When Connor was first learning to talk, he had some pretty cute "words" that he liked to say to us. My favorite of his was probably "tuck" for "truck," because he was fascinated with them and said it all the time.
And since Xander is the one who's coming up with new words these days, trying more and more to talk to us, he is the one who's starting to say those cute things. I hear my new favorite at just about every meal. Picky little things that the twins are, they eat the same things a lot.
"More!" Xander both says and signs to me, looking down at his plate.
"More what?" I ask, knowing exactly what he wants and where this is going.
"Eat!" he says and signs, then combines the two using both words and signs. "Eat more!"
"Eat more what?" I ask, still knowing.
"Apple-some! More apple-some!" he says, with a big grin for me because he knows that he is telling me what I want to hear and what I have been asking.
It's not perfect, of course, because what he really wants is "applesauce," but it's there. Apple-some. And I know what it means. He says it consistently, as he's digging his spoon into the empty spot on his plate where the applesauce recently was.
Small steps, but big moments. Appropriate signs and words. Attempts at new words. Responding to direct questions with appropriate answers. All good things.
