There must be something special about being 18 months old now (I mean, other than going to nursery). Paul has reach a few new stages. Thankfully, he’s back to napping; being sick last week helped convince him that naps are still nice. But I think I already mentioned the new stage of frustration. I realized this week that it is not all language related because (drum roll please….) Paul is saying words!

It has been a gradual realization. I started noticing that his babbles sounded remarkably like the words I had just said. And then I started to hear the words out of context: yes, he is definitely saying actual words. He has always said “dada” and “ball” and “Mooooo” (for more and milk both). But now the words are definitely clear.

Words I’ve noticed in the past few days/weeks:

• Mom-ma
• Dad-da
• Go
• Crack-er
• Ball
• Paul

I will listen very careful and report any others I hear! This is fun. I get very excited when the word he says sounds like an actual word. I’m sure he’s excited that I’m understanding too, although he’s more eager to sign the word than to say it.