Introducing the Mulenos Twins
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I think the 2nd most popular question behind all the absurd twin questions we were asked was what would we name our babies. Even though I do tend to pour my heart out on the internet, I’m actually a pretty private person. I’ve never been one to keep a list of baby names or discuss them with friends. No shade at all! I just know this is fairly common for women and was often the odd {wo}man out when these types of discussions popped up.
WHY WE WAITED TO ANNOUNCE NAMES
Nick and I started to discuss names when I became pregnant. We didn’t share names with anyone for several reasons. One of the main reasons I think is just my own personal trauma. Last year I had a miscarriage and though we didn’t find out the sex or officially decide on a name, we had a name discussion fairly early on and there was one particular name that Nick basically named the baby. That being said we didn’t even have a name discussion this go around until we found out the genders / the start of the second trimester. Another reason we didn’t want to tell people names is because it isn’t a discussion. There are a lot of strong opinions around us… to be quite frank, I didn’t want their thoughts, because it isn’t up to them. You also get a lot of “oh there was a girl I went to school with named that and she was a bully” or “my dog was named that”. For some reason, people also like to tell you all the ways someone can make fun of the name. In my opinion, you can always find a way to make fun of someone’s name, so this isn’t. a huge issue / thought for me. I also wanted to be so set on the name that I didn’t let the remarks of others sway me. Last but not least, Nick and I wanted to meet the babies before giving them their names officially. You could go in with one thought and drastically change your mind / think it isn’t a fit. While we were pretty much set on names going into the third trimester, we still kept them to ourselves for this reason. One last reason is because we didn’t want a ton of personalized items. A few is fine and often very special, but if you announce pre-baby shower or even after that, you tend to get a lot of personalized products. We just don’t have the space for all that in our small, LA apartment.
DECIDING ON NAMES
Like I mentioned, Nick and I didn’t really discuss baby names before I got pregnant. I don’t think it is weird that others do, it was just never something that came up. We were more of a where are your top 5 places to travel to versus your top 5 baby names. It has been quite eye opening to discuss them with him, as he isn’t the “namer” I thought he would be. He is much more whimsical and I am much more traditional. I like names that are family related and he prefers unique. I’ve heard of couples vehemently disagreeing on names and that was never us. If I remember correctly both names we decided on were my idea, but it was definitely a group effort and we agreed fairly easily.
I will say that naming two babies is hard. You’d think it would be easier, but we didn’t find it to be. Maybe it would have been easier if the babies were both boys or both girls, but one of each was hard. I felt the need to be even and fair regarding meaning and family ties. Also middle names were a lot harder for us than first names for some reason. No idea why!
THE NAMES OF OUR TWINS
We would love to introduce you to Olive Elizabeth Mulenos and Cyprus Jerry Mulenos.
These were the names we went in thinking and they turned out to be perfect. We wanted to go with unique but not too trendy or off the wall. They both have deep meanings and family ties.
THE MEANING / THOUGHT BEHIND OLIVE’S NAME
Olive was the first name we decided on. It actually came to me after our miscarriage. I was reading scripture and it just kind of popped off the page at me. I wish I could remember the exact Bible verse, but I read a lot of scripture during that time and I can’t exactly recall. Additionally I didn’t think I’d have another chance to name a baby anytime soon, so I just tucked into my back pocket for later. It’s funny because now I notice other people with children named Olive, but I can’t recall knowing a person named Olive or seeing others name their child that.
Olive means peaceful one and that’s exactly how she was in the womb and what I hope she brings the world. It is latin and stems from Oliva, the olive tree, and also represents “extending an olive branch”. She was happy and chill, while her brother was also happy, but a mover and a shaker. I love that her name means peace and what it represents. We also like her name as it ties to Nick’s Greek roots, as olives, olive trees, olive oil, etc are important to their culture. Sentimentally, our guests threw olive leaves at as us we exited our wedding.
Olive’s middle name is Elizabeth, which is actually my middle name. It is a family name on both my side of the family, as well as Nick’s. I have always loved my middle name. I thought it was pretty and I also loved that I shared it with Queen Elizabeth I, as I did / still have quite an obsession with her. Elizabeth means “oath of God” which I relate to God’s faithfulness after our miscarriage, especially since her name came to me soon after.
THE MEANING BEHIND CYPRUS’ NAME
Why are boy names so hard?! It was for sure the harder of the two for us. I don’t remember how Cyprus came up, but it just kind of popped up one day and we both liked it. I think I may have been looking for names that meant certain thing… you know looking up intentions and searching for names under that meaning. Kind of backwards, but meanings are big to me!
Cyprus means fair / fairness, which is what I hope he brings to the world. Though I didn’t see it in a verse, Cyprus also has Biblical roots. It is where Paul had one of his missions (with Barnabas). Though it is its own country, one of the official languages is Greek and it is very close in proximity and culture… another tie to Nick’s Greek heritage.
Cyprus’ middle name is Jerry, which is actually Nick’s middle name. It is a big family name for Nick and means “exalted of the Lord”. Similar in meaning to Elizabeth (Olive’s middle name), it is also of Hebrew origin. Both boy and girl spellings of Jerry / Geri are in Nick’s family. I say that because both names that start with the letter G and J are prevalent in our family. Nick’s grandfather’s both have names that start with J, as does one of my grandfather’s middle names, in addition to Nick’s father. My mom’s brother’s (my uncle) name starts with J too. My dad and his father’s (my paternal grandfather) middle name both started with G. Also, I have a dear family family friend whose name was Jerri, so it’s all significant. I’m already trying to be “fair” to his middle name and he has barely had the name that long!
It wasn’t on purpose but both names have nature vibes. Olive obviously has the olive tree. Cyprus actually has the Cypress tree - not spelled the same, but of the same roots. No pun intended ;) When we had pretty much decided on their names, we actually went out and purchased the coordinating plants. We loved looking at them and caring for them during the pregnancy, while thinking of them.
We put lots of thoughts and prayers into their names and hope you love their names as much as we do. We can’t wait for them to grow into their names and to see what people they become. XOXO
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