#last names

I had always thought it was kind of unfair that a woman is expected to give something up to get married but a man isn't. Every time I tried to talk to an adult about this growing up, they'd "rephrase" the notion of giving up one's name to something like "think of it as committing to a new identity

Nine months ago, I married a great guy. A month later, I took his last name. Now, I'm taking my maiden name back. We're not getting divorced or separated. I don't love him any less than I did before. In fact, this decision really has nothing to do with my husband. Changing my name felt like ...

After seven years of marriage, my dream of motherhood finally came true. I wanted my first child and I to share an emotional bond right away, right down to our monikers. On the practical side, I needed there to be no doubt that I was his mother. I had been warned by some already-seasoned mom ...