The Names: February 28th, 2011

People tell Ashley and I that we both take the role of the opposite sex. When people ask us what do we want to have, Ashley says a boy and I say a girl. So traditionally when the question "what name do we give our child" comes up, stereotypically Ashley should have said, "Well ever since I was a little girl I always wanted to name my son/daughter..." followed by a name. However, in this situation I was the one who said, "Well I have always wanted to name my daughter..."

In 2008, when I still lived at home, my mom used to always watch the reality competition So You Think You Can Dance. I always watched it with her because there were hot girls in little clothing. One year there was a (hot) girl on the show who's name I liked and ever since then I told my mom that I was one day going to name my daughter that.

So when Ashley and I were trying to decide on names I told her about the name I wanted to name my daughter. She liked the name and agreed, and I told her that I would like to name our son after me making him the III and we will call him 'Trey'. Ashley didn't like that idea, so to be fair to her I told her that she could decide on the name for our son. She then asked, "Well what about the middle names." I told her that she could pick the middle name for the girl and I will pick the middle name for the boy. That way we both have an input on both names. Well it didn't work out that way, she ended up picking both names for the boy and I ended up picking both names for the girl. So the verdict is...

Boy: Ethan Eli
Girl: Kherington Marie

Ethan Eli - Ashley picked these names for no reason, she just liked them. She decided to go with the letter 'E' for both names because my last name also starts with an 'E' so that way I can still call him Trey if I wanted too. However, when I hear the name Ethan I think about the creepy "Others" guy from Lost who infiltrated the survivors camp, kidnapped Claire and ran test on her baby. Then when I hear the name Eli I think of the only NFL quarterback that I could beat in an arm wrestling match.

Kherington Marie - As stated before the girl I got this name from, Kherington Payne, was on SYTYCD starred in the Fame remake. I like uncommon names but not I'll-never-ever-get-a-real-job-with-this-name names. I decided to give her the middle name Marie because it is currently Ashley's middle name but I told Ashley to make her middle name her maiden name and get rid of her middle name when we get married.

Tip #8: Never relate a name to someone you know or have seen on TV, because all you will do is think that your son is going to grow up to be a weak armed kidnapping baby tester.

And this is when I found out the possible name of my where my journey will end to, destination... dad.

The Agreement: December 16th, 2010

When Ashley and I decided to try for a baby I had some stipulations she had to agree with before I would agree. I am a huge sports fan and played many sports while growing up, so of course I want a son. I think that is every heterosexual man’s wish when trying for a baby. I never made it to the professional level in any sport, hell I didn’t even make it to the college level, but hopefully my son can make it further than I did in whatever sport he decides as long as it doesn’t involve wearing a leotard or figure skates. But on the other hand I want a girl because I helped raise my niece and I know exactly what I am doing when it comes to a girl. So in a nutshell, I want one of each. So I told Ashley that after we have two kids, if they are the same gender then we will have a third. She was hesitant at first but then she agreed. She might have just agreed to it so I would agree to trying for a baby when she is really thinking, “This dumbass doesn’t know that I have control as to whether we have a kid or not.

Tip #1: If she wants to have a baby and you are telling her now is not the right time, but eventually you do decide you want one, and there is something you want. Use this agreement to try for a baby as the bargaining chip. I used it for something far down the road that I want to make sure happens, but you could use it for the new Madden game coming out if you want.

And this is when I planned to set off on my journey to, destination… dad.