I always said that I would keep "Vindya" as a name, but I wasn't sure if it would be the first name or a middle name. I know internationally adopted people who feel like their name was all they brought with them, and it was important to keep it, and some who feel that it connected them to a very unhappy past and couldn't ditch it fast enough. I needed to guage how she would feel before I could decide. In any case, my mother's given name is Vi, so I thought it would fit well.
Since she happily tells everyone (in English) "My name is Vindya!" I decided to keep it as her first name.
Middle name was harder. I was torn between "Phyllis" after my favorite aunt, and something that would connect to my father. His name is "Emmett," which is unique, but not really a good name for a girl who was already going to have one unusual name. After some thought, I decided that "Emily" was close enough.
Then I had to choose between them. Except, I realized that I don't have to choose between them. There is no law that says that children can only have one middle name. So I settled on "Vindya Emily Phyllis" (or "Emily Vindya Phyllis" or "Phyllis Emily Vindya", depending).
At this point, Deb needed to send information to Hyderabad, so she told them that the new name would be "Vindya Emily Phyllis Thompson." When I got there, and all the paperwork was done, I discovered that they had dropped the "Vindya," and had her listed as "Emily Phyllis Thompson." Since I know that nothing is complete until the court papers are filed in the US, I kept my mouth shut and went with it.
But in the meantime, I got to thinking. I know a lot of little girls named Emily, it's become something of a common name. Maybe a little TOO common. And I occurred to me that "Emma" is actually closer to "Emmett" in pronunciation. Plus, Jane Austen wrote about Emma, not Emily. So I decided to make that change.
So her court paperwork from Andhra Pradesh, her Indian Passport, her US visa, and her Hague certificate all have the wrong name. Once I get her through the court system here, her name will be "Vindya Emma Phyllis Thompson." That will be on her social security record and her US passport and Certificate of Citizenship.
Unless I change it to "Vindya Phyllis Emma Thompson." Or something completely different.
Since she happily tells everyone (in English) "My name is Vindya!" I decided to keep it as her first name.
Middle name was harder. I was torn between "Phyllis" after my favorite aunt, and something that would connect to my father. His name is "Emmett," which is unique, but not really a good name for a girl who was already going to have one unusual name. After some thought, I decided that "Emily" was close enough.
Then I had to choose between them. Except, I realized that I don't have to choose between them. There is no law that says that children can only have one middle name. So I settled on "Vindya Emily Phyllis" (or "Emily Vindya Phyllis" or "Phyllis Emily Vindya", depending).
At this point, Deb needed to send information to Hyderabad, so she told them that the new name would be "Vindya Emily Phyllis Thompson." When I got there, and all the paperwork was done, I discovered that they had dropped the "Vindya," and had her listed as "Emily Phyllis Thompson." Since I know that nothing is complete until the court papers are filed in the US, I kept my mouth shut and went with it.
But in the meantime, I got to thinking. I know a lot of little girls named Emily, it's become something of a common name. Maybe a little TOO common. And I occurred to me that "Emma" is actually closer to "Emmett" in pronunciation. Plus, Jane Austen wrote about Emma, not Emily. So I decided to make that change.
So her court paperwork from Andhra Pradesh, her Indian Passport, her US visa, and her Hague certificate all have the wrong name. Once I get her through the court system here, her name will be "Vindya Emma Phyllis Thompson." That will be on her social security record and her US passport and Certificate of Citizenship.
Unless I change it to "Vindya Phyllis Emma Thompson." Or something completely different.
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