Cary

Last week I found this cute little package in the mail, addressed to my husband, Cary.


I decided to take a sneak peek and open it before he got home. And boy was I so giddy when I found these inside:


So I had to make a few phone calls to have other people share in my laughter that Cary received tampons and pads in the mail. Holly said that she wanted to see a blog on this topic - in fact, she wanted to see a blog on all of the times that Cary has been mistaken for a girl. So here it is!

Why did my in-laws decide to name their third son Cary, you might ask? Was it because they were hoping for a daughter? Did they want to sign him up for a lifetime of laughs? No. Actually they named him after Cary Grant - the very handsome actor. But it's true, you don't hear of many boys named Cary...especially not spelled that way. There is a baseball player, Kerry Wood, who plays for the Cleveland Indians. And there is Carey Hart, a skateboarder who is married to Pink. And maybe a few others here and there. But other than that, the other Cary's (or Kerri, Karri, Keri, Kari, Cari) you know are probably girls.

Cary actually has really grown to love his name, despite the fact that there have been many misunderstandings with it over the years. Most recently - and probably most commonly - people call him Cory. I think they see his name written and think it must be a typo. Our new friends at church referred to Cary as Cory for several weeks. I know, I should have corrected them, but I didn't want to make them feel bad. And Cary is used to it...so honestly, it just wasn't worth it. Cary says that many of his clients call him Cory, and so he just goes with it. Imagine their surprise when they see an email from Cary Coppola pop into their inbox. That definitely leads to an awkward conversation later!

In our church bulletin, our names were listed as Gary and Ali Coppola. I think the bulletin lady must have thought that there was obviously no way an Ali could be married to a Cary...so it must be Gary. I did correct that one with a non-confrontational email.

On our wedding day as we were ushering people out of the church, one family friend (who had known Cary since birth) said "Congratulations, Kelly." Yep. You know exactly what he was thinking: "What's his name again? I know it's a girl's name...Kelly...that's it!"

Cary tells many stories about his childhood with his name. One time while Cary was playing basketball and was shooting a free-throw, fans from the other team yelled "You have a girl's name" just as he was about to shoot. Ouch!

Then one day Cary received a letter in the mail about the Miss Teen USA pageant. It wasn't just a random informative letter, it was information about how to apply for the pageant.

In grade school, the student's birthdays were always annouced over the intercom. On Cary's birthday, the lady said "Happy Birthday to Cary Coppola. She's 8 years old today!"

So regardless of the fact that Cary has been mistaken for a girl numerous times, the name Cary is great for so many reasons. It makes for great conversations, its unique and isn't a name you hear every day, and it is the name of my husband, the father of my child, and my best friend. Whenever I hear the name Cary I smile...and not because I think it's funny. Because it has lots of meaning for me!