A pregnant woman has shared how her husband started 'tearing up' when she said no to naming their daughter after his dead cat, admitting she finds it weird and inappropriate
10:35, 29 Jan 2024Updated 12:18, 29 Jan 2024
When it comes to naming a baby, most parents-to-be spend hours mulling over the Big Book of Names before making their decision. But one man was reduced to tears after his pregnant wife turned down his favourite baby name, saying she doesn't like the "history behind it".
Speaking on Reddit, she explained how her husband, Ethan, 27, wants to name their firstborn daughter after his dead cat, believing it's perfect for their little girl. But she isn't keen on the idea, especially as he shared the cat with his ex-girlfriend.
She said: "We knew that we wanted to have a family, and want multiple kids. So, a few months after we got married we started trying for our first baby. I got pregnant, and I'm about 24 weeks along today. At my 20-week appointment, they asked if we wanted to know the gender.
"We wanted to know so we could start planning names ahead of time. Turns out, it's a girl! I was overjoyed. The next day, we started talking names and Ethan said that he already knew the perfect name for a girl - Zoe.
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"Here is where the issue begins: Zoe is the name of my husband's cat who passed away when we first started dating. Not only that, but the cat was a gift from an ex-girlfriend that they intended to take care of together. When they broke up, they had 'joint custody' until she died."
She gently turned his name suggestion down - but he blew up at her wanting to know why she didn't like it. She said: "I let him know that I don't really want to name our daughter after his dead cat. He told me to think about it - reasoning that it fit our criteria (short names, bully-proof, cute, unique so that nobody else in her class will have it, but not so unique that people won't know how to pronounce it) and he considered cat-Zoe like a daughter to him.
"I jokingly responded, 'So you want to name our baby after your kid from your last marriage?' He didn't laugh. Instead, he got defensive. He said it wasn't like that. I said that I didn't really like the idea of naming our daughter after something that he associated with his last relationship.
"He started getting teary-eyed, presumably because he was thinking about his dead pet. He then responded with 'Fine, it's your baby. Name it whatever you want.' Since then I've been here and there suggesting names I see elsewhere, and every time he responds with 'I don't care. Do what you want'."
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Wanting to know whether she's in the wrong, she has taken to social media to ask users for their thoughts. In response, one user said: "As soon as you objected that should have been it, he shouldn't be putting you in a stressful situation when you're carrying his child. It's crazy he can't see how inappropriate his suggestion is, maybe you have an ex-mother-in-law's name you could suggest instead and see how he likes it? Also even if you decided you could live with Zoe, imagine."
Another user added: "My best idea is to agree to add it to the possibilities list so he will become interested in the process again, and once y'all start adding more names try to really talk up some of the others. Maybe get a friend's opinion on it and have it preplanned that they will hate Zoe."
A third user said: "I know someone who did this and it’s weird. She was all set on another name and had it printed on the shower favors, then at the last minute her husband convinced her to go with the dead pet’s name."
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