What's In A Name?

The kids and I drove to the courthouse yesterday to receive two pieces of paper that are some of the last pieces in the puzzle that is becoming the girls' new life: the signed adoption registration recording our adoption of them in Utah and legally changing their names. Without any given last names, the Ethiopian government gave them the names Tsigereda William Mortenson and Rodas William Mortenson on their new Ethiopian birth certificates and passports, following the Ethiopian tradition where children take the name of their father for their middle name. Their names now legally read Tsegereda Rosalie Mortenson and Rodas Reyne Mortenson.

Big deal to Mom and Dad; received a simple set of lifted eyebrows from the girls. (0:

Although she is known around the house as Tsegereda (we tried Rosalie, but she is, and probably always will be, our Tsegereda, so that's what comes out the most), SHE has chosen to be called Rosalie at school and in the community. The name Rosalie was chosen by her, from a list of five or so names that Colt and I gave her. We had picked out a different name for her initially, when we thought she would be closer to 6 or 7, but when she turned out to be 8...well, I suggested that she just might want a say in the matter. She chose another name first, because she knew Daddy liked it, then chose another name a few days later...the one that I knew she was partial to: Rosalie. Tsegereda means "rose" in Amharic and so I suppose Rosalie is a bridge between her Ethiopian roots and new American life.

Rodas is stuck with our choice of a name...Reine means "queen" in French and since we had nicknamed her Queen Ro from the first, it seemed appropriate. Noah actually suggested it first, as we were driving to WalMart one day and discussing names for the girls. He said, "Mom, what about Rain?" I thought of the French meaning and said I loved it...and we all voted later on it and it was unanimous. Noah is so proud of his contribution, and still thinks she's named after really neat weather. The name fits her well. Though we usually call her Rodas, she is often affectionately called "Reyne or Reynie" and she seems to love it. Whether referring to her royal attitude or stormy nature (maybe we can think of it as "blessings from above"?), it is our thumbprint on her life...our way of sharing in the creation of who she is and what she will be known as.

You never think about naming a child already out of diapers, and I would hazard that it is harder than naming a faceless baby that has yet to reveal his or her personality or whims. But in our case, I think and hope we chose right.

A name is so much more than what people call you...