Hi everyone! I am getting married in November & really torn about whether or not to keep my maiden name. I was wondering if I could get some thoughts or advice from the community!
My maiden name is very, very common, which is great because it makes me almost un-google-able, and I love the internet privacy. My fiance's last name is a lot more unusual so I would be giving that up if I do change it, but I do really want to feel like we're a Real Married Couple, if you know what I mean. But back on the other hand again, it's kind of scary to think of myself having a whole different name, not to mention the headache of all the paperwork. (And both of us have long last names so I don't want to hyphenate... that's way too complicated for me!)
My main concern, though, is that if we decide to have children (which is sort of up in the air anyway), I just think it would be easier & less confusing for everyone if their mother has the same last name as they do. Just in terms of schooling and stuff.
A third option is to keep my name now and change it when/if I get pregnant. (Do they even let people do that? I assume that it's possible, but maybe that would be a huge hassle too.) Although that's really just avoiding the issue and it would be complicated to explain to people.
Of course, my fiance has told me that this is totally up to me and he's ok with whatever I decide to do. His mother & sisters kept their maiden names; my mother, sister, & sister-in-law all took their husbands' names. So whatever I decide to do, there's precedent on either side of the aisle, but that also makes it more complicated, because I start to worry about whether I'm following in the tradition of my family or of his?
I know I'm over-thinking this and being a bit of a baby about it, but I'd really love to hear other peoples' thoughts & opinions about it.
Thanks a million, everyone!
-Katie