Xander Week 65 – First Words…
January 21, 2008
I think more than any other big moment for babies is their first word. This is something that is remembered for years to come, something that kids will inquire about (what was my first word?). What I never realized before is how difficult it is to say “that’s it – that’s his first word”. The problem is that it’s a gradual thing. So the sssss sound that he was making a few months ago gradually became shhhh and then a few weeks later turned into sho, and from there finally became a distinguishable “shoe”. And the “sat!” became “that!” became “dat!” became “cat!” Which one came first? At some point he started to say “Hieeeee” when he walked into a room. Mmmm became ma, ma, ma became “more” and all of these things happened around the same time. It wasn’t like one day Xander sat up and said a word – he practiced for a long time, and eventually we understood what he meant, and strangers may still not understand what is slowly becoming Xander-speak.
Once in a while he surprises us, like the morning after Zach’s grandmother’s funeral when Xander sat up in bed and said quite clearly “Are we dead?” to which we answered – “No…” and then Xander laid back down and continued on with his regular babble. It was a bit strange, but not something that he repeated.
This past weekend he said “Hi cat”. I started to worry a bit. Since none of these words could be picked out as a first word, and he won’t necessarily repeat them on demand, and maybe we were hearing and understanding at a level that not everyone would. At his 15 month check-up they discussed these concerns. Our doctor’s office of course told us that kids develop speech at their own pace, and that as long as Xander can string two words together at his 2 year checkup then he’ll be on track. So the “hi cat” from this weekend went a long way in alleviating my concerns. I think I’ll be able to relax and enjoy the words as they develop into their own Xander-speak. We’re getting there 
how cool will it be when he says the two best words of all, “AUNTIE JENNY!!!”