a mess. I'm not entirely sure why this happens, but it does. My best guess is that my mood changes and I'm just sort of more sad and slightly pathetic and... it just takes me a minute to get back on track. 

This all applies to my reading habits. I was doing so good before my stint in Charleston!! SO GOOD. And since then? I've read maybe half a book. Le sigh. I've decided that maybe a personal book challenge is the way to get me out of my slump. I'm going to read as many books as I can this week. I'm hoping to get through at least four. I've already got a few books I've started over the last few weeks, but I'm less than a quarter through each of them.

Here's a list of the books: 

1. Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen 

I saw this book while browsing over at bookoutlet.com and liked the cover. And then I saw it was on sale! I got is for like $2. I have mixed opinions on it so far. I'm enjoying the story well enough, but so far there have been no surprises. The writing isn't bad, in fact it's almost good, but it's too much. Every other sentence doesn't need a metaphor or analogy. I've said this before, but I don't need writing to be too pretty (maybe if it's poetry). 

2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

For the third time this year.        

3. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

Ah. So I'm enjoying this book. But it's slow going. I don't know why (Pride and Prejudice is another one I just can't seem to get through). It's a library book, though, and I've renewed it once already, so I need to either pick up the pace or prepare to take a short hiatus if someone else has the book on hold.

4. The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

I was primarily interested in this book just because it's by Rowling. I've only just started it, so I don't have an opinion on it yet. I'm sure I won't love it the way I love Harry Potter, but that doesn't mean it won't be a good book. It's another library book, so I don't have all year to procrastinate. 

5. Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos

I read Loved Walked In by this author and absolutely loved it. So when I saw another of her books in the library, I knew I had to check it out. 

6. The Mapmaker's Children by Sarah McCoy

Yes. I was reading this in March. I put it down to read Harry Potter. I need to stop doing that. And then I just kept reading other books and fully neglected this one. For shame. I'm enjoying it well enough so far, we'll see if that keeps up. This is a must-finish for me because it's a blogging for books pick, so I need to review it soon!!

And that's it at the moment. Like I said, I want to try and read as many books as possible this week, and hopefully at least four of these. 

Time will tell. 

__

Charlotte    

link love

This is embarrassing, but since only three people read my blog, I'll share. Yesterday I was driving through the park (in an effort to baby step my way out of the house - I'm still having a lot of nausea/pain/discomfort since my procedure so driving then walking then hiking, you get it) and I thought of this hilarious joke. I imagined the situation with specific friends, and for some reason I decided to elaborately mouth the joke. I was alone in my car, so it's fair if you think I'm crazy for essentially lip-syncing a funny joke I made up to absolutely no one other than my not-physically-there friends. Anyway. As I'm mid-mouthing-joke, I glance out my window and see these teen girls looking at me and then I start cracking up because I'm pretty sure they were on the precipice of hysteria themselves. I'm assuming they thought I was just really into belting out whatever song was on (which happened to be Destiny's Child - so they'd normally be correct). They had no way of knowing I was actually just cracking myself up. I was embarrassed for .2 seconds but then I got over myself. At least people got a laugh out of my joke. ....Sort of. 

But now for some links! (This is longer than usual because I haven't done one of these posts in ages. Mea culpa. Grab a coffee.)

First off, this story has made it's way around my newsfeed. It claims Hawaii is paying anyone to move to the state and teach. But... it ain't so simple. I do actually meet the requirements, oddly. A teaching certificate isn't required, so there are plenty of people who would be ahead of me. I do have more experience with kids than is necessary, though... I'm going to have to weigh my desire to visit Hawaii/love of working with kids against my semi-irrational fear of tidal waves. This happens whenever friends make suggestions like this. They're reasonable ideas, but scary/scary-ish. (I'm reminded of my friend who has told me a few times to go to Germany for school - which actually is a terrific idea. Free!!! Completely free. I need to grow a pair.)

I've been guilty of using some of these excuses to avoid going out. Books > social life. Speaking of books... I've got two new reviews over on Filthy Casket! One and two. Self-promotion-no-shame-game-strong. (Also! An excellent reading list right here.)

I started using a smart phone again a few weeks ago. It's been fun posting pictures to Instagram again, but... I'm thinking I might go back to my old less intelligent phone. I'm happier and more productive when I spend less time on social media. I've already almost decided on tossing the smart phone, but this article about comparison and a social media detox has just strengthened my resolve. We'll see! (Related: this post would have been finished about two hours ago if I could just stop checking Facebook and Instagram and Twitter, oh my.) 

I could read about personality types all day, so I loved both this post about kitchen designs based on personality and this (ultra old!) post about Gilmore Girls personalities (apparently I'm a Rory).

Speaking of personality types, I enjoyed this article filled with ideas to become a better planner. I related to what the author said about her personality type results changing - our answers on the Myers-Briggs test might change if we mindfully change our habits. We need to plan based on a mix of all that. (Also, and maybe this is cause for a separate post, but my results change on where I'm at in life - I think it has a lot to do with depression. Which sort of sucks!! Sometimes I just wonder what I'd be like if I didn't have - never had - depression.) 

related.

It'd be very unlike me to not include baby name posts, so here: this list of cool vintage names (I like the names, but Bustle is behind the times. These names are already coming back/already back.) and this name advice article! Would you name your baby daughter Josie Rocket? I think it's cute but I'd prefer a longer formal name. Also! There's been a slew of birth announcements over at Sancta Nomina. Go check them out - Beatrice! Gemma! Rosalie! Swoon.

Really enjoyed this post over at Socanary's Diary. "The problem with the pizza tee. You know the ones I'm talking about right? Pizza is Life, Pizza is Bae, or There's No We In Pizza, put on a trendy top. So cute/funny/amazing right?! Sure, unless you're fat."

This dad on twitter cracks me up. (Examples one, two, and three.)

Seriously crushing on this bookshelf. I need an apartment so I can have many, many bookshelves. (No other reasons, nope.)

Pretty sure this dude is either me as a man OR he's my soul mate. Woke up from a coma, asked for Taco Bell.  

An author sent identical queries to various agents using different names. Her own, Catherine, and a fake name - George. George received 17 requests for a manuscript, Catherine received two. The rejections "George" received were also warmer and more encouraging than the rejections Catherine received. All of this info is both heartbreaking and infuriating.     

Let's break real quick for a few feel good videos: 

Oldie but goodie - "Charlie bit my finger.. 15 years later" The man laughing in the background cracks me up each and every time. 

Babies eating lemons. Never disappoints.

This girl's voice. I may or may not have watched this video five times in a row. I may or may not have then fantasized having an excellent voice and stage presence and confidence and desire to be on TV.  

Meghan Trainor's performance may not have made me as swoony as the contender from The Voice, but it's still pretty great. Except that fall at the end. This is why I don't wear heels.

I've never watched baseball as fun as this triple play.

This marriage proposal was cute.. but not cutesy. Is that possible? I think so. 

And of course, this real life game of quidditch. I used to want to go skydiving. I really did. But now that I'm 25... the days mean more, you know. Somewhat kidding. I'm more terrified of skydiving than I used to be, but I might just brave it if it meant I could play quidditch.

Okay! Back to regular programming! 

I enjoyed this whole slideshow, but especially JFK on his wedding day. Dapper. Dapper indeed.

I have a penchant for "interesting" (read: ugly) shoes. Very annoying when such shoes cost $200. A girl can dream. 

Alright so I love, love, love the end result of this makeover. But I can't help but mourn those beautiful, useful bookshelves and that beautiful, spacious, useful loft. I wish we could have seen the space redecorated but not remodeled. le sigh. 

Apparently, half of the people you consider friends don't feel the same way. Ugh! What depressing stats. Not a good read for my insecurities!  

Here, we need cheering up after that article. Let's watch and listen to these amazing ladies sing For Good.

Being in the hospital so much over the last month or two has meant I haven't done a ton of cooking. Which is sad. I'm also having the worst time trying to change my diet. I've already cut a lot of fatty/greasy stuff out, but I have trouble continuing with it. It's straight up harder than any other thing I've challenged myself to do. I'm so used to eating crap. It's really difficult. I guess I just have to make good recipes as often as possible. This one looks delicious. (And while we're on the topic of food and cooking... this kitchen. It's not my style at all, but for some reason I love it. Just the right amount of quirk, I think.)

Try and tell me you can look at this picture of the queen with her fun, color coordinated umbrella and not smile ear to ear. Just try.

I can't recommend this article enough. Here: 

"The biological clock hysteria, with its image of a time bomb lodged in each and every woman’s ovaries, made each woman personally responsible for dealing with that handicap.
Many career women bought it. At least, they did not organise to demand better maternity leave or state subsidised childcare. Instead, they listened to experts who told them what experts always tell women: There is something terribly wrong with you! But luckily, there is also something new and expensive that you can buy to fix it."
"The role of the biological clock has been to make it seem only natural – indeed inevitable – that the burdens of reproducing the world fall almost entirely on women. There are moral as well as practical implications to this idea: if you do not plan your life just right, you deserve to end up desperate and alone."
"This seems like a strange form of empowerment: spending tens of thousands of dollars in order to make your date feel more comfortable. Or, so that you can climb a career ladder that will not bend, even slightly, to meet female workers in their reproductive years."

I need to remember what I read in this post about brooding over our sins. Can't do it. 

LOL at this Emma Watson fan fiction.

Next tattoo.

And finally, hop over to Buzzfeed to laugh at some ingenious graduation cap ideas. I particularly loved the Sponge Bob and Little Mermaid caps.    

And since we're not, you know, post-election yet, here's a friendly reminder...

...for the second time in a week. Not sorry. 

__ 

Charlotte

April Into May | 2016

I cant believe how crappy I feel. I had a nifty little procedure done on Wednesday where they went into my bile duct and cut away some muscle (sphincter of Oddi? lol) and it went well... but my pancreas became irritated. Beforehand they told me I had about a 15% - 1 in 6 - chance of developing pancreatitis, so I wasn't completely shocked to wake up in pain, but... it's not pleasant either. I ended up needing to stay in the hospital while they pumped me with fluids and medicine and let's just say there were a lot of ups and downs when it came to testing out whether or not I could hold food down. When I was finally able to eat a cracker without feeling like death, I was deemed okay enough to travel back to NC (the procedure was done by specialists in Charleston). The doctor is pretty terrific and has called to check on me several times.. but I'm not doing great. It seems mostly that my pancreas is still just irritated. I get nauseous pretty frequently (but not constant, so that's good!) and my pain hasn't really let up. I'm on medicine for the pain and I hate it. Aside from wanting to just not have to take meds, they make me loopy and sort of sad? Like I take the medicine and an hour later I'm sitting on my bed thinking all of my saddest thoughts. fun. stuff. I'm scared that if the pain continues they're going to want to admit me again (to flush me with nonstop fluids, preventing the pancreatitis from becoming severe), so fingers crossed that doesn't happen. 

My birthday was yesterday and I was well enough to eat a small piece of cake, though. That was my biggest concern. Cake is more important than most other things. I rounded out the night with a midnight viewing of Bring It On (it's on Netflix now! Yay!) and a second (but tiny!) piece of cake.

Some things that happened this month: 

I got a kayak for my birthday! It is blue, but the bottom is white. After we bought it we put it inside the car (my car has a rack on it... my aunt's car does not) and it was hilariously bad, with the front of it all the way up to the windshield. When I turned to the left, instead of seeing the driver's seat, I just saw the kayak. And since all I could see was the white part, I have named said kayak Moby Dick. I got it right before surgery, so I haven't taken it out yet. As soon as I feel better! 

Oh! This probably should have been in that top paragraph, but I'm too lazy to fix it. Here's an epic story. (If you are queasy about needles, do not read this part.) I am awful when it comes to getting the iv placed. I am generally poked an average of three or four times before they can successfully place an iv in my veins. I don't know why. It doesn't bother me anymore, and I'm fine with needles now. (All except needles in the mouth. I am a wimp when it comes to those.) WELL. They had to get the anesthesiologist to place my iv because it just wasn't happening. So she numbs my hand (which is nice.. the hospital here does not do that) after finding a vein. But once the numbing stuff is in, the vein is lost. She poked around a bit for it, and I felt some of it, but that's not entirely unexpected on my part. Numbing stuff does not seem to work great on me. So she tries again. Then she goes to my other hand and tells me, "I found a vein. I can numb your hand again, but last time I did that, the vein disappeared..." So I told her to just do it without the numbing medicine. Needles in the hands suck for sure, but again, the hospital here doesn't do it so I'm used to it and it's not the worst pain in the world. She was in there for a minute or two and then found a vein... but there was a valve (I think? Something?) blocking the iv from going in all the way. 

At this point my blood also decided it'd be fun to leak everywhere, including me, her, and the floor. This was a first for me, but I'm not queasy about this kind of crap anymore. But then she asked someone to go get wire small enough to fit through the iv and I was hella confused. She explained that she was going to try snaking the wire through the iv to open the valve, allowing her to push the iv in all the way. 

Gross.

But I was game, because I'd prefer that (after being assured it wouldn't hurt - weakling) to being poked five more times. So that's what she did. I was sort of disgusted but also intrigued and I couldn't not watch someone thread a wire through my vein. There was happiness from everyone in the room when it worked and then she and I fist bumped, because we cool, we cool. 

I don't like being sick all the time, but in my quest to look for silver linings, I can't help but feel a little more badass when things like this happen. Adding to my street cred repertoire (ask me about the time I had to hold a needle in my own hand while a nurse ran to get something...).

Moving on to bigger and better things... 

I worked at a farmer's market for approximately ten seconds. The boss refused to pay me more than $9 (I had asked for $10) even though he offered a man $12 to do it (especially infuriating because it's not like we'd be doing anything differently - and he didn't have any more experience than I do). I put up with it because I want money. But then this mothaeffa made things even worse. He changed the set up at the stand, which is fine, but when I gave my opinion he was beyond rude. Like, calling me "girl" and getting all patronizing. Later that day he asked me why I needed to eat dinner if I ate lunch. And I still held my tongue. But then when it came to paycheck time he took off around 4 or 5 hours worth of pay. He said he wasn't paying me for travel time, even though that was the agreement. (For a different job with an actual living wage and more hours, I wouldn't demand something like that for a 45 minute commute. But at $9/hr for part time, inconsistent hours - yeah. I'm not using a third of my pay on gas.) I told him I couldn't do it without travel and that was that. Every - legit every - woman who works for him came up to me in the next few days to tell me they were glad I stood up to him. He treats his female employees like crap and it is disgusting to behold. It's made especially worse because he tries to preach the Bible to everyone - something I'd actually delight in if it weren't paired with anti-Christian actions, but hey. 

I'm still working in the greenhouse now and then (hospital stays have sort of interfered with that...) but I'm hoping to get a real job now - something I'm good at, enjoy, and can rely on for hours and pay. Fingers crossed... again. 

I may have had no clue what I was doing at the farmer's market, but at least it was pretty. 

In other exciting but potentially dangerous news, I discovered bookoutlet.com. Oh man. OH MAN. So many deeply discounted new books, dirt cheap used books, and good sales! It has taken great self control to not go use every penny I have on books. Even more wonderful, they participate with ebates.com. So I go on my ebates account, click over to book outlet, and boom. Cheap books plus a couple of dollars back! Can't get enough of it. I bought four books for like $9 the other day (not including shipping) and was pumped. Go check it out. Unless you're trying to save money. Then don't. 

Speaking of books and money... I did okay on my goals for last month. I saved over my goal of $200. Unfortunately, I had to use some of it after I ended up staying in the hospital, but I still have some left. I sort of read six books... I read four (or five) books for the first time and then.. reread two of the Harry Potter books. Go on, judge me. I went to the Y a bunch of times, but then got knocked off course big time after the hospital and then with GI appointments and ultrasounds and surgery. I did not go to Asheville to ask about classes (on next week's to-do list, assuming I'm feeling okay!) I didn't write ANY book reviews!!! But I have started some. I have to get back on the blogging horse, for real. I don't remember how many recipes I've tried, didn't keep track of that one at all. I didn't talk to Steph about Chapel Hill because my car is falling apart (literally - I keep finding little pieces of my undercarriage in the driveway...) so that's not in the cards right now. And I lost some weight - 7 pounds, not 10. But I'm counting that a success. 

Ignore apparent dirt/mess - this is not my bathroom, it just had a conveniently placed mirror.

This picture is saved in my computer as "Awful." I took it on a day when I thought my weight loss was actually showing - and then I saw this picture and realized I look preggo. Great! But really, I am losing weight. Slowly but surely.

As for this month's goals: 

1. Call my friends more. Most of my friends texted me or reached out to me on facebook yesterday to wish me a happy birthday. Stephanie called me, and after I hung up I felt so good having spent a little while just talking to my friend and actually hearing her voice. It is nice to actually laugh with your friend instead of typing out a stale "lol." I want to make calling my friends a priority. I'm sure it'll only happen once or twice a week, but that's still way more often than I currently manage. 

2. Along that same line of thought, write to my friends more. I used to do this all the time! But a few months ago I started slacking and I never really got back into it. 

3. Read six more books. I've read just under 20 books so far, which means I'm pretty much on track to reach my goal of 60 books this year! I need to make sure I keep up with it. 

4. REVIEW SOME DAMN BOOKS, CHARLOTTE. 

5. Lose eight pounds. 

6. Go to Asheville to look into classes.

7. Go kayaking at least three times.  

I'm hoping I can muster the energy to achieve these few goals. I purposely left my list a little short this month, just in case.    

bonus gif for your enjoyment

See ya next month, babettes.

__

Charlotte

Harry Potter Baby Names - Part 2

Okay guys. This is the (shorter, God willing) second part of the Harry Potter Baby Names series. And probably last. For now. It's about two weeks late, naturally. I had to work at a farmer's market for a few days and I did absolutely nothing when I got home (exhaustion) and I was a bit sick - found out I need surgery in two weeks, so.. my mind has been a little preoccupied.

The first post lists about a trillion ways to come up with Harry Potter-inspired baby names, including rearranging letters from characters' names, using letters from the House names, using character names as middle names for babies, and... a lot more. (Hop on over if you haven't yet.) I also mentioned some other ways: Roxy, because it means "dawn," calling to mind the moment Harry triumphed over Voldemort; Alasdair, because it means "defender of mankind;" and probably my favorite of the entire post, Forest, inspired by possibly my favorite chapter in the series: The Forest Again.

There are more ways, though! Here are some ideas:

Use characters' middle names. James and Jean are "normal" names, and no one will assume you've named your baby after Harry or Hermione. Want a nod to Dumbledore in your baby's name? Use Brian. In this post I wrote last year, I talked about ways to subtly name a kid after Dobby or Dumbledore.

It's hard to pick favorite characters from the series, but Dumbledore is definitely one of my top five (he's actually probably my first or second favorite). Using him for inspiration in naming makes sense to me. Dumbledore means white and wise, so names with similar meanings work well: Albert means "noble and bright," Alfred means "wise counselor," and Aldo means "old and wise." All have similar meanings to "Dumbledore" and all describe his character perfectly. With Arlo getting so popular, I think Aldo has potential.

My favorite Dumbledore name is probably Conrad. It means "brave counsel," which sums up Dumbledore's role pretty nicely (it would make a good Gryffindor name, as well). Shanahan is another - it means "the wise one." Of course, there are girl versions like Alberta and Alfreda/Alfrida. But if you don't dig those, I'd go back to the Ravenclaw names that mean "wisdom." Sofie, Sophie/a, Minerva, Athena, even Aubrey. I think Alba works really well, too.

There are a hundred more ways to do this/things like this for every character - go ahead and name a girl Iris for Sirius or Eva for Minerva.

Other really random ideas:

Wesley if you really love the Weasley family (who doesn't?)

Susie/Susy means "Lily." A perfect name, since much of the series revolves around Lily's sacrifice for her son.

Edgy surnames are in right now. Go ahead and use Rowling.

Do the stretchiest of stretches and use Dora for Dumbledore. The she could go as this for Halloween every year.

I could go on forever and ever. But don't worry, I won't! That's it.

...........for now.
__
Charlotte

Harry Potter Baby Names - Part 1

Yep, another baby name post. The other day I found out that the blogette was mentioned in a Mommy Blogger post and I just laughed. Getting a reputation as a mom blogger before I experience motherhood... I joked with my friends that I should probably start writing posts about Starbucks and leggings and flower crowns just to establish that I'm in my twenties and very much single. Not that there's anything wrong with being a mom - it's just not my reality yet. ;) I sometimes worry that all the baby name stuff will make my friends think I'm crazy, but none of them have ditched me just yet and I'm slowly learning to just roll with it. I like the things I like. Pouring over names happens to be one of those things.  

Harry Potter is another. 

It's now common knowledge for all my blog readers that I love Harry Potter. The book series. (Though also the character.) While I wouldn't be so brazen as to name my future kid Harry Potter Allen, I would give subtle nods to the book when picking out names.

Much as we all have (I think) a soft spot for Draco Malfoy, I'm not going to include Voldemort or any loyal Death Eaters. 

Sorry, Voldy.

I'm also breaking this up into two parts because it was getting WAY too long. Today will mainly be about names inspired by the houses, with a nice sprinkling of names based on specific moments, chapters, and themes throughout. (My favorites are at the bottom.) Tomorrow (or, because I procrastinate, more likely next Saturday) will be names based on characters.

Let's start with obvious choices, yes? You could just name your bebe Harry. If I did this, everyone would assume I was naming my baby after the character. So I'd avoid it. But it is a great name, so there's one option. Other ways: throw it in the middle spot. It'd still be incredibly obvious that you love HP if you gave your kind the middle name Nymphadora, Sirius, Albus, Rubeus, etc. Maybe you're cool with that, maybe you aren't. Hermione as a middle name would still be a pretty obvious nod to the brightest witch of her age, but it's also a really beautiful name. If not for the popularity of HP, I think Hermione would be exactly the kind of name parents today love. Old but quirky. But yes. You could also use Harry, Ronald, Arthur, Molly, Minerva, Fred, George, Ginny or Ginevra, the list goes on. Any of those would sound totally normal. Look at some HP names paired with the current top baby names:

Jacob Arthur
Liam George
Sophia Hermione
Zoe Ginevra
Emily Minerva

I also think it's safe to use characters that aren't Ron, Harry, or Hermione or characters who don't have super rare names. Think Luna, Ginny (or a name that shortens to Ginny - Regina, Virginia, Genevieve, etc), Neville, Alice or Franks (Neville's parents), Kingsley, Ted, Angelina, Fred, George, Charlie, Bill, Molly, Seamus, Dean, etc.

You COULD name your kid(s) after your favorite house in a few different ways LIKE:

Rearranging some of the letters:

Gryffindor 
Finn (add an n)
Dory 
Rory
Ford 

Ravenclaw 
Raven
Rae
Arwen (bonus points for LotR connection)
Carla 
Cal 
Clare 
Clara 
Wren
Lawrence (add an e)
Charles (add an h, s)
Carl
Wallace (add an l)
old names are coming back.

Slytherin
Ren?
Rhys (not my style, but it IS a real name)
Sylvie (cheat and add the v)
Elise (add an e)

Hufflepuff
Sorry, Hufflepuffs. I've got nothing. (My second favorite house, too!!)
....maybe Sue, if you add an S. Or Phil, if you add an i.

If you're not down for rearranging the house letters, how about using the founders' names for inspiration? I actually thing Helga, Helena, Rowena, and Godric would all wear well today. Older names are becoming more popular, as are names from myths, legends, and fables. Godric isn't out of place with all the Gideons. Rowena is at home with Fiona. Helena is pretty normal, and Helga fits in with the Margarets (and the Margarets going by "Greta). (There's also Gale [boy or girl] from Helga and Wren or Ren or Rowan from Rowena.)

I don't think Salazar flies. (Nor do I think he's worth using for inspiration for baby naming, what with the muggle-hating and the whole housing a deadly monster in the castle thing. Though "Zuzu" as a nick would be AMAZING.)

And then there's the option to choose names based on the animals and/or traits of each house.

Of course, Gryffindor is represented by a lion. Which means there's great boy options like Lionel, Leo, Leonardo, and Leonard, all of which mean "lion" (brave lion, young lion, etc). For girls, there's Leonie, which seems like it fits in with all the Sylvies today. There are some names that don't mean "lion" but that have "leo" in them just like all those lion names: Leopold (which means "brave people" so it still works well for Gryffindor), Leonore, Leonora.

There's also a whole host of "brave" names. Andrew means "manly," but it's also said to mean brave (which makes Andrea/Andi a nice choice for girls, too). Bernadette means "brave as a bear." Not a lion, but still it's got that brave meaning. Casey is a nice unisex name that means "brave in battle." Valentina means "strength." Anders is a variant of Andrew, so that works nicely. Archie, which seems to be gaining in popularity a lot (maybe thanks to Amy Poehler, who named her son Archie?), means "truly brave" - the perfect Gryffindor-inspired name. Bernard means "strong; brave as a bear." Perhaps my favorite because of the excellent meaning, there's Everett, which means "brave as a wild boar!" Brave! A nice Gryffindor connection! And BOAR! Like a pig! Like a hog! Like HOGWARTS. Swoony swoon. Prewitt means "brave little one" and according to Nameberry, it's French. *I* feel like French names are in right now. Also, our beloved Mrs. Weasley's maiden name was Prewett! Double connection!

You see where I'm going with this. Pick a name that means "brave" or one of the other traits of the house! Easy, subtle, and fantastic.

Ravenclaw ideas: Anne (okay, okay. Anne means "grace" according to Nameberry. But according to Behind the Name, it's "the short form of names beginning with the Germanic element arn "eagle" so I'm counting it!!!) Arnold means "strong as an eagle" - perfect. (And apparently, Arnette???) Arden means "valley of the eagle." I've heard that "Aubrey" means "wise," though Nameberry says it means "elf ruler" - in LotR elves are pretty wise though, so this could work, albeit a nice stretch. My total favorite: Minerva. Minerva was the goddess of wisdom, so the name is a nice nod to Ravenclaw. But there's also the wonderful Minerva McGonagall, so it's a nod to Gryffindor as well! I happen to love the name so I've discussed it with friends and we've decided it's wearable, especially with a good middle name and/or cute nicknames. There's the popular Sofia/Sophia. or the less popular but also lovely Sonia. Alfred and Aldo mean wise/wisdom/wise leader. Shanahan is an Irish surname (popular now) that means "wise one" and Sage means "wise and knowing." So many options for Ravenclaw!!!

Slytherin: I don't think there are many names that mean "snake," (and any names that I could think of as being connected to snakes also happen to be connected to Adam and Eve and our fallen world, so...) but Behind the Name does say that Phinehas might mean "serpent's mouth." It also mentions Drake. Names that mean "ambitious" are also kind of hard to find. There are specific Slytherins that can inspire names, though:

Severus Snape, Horace Slughorn, and Regulus Black.

Snape was a bully, so I don't see him as quite the hero that everyone else does. But I do still think he was brave and ultimately good. That said, I wouldn't name a kid Severus. I don't even like that Harry used the name Severus, though I understand it. I would play that same letter-arranging game as before. Eve appears in the name Severus, making it perfect. There's also Rue (double literary meaning for Hunger Games!) If we use his first and last name we've got even more options. Vera, Sean, Sera, and if we add a letter or two there's Pearl, Seamus, Everly. You get it.

Horace Slughorn: Okay, my very favorite ways, using some letters from both the first and last names, are Arlo and Hugo. Two of my favorite names in general, but if you're fond of Slytherins, this is a good route. (Double points for Hugo, Ron and Hermione's son!) There's Grace (especially great because it shares the consecutive "race" with Horace), Clare, Argo, Sera, Lora, Lorne, Hans, Olsen, Nora, Olga, Helga (double points), and more. And if we add a y there's Henry, which is popular now.

And everyone loves a good story of redemption, so Regulus Black: Clare, Gus, Cal, and of course, Reggie.

And Hufflepuff! Hufflepuff is proving harder than the others so far, but here are some ideas. Hufflepuffs are known for their hard work. So how about Amelia, which means "work." There's also Emmeline, Ida, and Idette. Hufflepuffs also love truth, loyalty, fair play, kindness and tolerance. For truth and loyalty there's Emmett and Dillon and Truman. Or there's Alethea or Verity (v names are huge right now). Tolerance is itself a name. For kindness there's Benen or Agatha (a nod to Agatha Christie, too!). And since Hufflepuffs make the best friends, there's Alden, Bellamy, Edwin, and Amity.

Wow this post is not ending.

Alright so a few more ideas.

Forest/Forrest. Possibly my favorite chapter in the entire series is The Forest Again.

Another favorite is King's Cross. So I'm going to steal Kate's (from Sancta Nomina) idea and propose Ryan. (And actually, with all the Christian symbols and themes... a lot of those and other Christian names can be used.)

There's also Roxy. Roxy means "dawn," calling to mind the moment when Harry finally beats Voldemort. (Of course, Dawn works, but I think Roxy is more current.)

Any of the "defender or lover of mankind" names (Alasdair, Alessandra, and more).

My favorites of all of these are Genevieve nn Ginny, Alice, Molly, Finn, Rowan, Leonie, Everett, Prewitt, Minerva, Shanahan, Everly, Hugo, Arlo, Reggie, Bellamy, Forest, and Roxy. (Those aren’t necessarily names I’d use, because they don’t all fit my tastes and style. But they’re names I think work really well to connect to Harry Potter.)

Stay tuned for Part 2, where we get to find names from favorite characters!!
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Charlotte