Sentences & Singing

My mother has told me stories of how I didn't talk until I could say sentences. Little One has been babbling since he was four months old. Now that he is truly "talking" there is no way to stop him. His language skills improve every day.

Just a couple months ago, most of what he was saying was only one or two words at a time. Tonight when I got home, Little One followed me into the kitchen. As usual, he wanted to be underfoot as I was trying to prepare my supper. I set him up on the counter to get him out from underfoot and to involve him in what I was doing. I was trying to get a roast in the crockpot. I needed to make the sauce to pour on top. I filled a measuring cup with the appropriate level of water, added a can of tomato paste and the seasoning packet. Little One said something about, "Mama, water dirty." I replied, "yes, that's right. The water is dirty." He echoed right back, "the water is dirty."

Later on, we were sitting on the couch watching TV. I pulled him up on the couch and asked him to sit by me. He laughed and said, "Mama sit," then curled up next to me. I pulled a blanket over the two of us and he commented, "I'm cold." I remarked that I was cold too, that's what I was under the blanket. His reply... "Mama cold, under blanket."

I hear a lot of "that's mine" now, typical two-year temperment. The "sharing" idea never worked for Little One. I was urged to try "taking turns" instead. So now, having heard it from me, I hear him say, "Mama's turn," "my turn," "Daddy's turn."

Written word does little justice for the things he is saying. I heard a five word and upwards of seven word sentences that he is putting together. Everyday I understand him more and more. What used to be babbling in foreign languages has now become clear as day. But it is not just the words that he is putting together. His interaction with you has turned from baby-style to everyday interactions between child and adult. He doesn't just whine and complain when he wants me to get something or do something, he says, "hand" and pulls me to what he wants to show. I can have real-life conversations with him and he understands every bit of it.

He is learning songs now too. I hear him singing, "Ashes, ashes, we all fall down," and "deep and wide" quite a bit. He also sings "bring back, bring back" to the song "My bonnie lies over the ocean." When we say prayers, he now says, "God is great, God is good..." then stops and waits for me to finish. One day, I was making sandwiches in the kitchen for our lunch and I noticed him walking laps around our circular kitchen table. He was mumbling and singing something that I couldn't distinguish. This started me to singing "Here we go round the Mulberry Bush." For a good half hour we danced, clapped, stomped, jumped, frog jumped, anything we could think of to dance to Mulberry Bush while circling the table. I was exhausted and out of breath. That was our exercise for the day.

My mom sent me this video of the Cactus Cuties singing the National Anthem. Since Little One is beginning to show great musical talent in singing and keeping rhythm, it makes me wonder what he will be doing when he gets to this age.

Forgive the babbles of this overwhelmed mother. Pray for us, we're all feeling the pains of the changes of season. Hubby has had a cough for about a month now. He cannot accept any of the advice people give him as to how to get rid of his cough, so it continues to get worse. Unfortunately, he is a terrible baby boy when it comes to anything that ails him. Little One and I had a flare-up of allergies yesterday. I've had a massive sinus headache and flu-like body aches, and Little One has a non-stop runny nose with runny eyes. Pray for us for our health to return soon.