Talk Talk Talk

Squeaks has gone verbal! Squeaks 2.0! The upgraded version. Seriously, that's what it feels like when you can ask your toddler a question, "Are you hungry?", "Do you need a new diaper?", etc, and they answer you! It makes life so much easier. And harder...but mostly easier. Only harder because she likes the word "no" a lot!

So far she can say:

No!

dog

blue (She loves Blue's Clues!)

please (She also does the sign language when she says it. Too cute!)

shoes

go (Usually said in threes as we're walking out the door. "Go go go!!")

bee (She loves bees! Scared the heck out of me one day when she brought me a LIVE bee out in our yard, grasped by the wings. She exclaimed happily "bee bee bee!!!" as I swatted it out of her hand. No sting though!)

momma

daddy (The "y" still doesn't come across though, so "dadda" is closer.)

bye

hi

brush

book
hot (Usually referring to food. She'll ask if it's hot and, if I say yes, she'll blow on it.)
cold (Said between gulps of cold water.)

There are also multiple words that only I understand. Squeaks-speak. So if you come to our house and hear my daughter say "bong?!" in a happy expectant tone, she's asking for her Bible song. Haha!

Not bad for 18 months if you ask me! Her mental vocabulary is amazing too, even if she can't verbalize it yet. The conversation she understands is incredible. One of her favorite books is My First Colors. It's pictures of items separated by color on each page. The red page has lady bugs, strawberries, an apple, etc. Green page has grass, a frog...you get the idea. Each page has quite a few items. She'll sit on my lap and I'll ask her "Where are the purple grapes?", "Where is the red umbrella?", "Where is the yellow truck?", and she'll point to each item on the page! It's tons of fun to watch her little face searching, her eyes scanning the page, and then light up when she finds the item. I love it. I've made it a personal rule of mine, if she brings me a book, or asks for a book, I'll stop what I'm doing and read it. She may have realized this because we read close to twenty books a day (sometimes multiple times). Totally worth it though. 

We've also made it a priority to enunciate our words when we talk to her. No baby talk. We still talk soft and sweet, but accurately as well. Sometimes, with new words, I'll even ask her to watch my mouth as I say it. 

In my mind these are the beginnings of home schooling. It's never too early to start. Good conversation skills are a necessity in my opinion. I can't wait for the day when I can walk into her room, cuddle up in her bed with her, and discuss the day, her thoughts, and ideas. Just like my mom did with me.

Enjoying a good book in her chair.