names by the numbers

Here are the average rankings of our top name choices for the past five years. This info comes from the Social Security Administration website that tracks the popularity of names going all the way back to 1880 (http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ ). Number one girl name in 1880: Mary.

In order of popularity, with the most popular first:

Natalie 18th most popular name on average from 2003 to 2007
Katherine 36
Audrey 70
Amy 116
Josephine 234
Eleanor 284
Jane 451 (I was surprised to see this one so far down the list)

Easter Present

Zooming Along

Just to Re-cap

In alphabetical order, the top contenders are:

Amy

Audrey

Eleanor

Jane

Josephine

Katherine

Natalie

What about the name "Katie"?

This morning Steve told me he likes Katherine, with Katie for short. I am fine with that, since it is a traditional name. I have known quite a few Katies in my time, though, so right now I'm searching through all of them that I can remember--hoping I don't think of one whom I really dislike enough to make this name a total no-go. Also, are "Betsy" and "Katie" too sing-song together? I don't know . . .

Scooter