Wednesday, August 26, 2009

What's in a Name?

Today Lily told me that she wants to be called "Lilianna."

Later in the day I got to thinking, "Why not?" In the next few days we're going to be submitting some official documents for her adoption. We can give her any name we want.

I mentioned it to Bayo, but he didn't think it was a good idea. He said for the sake of her identity, it's good for her to have the name that she has grown up with. If she goes through an identity crisis when she's older, she might even say, "After all, I even named myself!" I think he's probably right.

Lily was lovingly named by her first foster parents, and we never considered changing her name when she came to our home. It's a beautiful name and it fits her perfectly. Besides, now my mom has her two flowery granddaughters: Iris & Lily.

If I had given birth to a girl, we would have named her Emily. But I was delighted when a Lily came to live with us.

When I was in junior high, I remember wanting to change the spelling of my name. I wouldn't be surprised if a number of girls/women have had thoughts of different names or slight variations of their name. I just didn't expect to hear it from a 3-year-old!

3 comments:

Marin said...

I really love your blog, and I am impressed by your work at the home. God continue to bless you and your family. I will be contacting you about the quilts, they are so well made! About the name, Lily can be a nick name for Lilianna or even for Emily at that(my niece is called Emily and every one calls her Lily)

Josh Wallestad said...

It will be nice to have her adoption completed. You won't have to go through another U.S. experience like this past summer, and we can't wait to meet her next furlough. With our expanding family, our eventual yet certain Nigeria trip keeps getting post-poned.

LoieJ said...

She can have a legal name and a family name of love. And most people end up with a shortened version of their name anyway.