Like Kylie Jenner I changed my son’s name at almost one – trolls say I’ve set him up to fail but I don’t care
PEOPLE were stunned when Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott revealed they’d changed their son’s name at a month old.
The youngster, previously called Wolf, was re-named after the couple admitted his first moniker didn’t suit him.
But they are not the only ones to rename a child.
Stacey Flinn-Schofield, 38, and Paul Schofield, 41, from Darlington, changed their son Bear’s name.
Bear, now nine, was born Ethan.
Now Stacey, a spin instructor and NHS administrator, speaks exclusively to Fabulous:
Read more on baby names
LOGGING onto Mumsnet I asked the question which had been playing on my mind for weeks.
‘Would it be mad to change my baby’s name? He’s nearly a year old…’
My son, Ethan, was a bright, cheerful boy.
But my husband Paul and I just didn’t think he suited his name.
Most read in Lifestyle
While we liked it in practice in principle we felt it was just too formal for him. What we wanted to call him was Bear.
Bear wasn’t a name we’d plucked from nowhere. During my pregnancy Paul, now 41, and an ex-armyman had been stationed in Afghanistan.
He’d kept in contact with me as much as possible and would send me cute letters where’d he’d refer to us as ‘Stacey Bear and Baby Bear’.
So when it came to us discussing baby names the moniker Bear was mooted immediately.
Read More on The Sun
‘I like it,’ said Paul.
But I was concerned.
I worried he wouldn’t be taken seriously either at school or when he came to apply for jobs as an adult.
It was 2012 and Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne hadn’t had their baby son Bear yet - I didn’t know any other adult or child called it either… it was certainly original and I worried a little too quirky.
I was anxious, like Chris Martin and GP daughter Apple, people might take the mick.
So we considered options which could be abbreviated to Bear - including Edward and Teddy.
But none felt quite right.
So when he was born in May 2012 at Darlington Memorial Hospital weighing 6lb 4oz we sensibly chose Ethan and gave him the middle name Bear.
But as the months passed we’d still refer to our son by his pre-birth nickname.
And I couldn’t shake off the feeling we’d made a big mistake.
Happily Paul felt the same.
So, taking to Mumsnet - keen for some unbiased guidance, I asked people what they thought.
‘That is such a cute name,’ said one person.
‘I love Bear - change it,’ added another.
But other people were more brutal.
On his birth certificate it says ‘Bear’ with a ‘previous names’ section saying ‘Ethan Bear’.
Stacey Flinn-Schofield
‘Bear isn’t very professional - what about when he goes to get a job?’ asked one person.
‘You’re setting him up to fail,’ said another.
‘Why are you calling after an animal?’ added one person.
In the end Paul and I decided to just go for it, realising other people’s opinions really didn’t matter. So in February 2013 we headed to our local registry office in Darlington and changed Ethan Bear to Bear - he doesn’t have a middle name so no backup option.
It didn’t cost anything as he was under a year old.
On his birth certificate it says ‘Bear’ with a ‘previous names’ section saying ‘Ethan Bear’.
Now, a few years on, it doesn’t make any difference and Bear loves his quirky name.
Most people don’t even realise he’s ever had a different name.
I love it and am so pleased we did it.
Read More on The US Sun
I think Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott were right to change their baby’s name at a month old. If Wolf didn’t sit right then fair enough. You don’t want to regret something like that.
However, I love my animal-themed names.
