Busy Philipps: Why We Named Our Baby Cricket
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Once Busy Philipps and her husband Marc Silverstein discovered the sex of their second child, they went to work putting together a long list of baby girl names.
But when the actress gave birth to their now 6-month-old daughter, the couple realized they had come up short in the name game.
“Oh my God, it was so hard because we had all these names and then she came out. I looked at her and she just couldn’t be one of those names,” Philipps, 34, tells PEOPLE.
The proud parents took home their new addition and celebrated the Fourth of July — it “bought us some time,” she jokes — but after a week with no name, the hospital came looking for their final decision.
“I got a call from Cedars and they said, ‘You have to come back and name your baby,'” Philipps recalls.
Fortunately, with plenty of experience under his belt, it was Silverstein to the rescue. “He’s always coming up with character names for his movies and TV shows,” she says.
And when the screenwriter suggested Cricket Pearl, the Cougar Town star instantly envisioned a fun future for her little girl and knew they had found the one.
“A lot of times your name dictates the kind of personality you have and [Marc’s] like, ‘Everyone likes Cricket, Cricket is just the greatest, happiest kid on the block, the coolest camp counselor, she’s hot in college,'” Philipps explains. “He just had this whole narrative for what that name was.”
Just as the new parents took their time deciding on baby girl’s moniker, big sister Birdie Leigh, 5, has also needed a little extra time to adjust.
“That first month was really tricky because I think she was expecting the baby to come out and be more interesting,” she shares. “Once the baby really started smiling and connecting with Birdie, [she was] able to be a little more playful with her.”
She adds, “I think it’s only going to get better.”
The new season of Cougar Town premieres Tuesday at 10 p.m. on TBS.
— Anya Leon with reporting by Caryn Midler