About the middle of June 07 I received a phone call from our LDS Family Services Rep. I will never forget the moment that I received that phone call. When I first answered the phone, he asked if I had a minute to talk. I knew immediately that this wasn’t a phone call to fix something on our profile or to make sure that some kind of number was correct in our application. I knew this was a special phone call. I am pretty sure that I began to cry before he told me the reason he was calling. He said that he was letting us know that we had been chosen to adopt a baby. A baby boy. He told me that he was due in September, and he was half Polynesian. We also were informed that we would have the opportunity to meet the birth parents in 2 weeks.
We were able to meet the birth parents for the first time. We were so nervous, and so were they, but it turned out to be a wonderful experience. Scott and I truly had an indescribable love for this couple from the very moment we met them. We visited with them for about an hour and a half and was able to find out more information, and had the opportunity to get to know the couple.
During our visit with the birth parent we found out the due date was the end of September. . . He is half Caucasian, and half Hawaiian . . . and birth parents were absolutely beautiful people on the inside and out! Scott and I came to love these two people unconditionally.
August 28th, our new baby boy was born. He was 4 weeks early but was still a healthy baby! He was 5 lbs 11 oz, and 18 inches long. I was able to be in the delivery room with them. It was one of my most cherished moments in my life! I even got to cut the cord! It was kind of gross but really cool!
Scott and I have talked about names forever. We have decided that we definitely wanted to do something Polynesian. We decided that we wanted to honor his genealogy. His first name we wanted to be Samoan, because that is my heritage, and his second name we wanted to give him a traditional Hawaiian middle name while at the same time honoring both of his birth parents. The meaning of a traditional Hawaiian middle name usually tells a story of that individual. Fortunately I have an Uncle who is Hawaiian and speaks Hawaiian. Scott and I called Uncle Bobby and asked him to translate what we wanted his middle name to mean. We ended up naming him Sai’peti Epomaikaimaikeakuaokalaniikeiaohanalii Merrell. Sai's middle name translates as "A blessing from God and heaven, given to our family, of Royal Blood."