Malachi scored big time for his 2nd birthday. Besides the cake and candles (which were extinguished before he ate) he got a Thomas the Tank Engine (TM) knockoff (TM-K) as well as Baby’s First Medical Kit with Hypodermic Needle from Fisher Price. Even better is how he tells complete strangers “I’m TWO!” and asks his sister to pick him up because, after all, it is his boofday. It’s been like a 90’s ABC sitcom around our house lately, but without Uncle Jessie (thankfully).

Kids need parents to be interested in them. And we are, but the need is sometimes more intense than we realize. He’s getting to the age where I can’t play with him while I check e-mail. He’s on to me, and that’s probably a good thing. So I try to do all of my internetting when I’m not home. Disconnection is a frightening place for a guy like me who gets nervous after 24 hours of no broadband connection. It’s like my hair (what’s left) can pick up wi-fi signals or something. My kids need a dad who is disconnected from something — I don’t want that something to be them.