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Mrs. Peep Toe, San Francisco Age and Occupation: 29, Policy Analyst Fiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Olive Oil Production Manager Engagement Date: December 16, 2007 Wedding Date: May, 2009 Blogging Since: November 26, 2008 Venue: Hotel Vitale About Me: I am a west coast lady who loves the San Francisco Bay Area. I love living with Mr. Peep and our animals: Huck the Dog and Ferris the Cat. I work to save the environment in San Francisco, while Mr. Peep makes ridiculously delicious Olive Oil. On any day you can find me reading the latest book I have gotten my hands on, eating Swedish Fish, and perusing wedding blogs! We are both champagne drinking foodies on a Bud Light budget. We are planning an eco-chic, intimate, and interfaith San Francisco City wedding.
About Mrs. Peep Toe

Paging Dr. Abbott?

February 5th, 2009 @ 2:14 pm by Mrs. Peep Toe

I’ve noticed a lot of talk about names on the boards, and rather than just comment, I thought it was about time I addressed the name issue in a post.

My last name is one of those super complicated Polish names. It’s long, hard to pronounce, even harder to spell, and begins with the letter W. It’s dreadful. I can honestly say that the only reason I ever thought I wanted to get married was to trade up and get a better last name. Women’s lib aside, I want a new last name.

I even have a favorite list:

3. Kennedy.

2. O’Neil, O’Patrick, well anything that starts with the letter O and then an apostrophe or anything Irish.

And my all time favorite:

1. Abbott

Why Abbott?

Because it’s as close to the beginning of the alphabet as you can get. Growing up I was short, and because of my name I was always at the back of the class. I hated it.

I feel like I made a promise to my eight-year-old self to find an Abbott and marry him, and I thought while I was reaching for the stars wishing for an Abbott, I might as well make him a doctor, right?

Wrong. My mister wonderful has one huge glaring problem. His last name begins with a W too!! Yep, that’s right, my initials will stay exactly the same and my eight-year-old self is still sitting at the back of the class cursing me—BIG TIME.

The good news is that it’s shorter, easy to pronounce, and super common. All things that should make me happy. Yet I wasn’t prepared for the side effects of a super common last name. Right now I can Google my name, and I pop up.

But with my new last name, let’s just say I’ll never make the top 10 or 100 list when I Google it. And for some reason this has kinda made me sad. I know I will change my name, but (I can’t believe I am saying this) a part of me is going to miss the individuality of my maiden name. There are less than four months left before I change my name, and I am just now learning to appreciate it!!! Ugg. The irony of life.

So tell me, are you trading up in a last name? Trading down? Or not trading at all?

P.S. - A good friend of mine married a girl with the same last name. Anyone else share the same (or a very similar) name as their spouse or fiance?

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101 Responses to “Paging Dr. Abbott?”

1.
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Guest
jL

I totally understand. I have an uncommon last name that starts with an “M” and I swore I would never take someone’s last name if it meant I had to move back in the alphabet.

 
2.
Newport Nuptials
Member
Newport Nuptials (message)  1,136 posts, Bumble bee

I am completely trading up, I love my last name, but it is the end of the alphabet too. I’m marrying an A and his name fits perfectly with mine. My sister and mom like my current last name, but I think they are biased.

 
3.
JanieLeigh
Member
JanieLeigh (message)  308 posts, Helper bee

we both have super common last names. i’ve always known i was going to change my last name. i guess because i’ve never known anyone who hasn’t. oddly enough, when i was younger i wished the same as you! my last name starts with a “w” as well, and i was always last and i just wanted an “a” last name so badly. it sucked. i didn’t get my “a” (got a “t” instead) but i’m really, really excited to take his name anyway.

 
4.
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BetaBride (message)  108 posts, Blushing bee

I love my current last name but i Love my future initials more. I get to go from BMM to BMW which is awesome in my book.

 
5.
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Bee
Miss Spring Roll (message)  718 posts, Busy bee

My new last name will begin with a ‘W’ also :)

 
6.
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StrawberryBaby (message)  296 posts, Helper bee

I’m trading down! My last name is very unusual and starts with a T. My FI’s last name starts with a W and is very very very common. I’m thinking of keeping my own name or at least hyphenating :)

 
7.
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Jeffreysgirl4ever

Ah. The name game is very difficult for me. I am very attached to my last name. In fact, it served as my only name from 6th grade on (most of my friends still call me by my last name and some people in high school thought that it was my actual first name!). I was almost married once before and I was not going to change my name! Now that I have found the man who’s last name I want (we will have the same 3 initials!) I have yet to actually change it! I keep swearing I will, but it is getting close to a year since we’ve been married and I haven’t yet…
The one comfort I have is knowing that even when my maiden name is not legally mine, I will still always been known by it.

 
8.
purpleHaze79
Member
purpleHaze79 (message)  875 posts, Busy bee

I’ve got the opposite problem… My maiden name is very common and is at the beginning of the alphabet. My new name will be less common, longer and will begin with W also! I started to practice signing it the other day. My FI is very proud :)

 
9.
purpleHaze79
Member
purpleHaze79 (message)  875 posts, Busy bee

Lots of W’s here! holler! ;)

 
10.
cannotwait
Member
cannotwait (message)  1,065 posts, Bumble bee

I’m in the back & would go further back with a more common name…haven’t quite come to terms with it yet

 
11.
mrstye
Member
mrstye (message)  75 posts, Worker bee

My maiden was fine, but I really like the Mr.’s. It’s short, cute, never mispronounced. It has the fun side-effect of sounding Asian, even though it’s Welsch. For the first two years of his job, the Mr. was invited to the diversity retreat, obv just b/c of his last name! He didn’t go and just assumed it was a company-wide invite until I told him otherwise.

 
12.
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renaissancetrophywife (message)  233 posts, Helper bee

I think it’s a wash– his sounds very similar to mine and will go well with my first name, but my initials are changing from TD to TP! At least I won’t be subject to kindergarten teasing (hopefully).

At work I’ll still use my maiden name, but socially I’ll go by Mrs. P.

 
13.
grumpybear722
Member
grumpybear722 (message)  541 posts, Busy bee

I’m going from VERY german to EVEN MORE German! haha I’m hyphenating though. I’ve always loved my last name, but when my Dad passed away I just couldn’t bear to part with the name I was given by him, so I’m gonna keep it! :D

 
14.
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agrosses (message)  94 posts, Worker bee

My last name is long, confusing, and full of letters that are hard to understand over the phone (try making an appointment somewhere and spelling out 13 letters using “s as in sam, s as in sam, e as in elephant, etc”. I usually peter out toward the end and at this point don’t care how anyone spells my last name as long as it’s not being published. However, the unwieldy-ness of my long name has made me strangely protective of it and loathe to change it. Somehow, being the only person in the US with my name makes it feel like a betrayal to change it (none of the other women in my family (who share my last name) feel the same way - they are all taking the short, easy names of their husbands gladly)

 
15.
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Bee
Miss Perfume (message)  1,642 posts, Bumble bee

AAAAh. Names. I have an unusual first and last name. Mr P’s last name is…Smith!!! Smith?!Honestly, I’d love to keep my name, but I also feel all warm and fuzzy about taking his…

 
16.
tea
Member
tea (message)  2,668 posts, Sugar bee

how funny. as an ‘a’ i dreamed of getting married and moving BACK in the alaphabet. i hated sitting up front and by the teacher. ugh.

my future kids will now be sitting somewhere in the middle. score.

 
17.
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KayZ

I think I might win… my new last name starts with a Z!

 
18.
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Angela

My maiden name was ALWAYS pronounced wrong and my married name is even worse. I’ll say my last name and people will repeat it back to me wrong :( But I still love my married last name more!

 
19.
Mrs. Toucan
Bee
Mrs. Toucan (message)  984 posts, Busy bee

I went from ‘S’ to a ‘W’… and tripled the number of letters (3 to 9). boo. However, despite the longer name, it’s easier to pronounce! yay!

 
20.
cfitz621
Member
cfitz621 (message)  153 posts, Blushing bee

If I take my FI’s last name (haven’t decided on that one yet) I’ll be switching to a last name that sounds very similar to another popular last name, so I will forever be correcting people - as in, “no, smyth - s-m-Y-t-h”. Not the actual name, but you get the idea.

 
21.
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Mrs. Bluebell (message)  294 posts, Helper bee

dude, i went from an A (always first or 2nd in line) to a Z!!!! i feel so horrible for our future children, but my husband swears he wasn’t traumatized from being at the end of the line all the time in school. haha.

 
22.
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Miss Peep Toe (message)  1,636 posts, Bumble bee

@agrosses- I do the same thing. The worst is that my name ends with a -cz. I feel like my catch phrase could be c- as in cat and z as in zebra!

 
23.
furelysse
Member
furelysse (message)  176 posts, Blushing bee

Trading up, from an N to a B, but from one very popular last name to another popular last name.

 
24.
chelseamorning
Hostess
chelseamorning (message)  1,482 posts, Bumble bee

I moved from a very uncommon B-name to a very common name in the middle of the alphabet. I moved my maiden to a second middle. So far I am happy with the change and it has been much less traumatic psychologically than I anticipated.

@Mrstye: I wonder if we have the same married last name, as mine is also short, easy to pronounce and spell, and sounds Asian even though it is actually Welsh!

 
25.
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aspring (message)  45 posts, Newbee

I can totally relate. I’m 99% sure I am the only one in the world with my first name- Maiden name. Anyone who has my last name I am realted to . My husbands’s name is very, very, very common. I even know someone with my first name- new last name (it doens’t help that i really don’t liker her)
I agreed to change my name. It was a really hard decision, we fought about it several times. (It was the most inportnat thing to my husband.) It’s now 6 months after our wedding and i haven’t legally done it.
I still can’t reconcile it with myself. I loved my individuality and it was a great converstation starter. I would even come across people who would recognize the name becasue they knew a family member. I don’t know that i will ever really accept the new name.

 
26.
kenziegirl
Member
kenziegirl (message)  341 posts, Helper bee

My current last name starts with a W, I always swore that I’d go to an A — I’m close, marrying a B.

My maiden name is ALWAYS mispronounced, so even though the new last name is SUPER German and a little odd, it still beats my maiden last name!

He’s thrilled that my initials will be MLB — (big baseball fan!)

 
27.
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IsleBella

I love my maiden name. It’s unique, and people often tell me that it’s beautiful. It’s French, and goes very well with my first name, which is also somewhat unusual. However, it is difficult to spell, and worse, it’s two separate words. Very confusing, I get misfiled all the time, and people often try to correct me and hyphenate it for me (hyphen is so much uglier than my actual two word name). My fiance’s name is 4 letters, but also starts with a W, and is very easy. As a life long “B”, this saddens me a little, but spelling my new name will be so much easier.

 
28.
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Guest
rokianokia

My last name is the name of an obscure monster, who according to Irish legend, lives in a loch. It is weird to the people who live on the loch that any person would share the name of the monster. I am so sad to be changing my name, but it might break my fiance’s heart not to. I guess it will just make it kind of like my secret last name that not many people know. :)

 
29.
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VintageDivine (message)  36 posts, Newbee

I can totally relate to being last in school - my maiden name starts with a Z, so I was always in the back of the line - Graduation was a suck to sit through!
However, I LOVE my maiden name. It’s short, unique, and sounds great with my first name, which isn’t heard much and doesn’t go with many last names. My big thing when daydreaming about my crushes growing up was how my first name sounded with their last name - you know, just in case we ended up high school sweethearts and married :)
My FH is a ‘G’, so while I’ll be moving up the ABC ladder, it’s a pretty common last name. It means a LOT to him that I take his last name, but even with that it’s been difficult accepting I won’t be a Z anymore :( It’s kind of nice though that we’ll be the only G’s, as Mr. G’s Mom remarried when he was young and has an entirely different last name. Mr. G suggested I keep my maiden name as a second middle name (no hyphens), and just add on my married name. I’m starting to like this idea more and more, and now I’m excited to become Mrs. G!

 
30.
jennred782
Member
jennred782 (message)  355 posts, Helper bee

I totally know what you mean about being at the end of the alphabet and wanting to be closer to the front. I am moving from S to B and a cousin just moved from P to C. So I know how your short 8 year old self feels I was also that girl.

 
31.
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Katie

I kept my last name!

 
32.
driftslikesmoke
Hostess
driftslikesmoke (message)  1,220 posts, Bumble bee

I’m going from a long, beautiful, Italian last name (from my grandfather who came here from Italy as a child), to a short, alliterative, English last name. I’m still not used to the idea, and I’m not sure I can do it, but it means a lot to him that I take his name… :-/

 
33.
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kpenn

My new last name starts with a P. It sounds like to seperate words but it is one. Whenever people ask me my last name I say P____c___and they think my first name is P___ and my last name is C____. It’s so irritating. And I LOOOOVED my maiden name. I just knew that iI would always want my kids and I to have the same last night. Lucky for me my hubs has agreed to give our first born (boy or girl) my maiden name as a middle name :-D

 
34.
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VintageDivine (message)  36 posts, Newbee

@ Miss Bluebell - ROCK THE Z! Okay, so while graduation kinda sucked, the back of the line didn’t matter to me too much. In fact, it was really awesome when the first day of school rolled around and the teachers made you all line up from A-Z by last name as an icebreaker to get people to interact (”I’m an L, what are you?”, “I’m an K, you’re just behind me”) Lucky me always just headed right to the back of the line, and avoided that whole annoyance!
Being a Z is awesome :)

 
35.
Yin
Member
Yin (message)  329 posts, Helper bee

I’m trading an uncommon asian maiden name for a very common american first name, a boy’s name to be more specific. I love the flow of my first name maiden name, and I will have to get used to my new married name. My SIL warns me that I will be mistaken for a boy. People will usually call my fiance by his last name since it’s more american sounding than his very asian first name. On the up side of things, my new last name has the same letters (3) as my maiden name.

 
36.
armybride
Member
armybride (message)  69 posts, Worker bee

I’m going from a common last name… to another common last name that starts with the same letter! You should reserve your gmail account asap :)

 
37.
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Bee
Miss Bruschetta (message)  5,553 posts, Bee Keeper

Not trading at all. It’s fairly short, often misprounced and has a vexing capital “K” in the middle — but it’s mine, and I’ve grown accustomed to it over time.

 
38.
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Katie

I thought the same thing about future kids sitting in the back of the class. I’m a W marrying a Y, so that didn’t work out!

 
39.
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Crash (message)  378 posts, Helper bee

My current last name is short and sweet and not that common but is never mispronounced. I like it. And I like having stars on my drivers license. I’m not terribly fond of his last name, but I think I’ll take it in some form or another. It is an alphabetical upgrade, but now that I’m not in class anymore I don’t think that really matters. The weird little reasons I hesitate to change my name now are so different from those of the budding feminist when I first thought of marriage and swore I wouldn’t change it. I know I’m going to flip flop on this til the end.

 
40.
Strawberry Gal
Member
Strawberry Gal (message)  26 posts, Newbee

It may be silly, but the thing I’m most excited about as far as the name change goes is that I get bumped up from having a 1-syllable last name to having a 3-syllable last name!

 
41.
Berkeley_Bride
Member
Berkeley_Bride (message)  54 posts, Worker bee

I have an extremely uncommon, always misspelled and mispronounced French last name. I can not wait to take on his very common, very easy “W” surname.
I think my maiden name is beautiful and sometimes I get a little sad thinking about giving it up, but what I want more than anything is for my husband, my kids and I to share one name and be a family.

 
42.
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Suzie

My roommate in College was a Ze- and was excited about moving up the alphabet, however, she eventually married a Zy- !

One of my cousins married a man with only a silent letter difference in the last name - taking family pictures was confusing!

 
43.
princessa_2004
Member
princessa_2004 (message)  11 posts, Newbee

I’ve always hated my maiden name. I constantly got asked if my dad was a plumber as a kid, and it was so annoying. I just wanted a normal last name. not one that was similar to someone’s job. So I definitely traded up with my new name!

 
44.
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cab07 (message)  45 posts, Newbee

I love this post! My maiden name is ABBOTT…and I was always first in line, first to be called, etc. The funny thing is - I wished sometimes I could have been in the middle, instead of right up front next to the teacher’s desk!

And now (ironically), I traded easy ‘ol Abbott for a long (12 letters), hard to pronounce Polish last name =)

It wasn’t easy to do - and I still use my maiden name at work - but I like having the same last name as my husband, even if no one can spell it!

 
45.
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Mrs. Kiwi (message)  384 posts, Helper bee

I went from probably the most common surname with a B, to an F- that ends in X. Not only that, but I actually went from having a maiden name that was two colors and a character of a kid’s book series (and I LOVED it) to the exact same name of a girl Mr. Kiwi went to school with for eight years. How weird is that?

 
46.
hbowar
Member
hbowar (message)  545 posts, Busy bee

My last name starts with a “b” and I hated being in the front and the first for everything. My new last name will be an “s” which should be ok! :)

 
47.
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kaymarie

My last name is Kennedy! But I’ll be going to a color (like “Brown”, but it’s not Brown). So I’m very blessed in the last-name department!

 
48.
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Beth

I think because of my last name, I’ve subconsciously always dated guys with short, easy to spell & pronounce names. Although part of me is definitely going to have to adjust to not needing to give either a spelling or pronounciation lesson anytime I meet someone new, I’m looking forward to the ease of a simple pronouncable name.

The unpronouncable name is good for screening phone calls… and on the rare occasions I meet someone who already knows how to pronounce it, it makes for easy small talk because that usually means they know someone I’m related to.

 
49.
Ruby Slippers
Member
Ruby Slippers (message)  482 posts, Helper bee

My maiden name starts with a C. I also hated it for school reasons, but for the opposite reason to you! While I never had many teachers that made us sit alphabetically, most of them would call on us alphabetically to present assignments, speeches, etc. Because I was always third or fourth from the beginning (though luckily never first!) I always went early on, and i HATED it. So I always swore I would marry a man who was in the middle to end of the alphabet. I didn’t quite get that…I got “F”, which is better at least, and the actual name is easier to pronounce and spell, and it goes well with my first name! So I think I totally scored.

 
50.
lovelerae
Member
lovelerae (message)  239 posts, Helper bee

I’m moving up! When I take my fiance’s last name my new initals will be TLC! I can’t wait to get everything monogrammed!

 
51.
SmallTownBride
Member
SmallTownBride (message)  130 posts, Blushing bee

I’m trading a nice German name that people always misspell and never can pronounce for a 4 letter, you-can’t-screw-it-up last name!! I’m glad to be switching to a more common last name, but after reading Miss Cheese’s (I think it was Miss Cheese…) post about reserving an email address with her new name, I tried to go get my own…with no success! I even have a less common spelling for my first name, but NO…So I pouted yesterday and decided to keep my current email address even after I’m married!

 
52.
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ES123 (message)  1,024 posts, Bumble bee

I’m the same way! If you find a person with my last name, we are related, even if it is distantly. With my new last name that won’t happen.

 
53.
Miss Bear Cub
Bee
Miss Bear Cub (message)  1,355 posts, Bumble bee

I can’t wait to change my last name! I also have a ridiculously difficult “W” last name. I’ve always hated it! My mother, on the other hand, grew up with the last name “Brekka” - short, at the front of the alphabet, and adorably cute! If I could, I would have changed my last name to hers. Luckily, Mr. Rye has a “C” last name, and it still retains semblance to both our heritages!

 
54.
Miss Mary Jane
Bee
Miss Mary Jane (message)  1,520 posts, Bumble bee

haha, I had the same problem - I’m an N and was always fed up about the lunch line food being picked over by the time they got past G. I wanted an A or a B. And I got an S. Not just an S, but a longer, harder to spell, less common S. And I love it. Like your maiden, my new name will be me, and ONLY me in such important places as google!

 
55.
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alison

It’s so weird to hear people talking about “moving up” because I have never in my life thought of it that way! My name now (not married or engaged yet) starts with a D, so I’ve always been towards the beginning of the alphabet. I used to HATE it for its French-Canadian, hard to pronounce and spell roots, but there aren’t a lot of us in the world, and THAT I kind of like. :) If I do marry my beau, I’ll be a very common in my area letter A.

 
56.
saramari
Member
saramari (message)  315 posts, Helper bee

I’m not trading at all. My first & last names have the same initial, and my friend S has treated me well so far. I guess you could say it ain’t broke. :)

 
57.
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Linzmarie

I went from S to Z and I love it! When I put books on hold at the library, I go straight to the end of the bottom shelf and always find them there, last in line :)

 
58.
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dszombati

I have a crazy unique Hungarian last name that starts with “Sz”. I check the phone book in every hotel room I stay in and have never found my last name in it. I am going do the maiden name as my middle name thing.
Even though I am moving up the alphabet, it’s to take on a super common Irish name and it makes me a bit sad. It means a lot to my FH to take his name so that is exciting!

 
59.
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doublemint921 (message)  489 posts, Helper bee

Dr. Abbott I love it!! Sounds like a soap opera name! I totally understand the difficulty with having to change your name. Even though I’ve always known I was going to change my name, as it gets closer it is almost as if a part of me is dying. My fiance doesn’t see the big deal, but if I ask him how he feels about changing his name he’s like “NO WAY!” funny how that works out

 
60.
BeachBrideT
Hostess
BeachBrideT (message)  1,056 posts, Bumble bee

I’m still thinking about the name game. I’m sure I will change my name, but only for the sake of having a “family” name, and so that our kids have the same name.
I love my last name. A lot! Both of our names are unique- mine a little more so than his. I’ll definitely be trading up in the alphabet though, so that’s good…

 
61.
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Bee
Mrs. Pinot Noir (message)  772 posts, Busy bee

I feel like I traded up. I used to have a super common last name and now I have a pretty unqiue name, but it is easy to spell and higher in the alphabet!

 
62.
MrsSl82be
Member
MrsSl82be (message)  1,473 posts, Bumble bee

Good post! I am trading a W polish easy (to me) to pronounce but almost always mispronounced last name to an S that is always mispronounced because its spelled like one word but pronounced like a different word. Its bizarre that people know how to pronounce Wright but when they come to my Wr they almost always silence the r! And I know my name will sound good with his since our first names rhyme :)

I also struggle with changing my name. I know I will (all the women in my family have) but I will miss it. I may change it to my middle name though, even though it wouldn’t flow that well. How many times do you use your middle name really???

 
63.
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subee (message)  89 posts, Worker bee

@driftslikesmoke: sounds like we’re in the same boat! I love my unique Italian last name, and I’m really struggling with the idea of “trading” it for a very simple English name. FI is quite traditional though, and he’s expressed how important it is to him for us to share his last name. I’m thinking of keeping my last name for professional purposes so that I can hang on to that part of my identity!

Oh, and I don’t even get the fun of changing my monogram–we’re both “B.” At least I won’t have to worry about a new screen name (I’ve been using variations of suebee for ages!).

 
64.
MrsSl82be
Member
MrsSl82be (message)  1,473 posts, Bumble bee

oh and if you have my maiden last name, your related to me. His is not really common but I don’t think he would be related to everyone else who has their last name :(

 
65.
Miss Burgundy
Hostess
Miss Burgundy (message)  907 posts, Busy bee

Mr. Burgundy’s last name is rare, frequently misspelled and mispronnounced and is at the end of the alpha but I think I’m still gonna take it!

 
66.
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Houligan (message)  30 posts, Newbee

My last name is currently a wonderfully Irish name (and I’m a pretty Irish-looking girl). I’ll be hyphenating to incorporate my husband’s name, which is a pretty common Indian name. I know I’ll eventually just go by his name, probably when we start having kids, and I’m looking forward to confusing a lot of people.

 
67.
katiemax
Member
katiemax (message)  76 posts, Worker bee

I have a unique last name and a historic full name that I am totally attached to. Like aspring, I am related to and know personally almost everyone with my last name! In addition, I received my Ph.D. with my maiden name. I feel like my name is such a part of me and who I am, that I will never give it up. If we ever have children, they will take my fiance’s name.

 
68.
jkoala
Member
jkoala (message)  197 posts, Blushing bee

I love my Polish last name that starts with a K. I love that it shows my Polish heritage and creates all kinds of fun nicknames (it helps that I grew up in a very Polish town, so my schoolmates didn’t think it was difficult to pronounce or funny sounding). I think it’s funny when people mispronounce it because it’s said like it’s spelled!

I will likely take my FI’s last name, which starts with a C. It’s not a common last name, but it’s a lot easier for people to pronounce. It doesn’t sound ethnic, which will take some getting used to.

 
69.
frenchbulldog
Bee
frenchbulldog (message)  6,077 posts, Bee Keeper

I never really minded being an “S” and my new last name will also be “S” :) I’d say I’m trading up in that my new last name will be shorter, but I LOVE my current last name, so I’m a little bummed.

 
70.
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Member
YSAP2M (message)  209 posts, Helper bee

I have first name that nobody else on the face of the earth has (that I know of) so changing my last name won’t make much difference. Everyone knows who I am by my first name. I would LOVE to have a common first and last name that isn’t easy to find on a google search. *SIGH*

 
71.
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Member
olelucky (message)  59 posts, Worker bee

I am glad you are appreciating your last name now! I am going from a C last name to an S last name. I will even have some stellar alliteration between my first and last names! The best part? - I will get to go from making side dishes at potlucks to desserts!!!! How awesome is that? (insert fake enthusiasm).

 
72.
imLissy
Member
imLissy (message)  79 posts, Worker bee

I’m a W too, but I’m going to be a B. That’s front of the class, don’t have to sit around during graduation, beginning of the alphabet goodness!

You know my college graduation, thousands of student, and of course, they did it in alphabetical order. By the time they got to my name, everyone was up, walking around, making noise. My parents couldn’t hear or see me. Totally not worth it sitting there all those hours. I should have brought a book.

yeah, but anyway… his last name starts with a B and the spelling of the name is fairly uncommon. Right now I estimate there’s about 5 other people in the US with my name, but with his last name, I will definitely be the only one.

 
73.
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Guest
kylydia

Some friends of mine switched last names when they got married. It’s funny, because both of their names sound better, now!

 
74.
mary-alice-me
Member
mary-alice-me (message)  1,870 posts, Buzzing bee

I used to date a guy with a very similar first and last name! It was a hoot.

My new last name will begin with the same letter but will be very uncommon. Right now, mine is not very common but is easy to spell– Anglican phonetic. The new name will be Italian.

 
75.
budgetbeautiful
Member
budgetbeautiful (message)  1,188 posts, Bumble bee

Sadly, I’m moving back in the alphabet, from a C to a M. This doesn’t bother me, though. It will be weird to have a new last name, but this one won’t be misprounced or that I have to spell when I pick up my prescriptions. My first name is constantly misprounced by people, so it will be nice to have at least one name people get right.

 
76.
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Bee
Mrs. Corn (message)  1,010 posts, Bumble bee

Oh I sooooo hear you on this one. I was a Zucker …you don’t get much more last in the alphabet than following ‘Z’ with the vowel ‘U’!! And now I’m a Bradford…muuuuuuch better. Of course, I was tall and was always in the back of the classroom…and I hated it just as much.

And yes, I was strangly sad to lose the name that I have tried to barter away for the last 30+ years…but over a year later, I love my new name just as much as my old name. It helps that my new middle initial is ‘Z’. That seems to have enabled me to keep my individuality :)

 
77.
LzzNYC
Member
LzzNYC (message)  877 posts, Busy bee

I’m going to take his last name but not a trade up or down. Everybody knows me by my last name so it’s kinda hard to part with. Yet I like keeping tradition and the idea that my immediate family will be one. So I think I’m leaning towards keeping both :-P

 
78.
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Bee
Miss Powder Puff (message)  834 posts, Busy bee

I’m totally trading down! My maiden name begins with a K, but my new last name will begin with a P! And I’m totally having separation anxiety! I’m so sad to lose my last name.

 
79.
Mrs. Penguin
Bee
Mrs. Penguin (message)  2,149 posts, Buzzing bee

Right there with you! I was SO excited to change my name… until I tested out the new name for a couple weeks after I got married and decided that I missed my maiden name. I haven’t changed my name yet and don’t think I will until we have kids. You dont know what you have til it’s gone (or, going away!).

 
80.
iviary
Member
iviary (message)  179 posts, Blushing bee

I’m trading from a super-common but rather-long name that has always been a pain to bubble in on scantron forms, to a quite uncommon 5 letter last name. Alas, the new name is shared by 2 unsavory celebrities, but oh well. I’m excited nonetheless. I really like the flow of my new name a lot better, and it’s sooo much easier to sign.

 
81.
Amber1279
Member
Amber1279 (message)  316 posts, Helper bee

My original maiden name started with a Y and when I got married the first time I traded up and got an E. I have kept that name because I have kids with that name. This time I am changing my name yet again and I will go back down the alphabet to a T. Thankfully there isn’t a porn star with my soon to be new name.

 
82.
MissBookworm
Member
MissBookworm (message)  271 posts, Helper bee

I’ve known my fiance and his family forever (10 years) and to me his mom has always been Mrs. H, so the thought of me being a Mrs. H just seems weird. I don’t know if i’ll get use to it. I’ll always think someones referring to her and not me. It’s a super common last name and with my super common first name…I’ll feel boring. I’m hanging on to my wacky Polish J surname for now, but Mr. BW is not happy about it….

 
83.
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Guest
Meg

my new initials will be MR - i teach special ed, in the special ed world “MR” = mental retardation. my colleagues are loving this

 
84.
kosstobe
Member
kosstobe (message)  231 posts, Helper bee

I’m going to go from a very common W last name (holla to the kids in the back of the class!!!) to a not-so-common K last name. Part of me wants to keep my last name and hyphenate because it’s been “me” for 27 years but I’m too much of a traditionalist so I’m looking forward to taking his name.

 
85.
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Bee
Mrs. Sea Breeze (message)  913 posts, Busy bee

Hello! Fellow super-long-complicated-Polish-name here. I traded it for an equally long but relatively easy to spell name, so that’s enough for me. :)

 
86.
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Bee
Miss Glitter (message)  880 posts, Busy bee

I totally get where you are coming from. I would be trading a super UNcommon Japanese name for a very common, like THE MOST common, Chinese/ Korean name. My biggest problem? My new married name will rhyme with my first name. I was gonna write a post about my silly conundrum. I will likely hyphenate. Cute post, Miss Peep!

 
87.
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Member
meganleigh (message)  35 posts, Newbee

I’m going from a not so common last name to another not as uncommon but still not common last name. I’m really sad to change my last name, but FI and I have had several ‘conversations’ about it…. I’m mostly sad because my last name basically ends with my generation. In order to find other relations with the same name, you have to go back to my great-grandfather’s siblings. And I’m losing the fun initials MLB (yay baseball!) to MLL (unexciting). But the new name sounds beautiful with the name I’ve already picked out as our first daughter’s name!

 
88.
Angiepie
Member
Angiepie (message)  93 posts, Worker bee

I’m upgrading from a complicated five letter last name (complicated to pronounce, not spell) that begins with a “T” to the twelvth most common last name in the US that begins with a “N”

I’m happy about it :)

 
89.
TechGirl
Member
TechGirl (message)  269 posts, Helper bee

I am trading up and am glad to do so! I have a Hungarian last name, that is also hard to pronounce and I always have to spell out to people. I must say, I’m tired of answering questions like “What kind of name is that?”.

 
90.
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Guest
Jen

I am keeping my long Polish last name as my middle name and taking my new 5-letter last name. I couldn’t part with my maiden name. People often remark that I must be glad to get rid of the long Polish last name, but I am not. It is pretty unique and I love it.

 
91.
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Guest
Kat

I used to joke that I wanted to marry into the middle of the alphabet. (My last name starts with V.) And then I decided that, no, I liked having to sit in the corner of the classroom when I was growing up — they always sat you alphabetically and I always wound up in the back and in the corner. I feel like it’s integral to my personality.

So I’m a bit disappointed that my fiance’s last name begins with G. (Plus: I’m totally practicing my capital, cursive Gs for when I get to sign his name.) But anyway, it’s all good. Our kids will be who they are whether they’re in the corner or not. :)

 
92.
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Member
Gracie Lou (message)  9 posts, Newbee

i traded up from a K to a C, but i always said i wanted to find a guy with the last name “kelly” so i could officially be grace kelly :) oh, well.

 
93.
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Guest
LadyCiani

I was a W with an un-spellable, unpronounceable last name.

I was thrilled to move up to the front of the alphabet and now say, “You spell it just like the color.”

However, I googled my new name, and though it is unusual, it is not enough. Apparently a porn star uses it. Try that for a job interview: “Yeah, um, don’t google me, because that’s not me!”

 
94.
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Guest
Candice

My maiden name is four letters and starts with early middle letter. It’s mispronounced, but I couldn’t care less. I really do not like my husband’s last name and didn’t want to change my name at all, but he was very hurt by that so I compromised to “mylast hislast” with no hyphen… but now people think mylast is mymiddle, augh. So I may add a hyphen. I am very attached to my initials so I didn’t want them to change (they’re nothing special - they’re just mine).

 
95.
LuckySmith
Member
LuckySmith (message)  15 posts, Newbee

I’m so excited to change my name. I’d start using it now if I could. My current last name is a “Mc” that is hard to pronounce and hard to spell (it’s got an “ror” in the middle). I always spell my name when I say it. And my first name, which is fairly uncommon, is often mistaken for 2 VERY common names and also always has to be spelled. I have even stopped ordering pizza on the phone just to avoid the name hassle. Fortunately I’m marrying a Smith. Never again will I have to say my last name twice and spell it 3 times. My mom jokes that the only reason I said yes was for the last name. October can’t get here soon enough.

 
96.
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Member
HL (message)  271 posts, Helper bee

Not trading. Neither of our names are easy, but FI’s has letters that don’t even exist in English. However, being one letter shorter than mine, his does fit on those forms where you put one letter per block. If I wanted to change, I would go from the middle of the alphabet to the beginning, but I don’t want to. And I very often sign things (except legal documents) just with my initials, which work much better as is than they would if I changed.

 
97.
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Member
edb (message)  230 posts, Helper bee

I refuse to trade down from D to T. My sister had the same problem - going D to W.
I too am the only person who pops up on google when you search for me, and I like that, although both my last names are annoyingly complicated. I think I’m going to drop one last name when I get married and just have one last name :). (That was mine originally.)

 
98.
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Bee
Mrs. Avocado (message)  1,411 posts, Bumble bee

I hear you on the nasty Polish name. Except I went the opposite. I was Andersen (Yay for almost the top of the list) and I’m going to an 11 letter impossible to pronounce Polish name. I still haven’t made the switch. It will happen someday I promise, Mr. Avocado.

 
99.
littlekbigt
Member
littlekbigt (message)  38 posts, Newbee

As a little girl I too dreamed of moving up in the alphabet with a shinny new last name when I got married.

And just like several of the brides on this post, my new last name will start with a “W.” Although, with my new name, I’ll have a name that is very similar to one of the hottest actresses in Hollywood right now, which is fine with me because I really like some of her more recent work.

 
100.
deejaylondon
Member
deejaylondon (message)  57 posts, Worker bee

I also have a super long, complicated Polish name. I’m marrying a man with a super long, but not as complicated German name. I always dreamed of marrying a man with a shorter simpler name and then I end up marrying the only person I’ve ever met with more letters in their name! I still think it’s a trade up, though.

 
101.
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Guest
Sony625

My madien name started with a “T” and I know what you mean about being at the end of the line! I always dreamed I would marry someone with a last name at the begining of the alphabet so my kids could be frist in line….my married name starts with a “V” What the heck…I moved back 2 spaces! The only good thing so some schools do a reverse order so they start with “Z” Bless them there’s hope for my future kids, except for the fact that people now ask….Oh, like ace ventura, pet detective? Yes…please associate me with Jim Carrey as he talks with his butt! you win some….

 


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Mrs. Peep Toe Mrs. Peep Toe, San Francisco Age and Occupation: 29, Policy Analyst Fiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Olive Oil Production Manager Engagement Date: December 16, 2007 Wedding Date: May, 2009 Blogging Since: November 26, 2008 Venue: Hotel Vitale About Me: I am a west coast lady who loves the San Francisco Bay Area. I love living with Mr. Peep and our animals: Huck the Dog and Ferris the Cat. I work to save the environment in San Francisco, while Mr. Peep makes ridiculously delicious Olive Oil. On any day you can find me reading the latest book I have gotten my hands on, eating Swedish Fish, and perusing wedding blogs! We are both champagne drinking foodies on a Bud Light budget. We are planning an eco-chic, intimate, and interfaith San Francisco City wedding.
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