Every time someone asks me how Max is doing, I say the same thing: “Fine; talking like crazy.” Which is true - that kid of mine, he’s a talker. Then again, I’m a talker, so maybe it’s one of those things where the acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree.
The thing is, I am amazed, on a daily basis, just how much my son is talking. My main source of amazement is the way he keeps saying things that I have no clue where he picked them up. Certainly, it’s not stuff I or his father are teaching him. And I’m not talking about bad words or anything (those, I’ll admit, he’s picked up from me); I’m just talking about phrases and words that are fairly common but sound so… so big coming from him.
For example, I might place a plate of food in front of him, and he’ll very reasonably say, “I don’t want it, mami, you eat it.” It’s not a complex sentence, yet I’m amazed he was able to put the words together and express his thoughts. Or when I pick him up at day care and he tells me what he did that day - and I totally understand what he’s saying because it’s actual words that convey what he did. Amazing!
I wonder sometimes if his language skills are normal. While I’m not one to be all, “Mah baybay is a genius!!”, he definitely strikes me as an advanced talker, especially for a boy. He started out normally enough, but somewhere around a year-and-a-half, the words just started pouring out; and for the last six months, he’s been speaking in phrases and sentences, both of which are in fairly correct context to the general conversation (except when he goes off on a gibberish-laden tangent about the last Dora or Diego episode he saw; there’s definitely a lot of cartoon-quoting going on around here).
Now, I’m not about to make an issue of this and get him tested or anything. More than anything, I just love marveling at him and laughing at the hilarious things he comes up with. And I’ll be honest: I love not having to guess anymore what the heck he wants or needs. That’s not to say that there aren’t moments where I simply have no clue what he’s saying, but overall, it’s clear. He asks for what he wants; he vehemently agrees or disagrees; he is emphatic in all that he says.
When I think about the ways in which his language skills are developing (and keep in mind, we’re doing two languages at once), I’m struck by how much a toddler is capable of absorbing and holding in that little head. I realize over and over again how vital this time is in teaching him things and how much fun it is to parent these funny little beings that say and do such absurd, heart-breaking, insightful things.
Max drives me crazy sometimes with his never ending commentary and questions and shrieking. But between you and me, the truth is that I don’t want him to shut up. Ever.
by Tere
Photo graciously provided by Nieve44/La Luz, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved
2 responses so far ↓
Chris // May 28, 2008 at 9:33 am
My youngest is about 28 months and I too am amazed with how well he’s speaking. During his two-year check up, our family doctor noted that “talking doesn’t seem to be an issue.” She told me she doesn’t have any concerns about speech as long as the child has “two words at two.” Uh…my son had over 60 at 18 months! Now, I’m not the sort of mom who keeps track of such things generally…I couldn’t tell you how many words my daughter used at the same age, for example, but this boy talks! He doesn’t like to have his nails trimmed and last night, while he was asleep, my husband trimmed them. When he woke up this morning, he said, plain as day, “You trimmed my nails.” Like you said, it wasn’t some super amazing verbal construction, but it surprised me nevertheless. It is SO wonderful that he can communicate his desires to us. Not that he gets what he wants all the time, but at least now I can acknowledge his desires, even as I have to say no to them, because I know what they are! This helps immensely with avoiding/diminishing tantrums.
STL Mom // May 31, 2008 at 7:34 pm
My kids were both SLOW to speak, and there were lots of frustrated communication problems that led to tantrums, so enjoy your chatty child. I was worried about their lack of speech and so many people said, “Once they start they’ll never stop” and it eventually came true with both kids.
So, yes, my children finally amazed me with their conversations, even if they were preschoolers with a year or two of speech therapy behind them, not toddlers! And really, it doesn’t stop - my eight year old still comes up with the most charming, astonishing things.
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