What's in a name?

So, I have a slight obsession with wondering what names mean. I don't know why...I've been that way as long as I can remember. When I was a little girl I used to think my love life would be a fairy tale since my name (Amanda) means Goddes of love or worthy of being loved. SO much for that, but that's a different story for a different day.


When I named Riley I was OBSESSED with names and their meanings. During my pregnancy I worked in a dental office as a dental assistant and I had the privilage of meeting a wide variety of people with a wide variety of names. Actually, it was there where I first heard the name Riley. I had debated between naming her Ella and Riley, but Riley won hands down for TWO reasons:

1. Ella means wood fairy or nymph (or something like that)
2. I was afraid if she was fat kids would call her Ella Elephant. This may sound silly and trivial but since I have struggled with weight my whole life this was something I took very seriously at the time. To tell you the truth, I don't know that I would ever name any daughter of mine Ella for fear fate would cruelly have her inherit my genes and subsequently the kids would have a reason to tease her and call her Ella Elephant. Thus I digress.

Thankfully I settled on Riley and I couldn't have picked a more perfect name for her if I don't say so myself. Riley means "courageous and valiant." I thought it would be a good strong name for a girl and future woman in the 21st Century. And Riley has certainly lived up to her name. Anyone who knows her would agree! Ever heard the phrase "Living the Life of Riley"...if you look up the story behind that phrase, Riley fits that as well!

A patient at the office is also where I came up with her middle name...kinda. Her middle name is Diane - which is my mom's middle name. But I spelt it differently - like the patient did. I thought it was so pretty I fell in love with it immediately - DyAnne.

It seems like some people live up to their names meaning...which came first though? Did their names meaning set a tone for them or did they set the tone and their name fit? Hhhhmmmm...again I am rambling.

So, I'm sure you are wondering where I am going with this. Well, once again we got another puppy (the two are related, just bare with me)! I was hesitant to get another one after Elvis passed away but I just couldn't resist when I saw these little puppies on the Idaho Statesman web page. Of course, they are long haried daschunds...just like Elvis. I thought if I ever got another dog I wanted to get something different. But after seeing some LHD's around town and after seeing these puppies on line I just couldn't resist. I am a true daschund lover at heart! So, Saturday night we went and looked at the puppies and met the most wonderful pet owners and the cutest dogs with the sweetest dispositions. After all was said and done we came home with this little guy -

He is a dappled long haired daschund...with one green/brown eye and one striking blue eye. I have ALWAYS wanted a dapple daschund...I just think they are so unique looking. So, with a unique dog comes a unique name, right? Since Riley got to name Buddy it was my turn to name this little guy. So, I spent the weekend looking at names and came up with...

MAVERICK!!!

So, what does Maverick mean? Why is it such a good name for this dog (see I told you the two were connected)? Maverick means "dissenter from the group" or "different from the group." Do you see the connection? This little guy is so different looking I thought this was the perfect name for him. As a Liberal living in Idaho I guess I am a Maverick in my own right. But again, that is another story for another day...

I'm sure most of you are wondering how Buddy is doing with this new addition to the family. Surprisingly well! He is a little rough, not intentionally though. After all, he is basically a 33 pound baby who thinks he is a lap dog. Maverick is getting braver around Buddy as well. He gets scared sometimes when Buddy body slams him with one paw, but then he gets right back up and goes after him! It is quite the sight!

Anyways, I probablly shouldn't have gotten him; I should have done something responsible like I always do...Therein lies the problem. At 27 years old I have the life of a 30something year old. Don't get my wrong, I love my life, but sometimes I get tired of always doing the "right thing." I have put myself through school for the past 5 years, raised Riley by myself, recieved little to no child support and have been working my butt off! Up until December, I have been working two jobs! This fall I was putting in 50-60 hours per week between working my full time job at Hospice, filling in at the hospital, and still working at the store part time. However, I recieved a surprise this week. Much to my delight this past week I recieved Shane's taxes from 2008, which was enough to pay off some bills and buy this little guy. I think I deserve him...and boy do I just love him! The girls think he pretty's cute too! ;)