A mum who adopted two brothers into her care when they were both less than two-years-old has explained her decision to change their names - after their birth mum named them after car manufacturers. The woman, named Elizabeth, initially fostered the two boys with her husband Ed after having already welcomed seven biological children together.
They welcomed the boys named Bentley and Lincoln - who were 18 months and six-months-old respectively at the time - into their family after the pair had already been in two foster homes, and the couple were eager to give the boys a home they could cherish forever.
Speaking to Kidspot, Elizabeth explained Bentley was non-verbal when they first met him, and his brother Lincoln had been kept in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for three weeks after he was born for treatment for withdrawal from heroin.
She said: "The parents had lost all visitation rights by the time we got the boys so we knew right away that they would likely be available to adopt."
The mum, from the US, explained she and Ed had originally only wanted three children, but felt as though "someone was missing" from their family so ended up with seven biological children – but it still wasn’t enough.
Elizabeth's last pregnancy was so tough on her body that she was advised not to have any more children, but with a hole still left in their family, the couple decided to become foster parents.
And when Elizabeth met Bentley and Lincoln, she knew they were meant to be her kids, but there was one problem – she didn't like their names.
She explained: "The boys were named after cars, and we felt that it was very dehumanising to be named after objects to be used."
Elizabeth and Ed fostered the two boys for 18 months before officially adopting them into their family, and one of the first things they did was get the siblings new names - although she insisted she didn't take the decision "lightly", and spoke to both youngsters about the change before she went through with her plans.
She added: "Kolbe, formerly Bentley, is named after St Maximillian Kolbe. I did not realise, but he is the patron saint of drug addicts, so it seems very fitting as their biological family struggles with drug addiction. Justin, formerly Lincoln, means upright and righteous and what we would hope for him to be when he grows into a man."
The mum even got in touch with their biological mother, who she says found the change difficult to begin with but quickly came around to the new names.
The conversation between Elizabeth and the boys' biological mother went so well that the mum asked Elizabeth and Ed to also take in her daughter Charlee, who was born a year after the boys were adopted.
Charlee was placed into the couple's care at two-days-old, and was officially adopted a year later – when her name was also changed to Charlotte.
Mum-of-10 Elizabeth explained: "Charlotte was an infant at the time we made her change, but we will have that conversation when she gets older and asks about the adoption."
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