Ten On Tuesday: Names

This is my first Ten on Tuesday, hosted by Chelsea. I love names, talking about them, boasting about special meanings (mine mostly), finding out newborns names, wondering what my future child(ren)'s names will be, and the list goes on. When I saw the questions on several blogs, I knew I had to participate!

1. How did your parents decide on your name?
I was named after my grandmother. I love my name but I hated how common it was. There almost always was another Sara/Sarah in my class. Once there was three of us for a whole year and we were referred to "Sara/h by the door, Sara/h by the window, etc". Not fun. For awhile, I think I tried to make my family start acknowledging me by my middle name, Emily. That didn't work out in the long run.

2. Do your initials (First, Middle, Last) spell out anything fun/funny?
SEG isn't anything special. I did think it would be funny if I were to marry someone whose last name started with an A. Then it could be SEGA, assuming I kept both my maiden and middle name.

3. Did you take your middle name from childhood or did you take your maiden name as your middle name?
I'm not married, but I definitely foresee a wedding within the next couple years [if he ever propose!] Either way, I'm pretty sure that I will change from SEG to SES.

4. Are you or will you name your children thematically (ie. same first letter, all of same origin, etc.)
I don't plan to do that, at least not intentionally.

5. Did you decide on baby names as a child? Did you stick to them or change your mind?
I went through a phase in high school where I loved boy names starting with the letter, J (probably because I had the hugest crush on a Jordan). I also loved girl names starting with E or I.

I know one thing I would probably try to avoid is a homophone name. I always hated it when people wrote my name down as Sarah (and even more so if they continue to do it after I remind them.) Sean would have the same problem when people would write his down as Shawn or Shaun. How irritating.
6. Does your family have any names that have been passed down through generations?
Other than mine, not that I know of. We don't stay in touch with other family members so my knowledge of our history is pretty weak. What's ironic is my dad's name is Don and my maternal grandpa is Don too.

7. Do you look at the meaning of the name or just the name itself?
More the name itself. I haven't cared much for the meaning since I was younger.
8. Do you name pets with human names or with pet names?
When I was growing up, our dogs and hamsters were named Muffin, P.C.(peaches n' cream, clever right?), Oreo, etc. See a theme here? Then I got rats for the first time: Abby, Lily, Beth, Molly. Then another time around the new rats were Almond, Kiwi, Apricot, Alaska, Zoe. We don't have any pets at the moment, but I wouldn't be surprised if it gets a human or food name. =)

9. Are there any names that you have an affinity or dislike for based on a childhood experience/someone you once knew?
I cringe over the names of those who have wronged me. I definitely wouldn't name my children after those or after even after close friends of mine.

10. What are some of your favorite names? Why?
I've always loved simple and sweet names such as Abby/Abbie (short for Abigail), Emily/Emma, Ava, Chloe, Mia, etc. As for boys, I'm not so sure right, however, I do like Blake, Logan, Lucas, and Mason.