What's in a name?

People often ask us about our girls' names and it occurred to me that how we selected their names is something I want to have recorded for them when they ask the same question.

Sydney Adair

When we were naming Adair, we really wanted a meaningful name and one that wasn't super common. We knew we would like to name her (at least one name) after someone who was special to us and someone we would like for her to become like. So, we searched all of the popular books and our family histories.

One day I came across the name Adair as a last name in the genealogy of my Mom's family. We both liked it and added it to the growing list of baby names. A few days later, while visiting my dad's mom, we mentioned it to my uncle. He quickly gestured to the Lightsey family Bible that records births, marriages and deaths dating back to the late 1800's and said he thought that name was also in their. And it was, but as a first name. As we talked about it, we decided that was definitely the name and what we would call her.

Adair flowed perfectly with Sydney (Sidney), which is my dad's first name and he was, of course, at the top of our list of people to name her after.

Emalyn Mae Qing

Perhaps with each child choosing a name becomes more difficult, because Emalyn's name didn't come to us as easily as Adair's. We knew from the outset of the adoption process that we were adopting a girl, so we started a list of names early on. For the longest time none of the names on our list stuck out or seemed right. We wanted to use another family name and another uncommon name, but felt our options were somewhat limited. I can remember being at dinner one night with two close friends and mentioning several names to them. They both really liked Emalyn and thought it was a good "sister name" to Adair. Soon we had talked over names so much that Adair started injecting her opinion and Emalyn was always on top of her list. Eventually, Adair began to tell people that her sister was in China and her name was Emalyn. Needless to say, it stuck and we all fell in love with it. I like to say that Adair named her sister, because, while we suggested it, it was Adair that took to it first and wouldn't let it go.

As for her middle names, Mae is after both of our great grandmothers. Annie Mae was my dad's father's mother and Margie Mae was Hank's mom's father's mother. Cen Si Qing is Emalyn's Chinese name. Qing (pronounced Cheen) means 'to celebrate' and we genuinely do celebrate her and our gracious God who knit her together...we celebrate that she was given life in a culture where it would have been easy to take it; we celebrate that she is ours, created and designed to be the missing link in our family; and we celebrate God's grace in her life. So, it seemed only fitting to keep it as part of our name for her.

Myla Grant

Hank and I had a hard time agreeing on a name for daughter number three. We each had names we liked, but couldn't get on the same page. The funny thing is that, this time, my favorite name had no significance at all. As you can tell from our other girls' names, that was not like me. Myla Grant was Hank's favorite and now, looking back, I can't imagine using my favorite and I'm so thankful Hank was stubborn enough not to give in to me. I love double names and we love this combination, so she will be called Myla Grant.

Myla is short for Mildred and, while we decided not to officially name her Mildred, she is named for my grandmother. My mom's mom, Johnnie Mildred, passed away a year after Hank and I were married. She was one of the most selfless, giving and loving people I have ever known. She didn't have much money, but would give a perfect stranger the shirt of her back if they needed it. We would love for Myla Grant to possess her gentle spirit and selfless heart.

Hank and I were introduced by two dear friends of ours, the Grants. Since we got married, we've teased them that the least we could do to honor them is to name our first born after them. When our first child, second child and third child turned out to be girls, Grant went to the top of the list for a girl. It is an honor to have these two dear people in our lives and we are excited that Myla Grant will bear their name.

Names are very special and carry a lot of meaning. With each name we feel a tremendous responsibility when choosing it. Our girls may dislike their names someday, but we hope they'll always treasure the thought that went into choosing them and those for which they were named.

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