Name origins

The day we shared with everyone that we were having another boy; we also shared the name we chose for our second son. Overall, it’s gotten good reviews but people have been curious about just how we arrived at Simon Abner Bergquist. So, I figured a little background would be helpful. And, one day, when Simon is old enough to read this blog, he’ll know the origins of his name.

After having Harmon – being the planners that we are – we thought we should think of another boy name just in case we didn’t have a daughter (whose name was to be Maizey Bryn Bergquist). Initially, we liked other “H” names like Heath and Hyatt but we quickly gravitated to Simon. We like how it sounds on its own and we like how it sounds with Harmon. Most importantly, though, we like that Simon wouldn’t be sitting in his kindergarten class with five other Simons around him. After being surrounded by other “Kevins” and “Amys” our whole lives, we decided early on that we wanted our children to have truly UNIQUE names.

Simon, according to babynames.com, is a Hebrew name meaning “to be heard.” While Kevin is Norwegian and German and I am Mexican and German, using a Hebrew name doesn’t matter to us in the least. We like it and that is that! And, just to be clear, it has nothing to do with the Bible, Alvin and the Chipmunks, American Idol (believe it or not, we’ve never even watched an episode), OR Michigan football.

As for Abner, this one was ALL Kevin’s doing. One day, way before I was even pregnant, we were talking about boy names and Kevin said “what about Simon Abner, you know, after Abner Doubleday, the inventor of baseball?” Of course, baseball was all I needed to hear and I was on board! We think it’s great because it’s unique and has its roots in baseball, which we both love. Abner is also a Hebrew name, which means “father of light.” Lastly, just like Simon, Abner has nothing to do with the University of Michigan.

So, there you have it! The name origins of Simon Abner Bergquist.

And, so as not to ignore Harmon, a quick note about his name. Kevin and I first became aware of the name while working in the U-M athletic department because of Tom Harmon, former U-M football All-American and Heisman Trophy winner. While we love Harmon as a first name, he is NOT named after Tom Harmon. We love it simply because it’s a TRULY unique name, not registering on the U.S. Social Security Administration’s popular baby names list since the early 1900s. Harmon, of German origin, means, “soldier.” Harmon’s middle name, Spencer, is of English origin and means “butler, steward.” Other than loving how it sounds with Harmon, it has NO context (not a family name, not a U-M athlete’s name, etc.).

Random photos

Two totally random photos from Monday, Aug. 4.

First, Harmon at the dentist with his hygienist, Kim. Overall, he was a good boy for his second dentist appointment, only crying a little during the actual teeth cleaning. He got over it, though, as you can see!

After the dentist, Harmon desperately wanted to go to lunch with his Daddy so Kevin rewarded him with a rare trip to Chuck E. Cheese. They both had a good time, despite the freakiness of the photo!