Photo by pictureperfect,

mom of this cutie named Jace

The name Jace can be for a girl or a boy and there are different ways to pronounce it. Some moms go with the one syllable Jace, rhymes with Chase, while others go with two syllables -- so it sounds like Jay-see.

The pronounciation Jay-see is mostly heard for girls.

There are qute a few ways to spell the name.

My beautiful niece Tennessee

When my sister, Jen, was pregnant with her first baby, she loved the name Sophia. They found out the baby was a girl and Sophia became the name we all cooed into her belly.

For her baby shower, I made cupcakes in ice cream cones and spelled out the name Sophia -- a letter on six cupcakes all in a row.

We all couldn't wait until Sophia was born. But Sophia turned into Tennessee.

Photo by SydneysMommy7

There's a song by Tom Waits called Waltzing Matilda that I love. It's actually part of a very old song written by a poet in the 1800s and it's also the unofficial anthem for Australia.

Michelle Williams and the late Heath Ledger (who was Australian) named their daughter Matilda.

Photo by spookyriggs,

mom to a super cute boy named Holden

When I think of the boy's name Holden, I think of a smart kid who is rather handsome, sort of shy and very sweet. You know how names give different people different feelings?

I don't know anyone named Holden unless we count Holden Caulfield, the main character in J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. And if I went by that Holden's personality, it doesn't exactly match my thoughts when thinking of the name.

Photo by Nicole080984

I like unusual baby names. With the exception of something cruel like Vagina or Adolf Hitler. Though if you like the name Adolf that's fine. Just don't middle name him Hitler.

But at the same time, who I am to tell anyone what to name their child?

Yet people like to snicker and even say things in a weird tone like "Oh that's different" and the problem there is that it makes the mom feel bad.

So what do we do here?

Photo by manhattanmomof2

I was chatting with Cafe MicheleZ about possible baby names for her twins the other day.

Though she and Mr. Cafe MicheleZ are still deciding, they've come up with some beautiful ideas.

And, because everyone likes to read about baby names, here are some baby name links I love:

Photo by Cris1128

I'm having such a tough time with baby names for my boy/girl twins. My hubs and I have a list that is getting smaller, but we're finding it hard to agree.

He has an uncommon name -- Hans. You can imagine how hard that was for a kid who was born in Louisiana and grew up mostly in Georgia. Not a lot of boys named Hans around.

I've got one of the most popular names of the 70s -- Michele. Yes, my parents did the whole one "L" instead of two thing, but the pronunciation is the same. I hated having the same name as dozens of others when I was in school.

So I want an uncommon name and Hans wants something, well, not so different.

Photo by angellovebug

My husband and I had a name for a boy that we've loved even before we got married. It's a palindrome -- a word that can be read the same way frontwards or backwards. I'm not telling you the name because people can be mean and at mention of this name in other arenas the response is sometimes less than favorable. It's one of those names you love or hate. And it's not off the table for us, so....

Anyway, with twins on the way my husband is convinced it's two boys. So the name is being thrown around again. But here's the thing...we learned about a man who has the same name -- he is my husband's college sweetheart's husband. 

Are you following me?

Photo by Geminilashes

The Social Security Administration recently released its list of most popular baby names in the U.S. for 2008. The names that topped the list? Emma for girls and Jacob for boys.

But, how about looking elsewhere -- like, outside of our own country -- for some baby name inspiration? According to the new, second edition of The Complete Idiot's Guide to 40,000 Baby Names (which, by the way, is chock full of fun lists), here are the most popular names in other countries around the world.

Photo by waitin4number2;

let's just call this babe adorable.

Time for more on baby names, ladies. Here's one we haven't tackled before: gender-neutral baby names. Unisex names are popular, so let's look at a few and hear what your favorites are.