A Good Name: Ella

During the same hypothetical discussion of children's names that spawned A Good Name: Harvey, Amy and I decided that our top name possibility for a daughter would be Ella.

Our biggest influence on choosing this name is the fact that Amy's older sister is named Ella. As a matter of fact, she owns a coffee shop called Ella's in Lowell, Michigan where they serve pretty fantastic food. Amy also happens to be a fan of Ella Fitzgerald, and I believe there is even an Ella in my family, perhaps my mother's aunt. The name just has a really good sound and we've only ever known good Ellas.

Ella might also be a good name for an elephant. No good reason other than the fact that it's a pun.

Amy's been obsessed with toucans lately. Why not name a toucan Ella?

And this one comes from Adam Friedli. Adam thought that we should name a pet umbrella Ella. You know, like umbrella Ella Ella...

A Good Name: Nona

Nona is a common short form of the name Wynona or Winona. Nona is also a numerical prefix meaning nine, deriving from the Latin word nonus, meaning "ninth." But wouldn't it make an oh-so-good name for a beautiful female orange tabby kitten?

Perhaps a silly little alpaca would better fit this name...

But maybe Nona would be best saved for a beautiful and quirky little daughter. She might look something like little Nona from the Nickelodeon series The Adventures of Pete & Pete. Perhaps you remember her. She was played by a young Michelle Trachtenberg.