Today, Bella had her 15 month check up. The doctor went through his usual questions: Do you have any concerns? How’s she eating, fruits and vegetables? How’s her sleep? How about naps? Does she use a sippy cup? Drinking whole milk? She’s walking, how about running? Then came the question that always makes me stop, “How many words can she say?” What does he want to know--how many she says properly or how many she tries to say? So I answer, “At least 10, though they aren’t proper.” The doctor was surprised; “Usually they only have 3 words, maybe 5.” To be honest, 10 was a low guess.
Bella is a girl who knows what she wants. Even before she could talk, she’d swat away her bottle or paci or whatever we were trying to soothe her with. She mastered basic sign language quickly because it helped her get what she wanted. Now with this impressive vocabulary, she has developed a desire to express herself using “her big girl words.” She has no or “naw” down pat. The other day we asked her, “Do you want to see Timmy?” “Naw” (always with a headshake) “Do you want to see Auntie?” “Naw.” “Do you want to go for a ride?” “Naw.” Finally I asked her, “Do you want a cookie?” “Yay.” Then she was ready to go to Timmy’s. She patted her chest which meant ‘jacket’ and said “bye bye.”
Another fabulous word she has learned is “mine,” thanks to a pair of silly bunnies and a sister who loves them. We were able to explain to Lily that only bunnies say that – not kids. But Bella is a different story. In the middle of a toy fight, I hear “mine.” “No Bella, only bunnies say that.” “Mine!” “No Bella!” “MINE!!” “BELLA, NOOOO!!” I tried to explain to Bella “we don’t say mine, we share.” But I think she was excited to be having a conversation with Lily, because my motherly lesson didn’t make a difference. As a result of all this share talk, she’s learned a new word “shaa” (yep, that’s share).
The other words I can think of off-hand are “maa”(more), “up-on”(open), “dawn”(down), “eyesh”(eyes), “lila”(Lily), “lusha”(Lucy), “foo”(food), “dra”(drink-this is her newest), and of course the usual “mama,” “dada,” “bye bye,” “up,” and “nana.” Now, Bella doesn’t just say these words, she understands them! She’ll hand me a water bottle, “up-on”. She’ll want a turn on the push car, “shaa.” She’s chases whoever is going into the kitchen, “foo foo foo.”
Lily is a chatter box too. I’ll try to post a few of the conversations I over hear her having. But I don’t remember her talking this young. The big difference I can see is that Lily had her pacifier until she was 2 years old and Bella got it snatched out of her young hands at 9 months. Of course Lily didn’t walk around with it in her mouth, at 18 months it became a bedtime only item (oh and at church too.) But it was around 2 that Lily’s vocabulary exploded. Whatever the cause, it’s nice having a 15 month old who can express herself. And I’m blown away by the emerging conversations between Lily and Bella. My girls!
Bella is a girl who knows what she wants. Even before she could talk, she’d swat away her bottle or paci or whatever we were trying to soothe her with. She mastered basic sign language quickly because it helped her get what she wanted. Now with this impressive vocabulary, she has developed a desire to express herself using “her big girl words.” She has no or “naw” down pat. The other day we asked her, “Do you want to see Timmy?” “Naw” (always with a headshake) “Do you want to see Auntie?” “Naw.” “Do you want to go for a ride?” “Naw.” Finally I asked her, “Do you want a cookie?” “Yay.” Then she was ready to go to Timmy’s. She patted her chest which meant ‘jacket’ and said “bye bye.”
Another fabulous word she has learned is “mine,” thanks to a pair of silly bunnies and a sister who loves them. We were able to explain to Lily that only bunnies say that – not kids. But Bella is a different story. In the middle of a toy fight, I hear “mine.” “No Bella, only bunnies say that.” “Mine!” “No Bella!” “MINE!!” “BELLA, NOOOO!!” I tried to explain to Bella “we don’t say mine, we share.” But I think she was excited to be having a conversation with Lily, because my motherly lesson didn’t make a difference. As a result of all this share talk, she’s learned a new word “shaa” (yep, that’s share).
The other words I can think of off-hand are “maa”(more), “up-on”(open), “dawn”(down), “eyesh”(eyes), “lila”(Lily), “lusha”(Lucy), “foo”(food), “dra”(drink-this is her newest), and of course the usual “mama,” “dada,” “bye bye,” “up,” and “nana.” Now, Bella doesn’t just say these words, she understands them! She’ll hand me a water bottle, “up-on”. She’ll want a turn on the push car, “shaa.” She’s chases whoever is going into the kitchen, “foo foo foo.”
Lily is a chatter box too. I’ll try to post a few of the conversations I over hear her having. But I don’t remember her talking this young. The big difference I can see is that Lily had her pacifier until she was 2 years old and Bella got it snatched out of her young hands at 9 months. Of course Lily didn’t walk around with it in her mouth, at 18 months it became a bedtime only item (oh and at church too.) But it was around 2 that Lily’s vocabulary exploded. Whatever the cause, it’s nice having a 15 month old who can express herself. And I’m blown away by the emerging conversations between Lily and Bella. My girls!
