It seems like a simple concept right? Kids know their names… especially if they’ve already learned to write… right?

Not necessarily…

My son was in first grade when I found out he didn’t know his middle name. I’m serious!

I have a boy with an above average IQ, and while I’m not in that class, I’m far from stupid. I’ve been heavily involved in my son’s education from the time he could walk and mumble. I prided myself on staying on top of keeping him ahead of his age group.

And then it happened. I learned that I’d made an assumption that definitely made an ass out of me!!

At age 6, my boy came home to show me a paper he’d gotten a big smiley face on. It was nice to have him sharing his school work with me all proud and such (it wasn’t always that way… the kindergarten teacher he’d had the first half of kindergarten had sucked the pride right out of him and had him hating school… but that’s another story).

Anyway, he showed me the paper, and after I was done letting him know how happy I was for him, I noticed his name at the top of the page. He’d always had his name at the top of his papers, but it was usually just his first and last name. For whatever reason, he’d decided to include his middle name on this one… kinda.

He’d written “Justin Way Jones”.

The conversation that ensued was as follows:

Me: “Honey, what is that?”
Him: My name.
Me: No it’s not.
Him: Yes it is mommy.
Me: Sweetie, your middle name is Wade, not Way. It’s W-A-D-E.
Him: Nuh-uh! It’s Way.
Me: Why do you think that’s your middle name?
Him: Cuz that’s what I hear you say. You say Justin Way Jones… let’s go!

Oh. My. Goodness. Way to go mom… you’re dumber than you thought!!

I’d never sat down to teach him his middle name, mostly because in an emotional moment of weakness while I was pregnant, I’d made the mistake of giving him the donor’s middle name. And, just like my own mom always did (and most of my friends’ parents), the only time I typically used it was when he was in trouble… which thankfully wasn’t often.

Apparently, I’d been saying it so fast during those times that he’d never heard the “D” pronounced… so he thought it was Way, rather than Wade. 🙂

So, as I said, you may wanna make sure your kids know what their middle names are, rather than just assuming. Or, you could just wait and see what they come up with on their own… because that’s fun too!!

If you have your own “kids say the darndest things” story, leave me a comment. It amazes me what goes on inside our heads when we’re little!!

Take care,
Debi aka @GenXBrat

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