Name Change

[dustkitty.livejournal.com]

In the wake of divorce, I would like to change my name.

My first name, I think I might keep. It's Elizabeth. I like it. It's long and elegant, and it's feminine without being fluffy. But I have been called "Beth" since birth and I dislike that a lot. I'm not really sure what to do there. I've tried fostering other nicknames, but it just never seems to work--people who call me Elizabeth or Liz will hear family call me Beth and then they also do so.

My middle name is Ann. At the very least, I would like to tack an E onto the end. Ann < Anne. But I was thinking that maybe something that wasn't Beth could come in and replace Ann and I could just start using my middle name. My family might be more inclined to listen to my request to be not-Beth if that happened (or so I tell myself).

As for my surname...hm. I have not changed my ID to reflect my married name, though I use my married name on all kinds of informal things--magazine subscriptions, facebook, what have you. To be completely shallow, I just like it better than my maiden name, and would rather like to keep it. Is it weird to finally change my ID when I'm separated pending divorce? But there's also my son to consider; keeping my married name will give us the same surname, which is probably a good thing, yes?

I have been going by Belle online, and I'm not sure why I like that better than Beth. I suppose I could change my middle name to that, but Elizabeth Belle sounds ridiculous to me. A friend suggested I just start using it as a nickname for Elizabeth in real life; what do you think, too much of a stretch?

Another name I have looked at for myself is Chiara. I like it a lot, but I think a lot of people would misspell it as Kiara, or mispronounce it when reading it. (The sound of chee-are-ah doesn't bother me, but that's not the name, you know?)

Sooo, what are your:
A) Favorite non-Beth nicknames for Elizabeth
B) Choices for a middle name to follow Elizabeth
C) Thoughts on keeping an exhusband's surname.