Like all mummy’s, I’ve been eagerly awaiting the day when Seth would say his first word.
And for all my research into child linguistics, I assumed, like most would, that that day would be far off into the future. Content to wait a few more months, I have been enjoying my little man’s babbling and wistfully kidding myself that he knows what the ‘mama’s’ and ‘dada’s’ mean, just because he happens to reach for us, his parents, when he says them.
And then out of the blue, just the other day, Seth amazed us with the impossible…
Seth was sat with my husband, Aaron, opposite me on our other sofa, whilst I sat stroking one of our cats, Auri.
Anyway, Seth loves the cats and always gets very excited when he sees them. But this time was different. He was looking at Auri intently, trying to babble something. So we just kept on talking to him as we do. Silly things like, ‘Who has Mummy got on her lap? Oh, is she giving Auri-pop cuddles. Isn’t the kitty-cat pretty.’ When all of a sudden, Seth, clear as day said ‘Ca’.
Now I know what your thinking and your probably right. Overwhelmingly proud mummy here is reaching, wanting her little sweetheart to be an achiever and make believing she hears genuine words when there is none, in a fashion reminiscent of Rachel on Friends.
However, as hopeful as I was, both Aaron and I knew it was probably far to early for Seth to be able to comprehend what he was saying or the sounds he was making. But we wanted to encourage him none the less, as most of the reading material I have looked as suggests talking to your baby in full, coherent sentences and trying to egg them on when they are attempting to speak.
So we replied, as you do, as though he had gotten it right: ‘Yes, that’s right – cat!’
When you could have knocked me down with a feather when my boy starts bouncing up and down on daddy’s knee, giggling and shouts ‘Ca!’.
Well, once again we encouraged him, returning his enthusiasm with proper speak and after about sixteen back and forth this way, Seth turns rounds, points and Auri and gleefully pronounces ‘Cat!’, clear as a bell.
Proud doesn’t even being to explain just how I felt. And before I could even start to think it was a fluke, he repeated it, several times and has managed to do so several more over the coming days. Every time he now sees one of the cats, he says his special word, evidently eager for our approval and boy are we happy to give it.
Yet as pleased as I am, a niggling doubt remains as I know that most children won’t start producing coherent speech until they are between 10 to 15 months, with most starting around a year old. Seth is not quite 9 months yet but the fact that he keeps his repeating this behavior has me hopeful that ‘Cat’ is his first word.
Either way, I am a proud mummy and will carry on helping him with his speech.
Mummy, Me 