We put a lot of thought into what to do about our last names. The one thing we decided on from the beginning was that we wanted to share a last name, rather than each keeping our own. We both found it important to signify a bond and the start of a new family. So, that decided, what to do with these names? We quickly ruled out hyphenations; Crystal Kay Marie Schumacher-Tanev is just plain ridiculous! We played around with different combinations, Schumaktanev being my personal favorite ;) although I knew a lifetime of spelling and sounding it out would ensue!
So, we decided to come up with something that held a special meaning to us. We searched many different nature inspired names. Many were beautiful, but nothing felt right, until we came across Shores. The water aspect is perfect for our Pisces, ocean loving selves. The aspect of feeling grounded on the shore is what resonated most for me though. In my vows, I described our name as the beauty of staring at this ocean of a world, grounded and safe with the one I love, our feet in the sand. This is exactly the image I am taking into this marriage and I couldn't image a more perfect name to signify the journey.
-Crystal Shores
