Luca is here! Our sweet baby boy arrived on April 17th after 3 quick hours of labor. He is an absolute dream and my heart has expanded in ways I didn’t think possible over the last few days. I will share more about his labor, Amalia’s first time meeting him, and our first weeks at home when we all get settled and a few hours of sleep, but in the meantime, here is the story of his name!
Luca Joseph is a name that didn’t simply come out of nowhere. It has a few cute stories behind it! So I thought I’d share those with you today.
First Name- Luca: For years, we had talked about naming our kids Amalia and Leo. We always assumed we would have one of each. My maternal grandfather was Leonard and I loved the idea of naming our son after him. But when I got pregnant last summer, Anel admitted that he wasn’t a fan of the name. At first, I was heartbroken but when we started talking about other names I became downright frustrated because we couldn’t agree on a single one.
We both kind of liked Luca, but couldn’t commit to it. Then on the day when we learned he was a boy, it just clicked for both of us. This was our little Luca. It felt right immediately!
Luca is also the perfect name for us because it’s an Italian name to represent my side of the family and, when spelled with a K (Luka), is a Bosnian name too. But the coolest part is that Anel grew up in Banja Luka, Bosnia, so his name also connected to his dada’s childhood.
Middle Name- Joseph: There are two parts to this story, one hilarious and one nostalgic. Let’s start with the funny one because it’s just so good. We have had a family joke for as long as I can remember that I’d have a son named “Joey Bag-a-Donuts” and have referred to the spare room in our house as “Joey’s Room” since the day we moved in! So we kind of had to incorporate that into his name.
Joseph (Giuseppe, actually), was also my great grandfather, and we recently found out that he shares a birthday with Anel which felt like a cool connection. Since our kids get Anel’s last name, he agreed to give each of them a middle name from my family.
Amalia’s middle name, Louise, is also my middle name, my aunt’s middle name, and the first name of two of my great-grandmothers (Louise and Louisa)!
Monogram- LJ: My sister’s first and middle initials (before she got married and changed her middle name) were LJ and people often called her that as a nickname. This was unintentional but I love that little nod to her too.
Congratulations! He’s beautiful!
So many sweet and sentimental meanings behind his name – I absolutely love it.
My husband and I are starting to think about having kids and Luca was not “on my radar” and now it is!
Loved learning the backstory of their names. Luca is a beautiful name! Transparently, I am biased since my kids names are Amaya and Luca!
Congrats on your baby boy! Love his name and love the idea that since the baby carries Anel’s last name, you pick the middle name as a nod to your family. Hoping to follow that tradition too!
Congratulations!!! This is also my nephew’s name, but for different reasons obviously! Enjoy your new bundle of joy!!
Congratulations, Luca is adorable!
Congratulations, Julia! I love his name, but I may be partial because my oldest is Luca Joseph❤️
Omg he looks like Amalia!! So cute!! Congratulations ❤️❤️
Love everything about this!! My first baby is Leo and we always said our next boy would be Luca
Baby names can get so frustrating but finding connections and stories makes them better!! We’re currently pregnant (it’s a girl ) and decided to name her as my husband’s grandmother who passed away and was the sweetest, kindest person. Can’t wait to tell baby girl all the stories about her name and her great grandma.
Congratulations Julia! A beautiful name for a beautiful boy.
My husband and I are struggling with infertility and I’m so grateful to you for sharing your journey. Funny enough, we have always loved the name Julia for a girl!
Is it weird that I knew the name months ago when you said it was a ‘L’. I just knew. Weird I know but I could just feel it. Leo felt too American for me.
I have just loved watching your sweet family grow, and could not be happier for all of you! Congratulations – he is just precious!
So very very happy for you and your family.. beautiful child, beautiful name, beautiful story…wishing you a beautiful life together <3
Congratulations to your family! Luca is simply adorable. Enjoy this time with your family. I enjoyed finding out the story behind his name.
Congratulations! He is beautiful! Thank you for sharing this happy news with your readers/Insta followers. Love hearing the story of his name; it is such a great name! My husband and I have a similar deal with our kids’ names–the last name is “his,” so I get to use one of my family names with either the first or middle name. My son has my grandmother’s maiden name (and my brother’s middle name) as a first name and my daughter has my middle name (which was my great-grandmother’s maiden name) as a first name.
I don’t know what Anel’s middle name is, but I also love the recurrence of A’s, L’s, and J’s in your family! My husband, kids, and I all have some combination of the same letters (plus one more) in our monograms–A, D, J, L, and S.
Congratulations!
Congrats Julia, he is beautiful!
Congratulations and this really hit home for me as my husband’s company does Banja Luka and I’ve actually been there with him!
meant to my husband’s company does business in Banja Luka.