A.B. Kagledom

So we were at the park yesterday. Simon made some friends and Adlai and another toddler tagged along to see what the big kids were up to. We're coming to an age when we can almost see the day when we won't have to be involved in the minute by minute activities of our children. This was one of those times. We had brought along a picnic blanket and Matthew and I sat on the sidelines and watched while our boys played.

Simon had gathered some sticks and said he needed to "make a connection" between the sticks using "Bluetooth." I laughed. How does Simon know about Bluetooth? Another parent stood by and remarked, "Only in Silicon Valley."

Simon led the kids in making some sort of structure "for connectivity." Adlai and another 15-month-old tried their best to integrate themselves into the group without getting into trouble.

Eventually, once the connectivity thing was about as exciting as a bunch of sticks can be, the older kids grew bored and moved on to other sandbox adventures. We remained on the blanket near the sticks and Adlai stayed nearby, putting sand in a bucket and moving the sticks here and there. After a while we noticed that he was doing the oddest thing.

Can you believe it? He spelled it INCORRECTLY. Poor Adlai, saddled with a name that no one, not even he, can spell.