Charlie O'Brien blog: How to pick the perfect baby name

So I am about 11.5 weeks from my due date with baby number two and we’ve got her name all sorted. Middle names too.

We’ve actually had it picked out for about two months and we were the same with our son Noah (even though we were team yellow.) I think I like to pick a name early on and keep talking about it to make sure we still love it. And the good news is – so far we do!

Babycentre is always big on baby name lists and it's just released its half-year name list results.

Baby names 2017: The half year results

Apparently 1970s names like Michael, Peter and David are making a comeback for the boys and former American presidents are also making for a popular choice – think Franklin, Lincoln and Carter. Although I can’t see Trump being a baby name choice any time soon!

So if naming a baby is something you’ll be doing soon, or need some help with – here are my top three tips...

1. DON’T TELL ANYONE!

And I mean – ANYONE. As with all things parenting – people just love to give you their opinion. And when a baby is still in utero, it seems opinions on their potential name is fair game. It doesn’t matter how certain you are that you love the name – comments can be hurtful and they can sway your decisions. So my opinion is keep schtum – no one is going to tell you how much they hate it once your precious bundle is born.

2. IF YOU LOVE IT – USE IT

I love a name list/poll as much as the next woman, but I think too much emphasis can be placed on them. We went for my son's name 'Noah' despite it being popular – simply because we truly loved it. We loved how it sounded, how it looked and how it fit with us and our surname. Had we not used it due to how popular it is, I think I’d have always regretted it.

3. SAY IT OUT LOUD ROUND THE HOUSE!

It seems silly, but it’s one thing seeing a name written in a book, or on a webpage. But saying it out loud and practicing it in conversation can be quite another! I had a couple of names for girls on my list that I was convinced I wanted. But after talking about them out loud, and giving them a test run around the house – I realised they weren’t for us!

Happy name picking!

Charlie X

Charlie's new baby is a girl but find out what names she had on her list for a boy here