Stinky, Rotten Boys.

"Great name, I know. But it's not the worst. Parents believe that a hideous name will frighten off gnomes and trolls." - Hiccup, How to Train Your Dragon

My mother ran a home daycare for over twenty years. I helped her with this through some of high school and college. Our favorite kids in the daycare were usually described by the phrase "good and rotten." Good, because they were usually obedient, loving, and easy to be around, but rotten enough to be spunky and fun.

Colin has a habit of faking me out with his sleep at night. He's been kind of colicky lately, and will fall asleep for just a few moments to wake up yelling at me all over again. The other night he stopped as soon as I picked him up and made a contented cooing sound. "Oh, you're rotten," I sighed at him. It fit. So here on the blog, I'll be calling him Rotten.

Stinky wasn't a colicky baby, but he loved, loved, loved his binkies. When he was little, I'd pace with him, chanting "Stinky binky boy, stinky binky boy." Eventually, it became just "Stinky" - sometimes stinkopotamus or stinkasaurus rex - and it suits him in the same "good and rotten" way that Rotten suits his brother.

So, those arethere are the origins of Stinky and Rotten. Maybe the names won't frighten off gnomes and trolls, but I like them just the same.