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Our boys were older...4yrs...when they came home. We changed their names and they had no trouble adjusting. I think as someone posted, they think we're just speaking another language anyway and they accept it. Our boys' names weren't names we cared for. They also sounded quite comical with our German last name, which I think is also something to consider. We also changed our daughter's name when she came home at 10yrs. She likes her new name also. Her name was unusual even to Spanish speakers, seeming to have been made up. The orphanage named her...or possibly made a spelling error from her birth name, since it was so similar. Someone told me they would be upset if they placed a child for adoption and learned that the name they'd given their child was changed. My thought was that she should understand then my desire to have the privelege of naming my own child. Though I think it is fantastic if you like and can keep all or part of your child's birth name, I also believe strongly that parents should have the privelege of giving their child a name they love. This is just as true for adoptive parents. I think it can be an important part of the bonding process...from the adoptive parent side of things. I think you need to do make choices you will also be happy with down the road. Who wants to have a name their mom never did like?? My husband has one of those names, because his mom felt the pressure to name him after a relative. She's said she never did like it, though she thinks her son is tops!
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