… And sometimes it ain’t in English. These two will chat away with one another in some secret baby babble that only they understand.
One morning they sat in front of the toy shelf, pointing at something and chatting away. Then one of them reached up and took a stuffed bunny off the shelf. They both laughed and took turns giving it kisses. Like that was the plan all along. Sometimes they are just so cute, I almost can’t stand it.
Maddie and Emmy are just over 1 ½. Their doctor says they should be talking more than they do, but that their delayed speech is ok because they’re twins. I’m not sure how that makes sense, but if he’s not worried then neither am I. They say ball, bubble, Dada, hi, bye-bye, ni-nite, shoes, go, and of course the ever popular “NO”. They each have a few words of their own, too.
Maddie says mommy, Emmy, book and more.
Emmy says sock, car, Mama, and for some reason poo-poo. I really get a kick out of poo poo (because I have the maturity level of a 13-year-old boy ).
Maddie understands that “Emmy” is the name of her sister, and she’s recognized that Emily’s stuff looks different than hers. She often chases after Emily to offer her the yellow sippy cup, stuffed puppy, or purple ball that belong to Emily. When we put Emily to bed before her, Madeline thwarts our plans by standing on the stairs and happily hollering for her sister.
Emily is turning out to be the more introverted of the two. She loves to cuddle with Mommy and sit quietly, reading a story or coloring.
They understand so much of what we say. We can tell them, “Go get your shoes” and they will come back with 2 shoes (although getting them to bring back two matching shoes takes some work). We say, “jump!” and they do little hops with their short baby legs. We ask, “Where’s your nose? Feet? Tummy?” and they will point to the appropriate parts. I’m not sure what is more fun-watching the twins talk to one another or talking with them and seeing how they react.
As an educator, watching them pick up on language is fascinating. It’s been almost 10 years since my big kid was at this stage, so everything is new again to me as a parent. Do you have any stories of your kids’ (or grandkids’) first words?