The Poopsie Collective

Look Who’s Talking!

Written by Erica 

So it’s happened. Well, it’s been happening for a while, but I think it is now fair to say that Owen is officially talking. I can’t remember exactly when it started, so we can add this to the list of milestones that I will never be able to accurately recall along with the first time he smiled, first time he crawled and his real first meal. For someone who has always prided herself on having an impressive memory, I really suck at commemorating my son’s developmental feats. 

Anyway, even though the whole talking thing began months ago (if my muddled memory serves he started saying mom first, then dad, sometime around 9 months?), in recent weeks it’s gone from random words that have zero meaning to actually being able to communicate. There is absolutely no denying that Owen now speaks. And just like when he started walking, it’s both amazing to watch, hysterical to experience and exhausting to keep up with. He talks ALL. THE. TIME. He has a lot to say, which isn’t shocking since I too am a talker. And now when I go an entire day without any other (adult) human contact, I’m OK with it because at least I have someone to chat with. And now he can finally talk back. It’s pretty great actually. “What do you want for breakfast Owen? How about a waffle?” “Yeah, yeah, yeah! Waffle!” Or when I’m picking out his outfit for the day and I’m really just talking to myself, he chimes in…”This. This one!” Typically he points at something that completely doesn’t match so I smile, thank him for his input, ignore his request and move on. But the point is, he talks!

The other day we were out and were chatting away when a woman in the elevator looked at me and goes “Wait, what did he just say? Did you understand that?” (Of course I did, he clearly said “oh my gosh” and shook his head.) And then it dawned on me. Owen definitely speaks; it’s definitely real, complete words and phrases that come out of his mouth. But it’s also in a weird baby-voiced language that maybe only I can comprehend. A total stranger might hear “wa wa weeeze” but I hear “water please.” Or maybe he’ll mutter something that resembles “ah-na sure” but I know he said “I’m not sure.”

So in an effort to help out anyone who may converse with my kiddo, and quite frankly, to mark in writing his latest ventures in the world of verbal communication (so that a few months down the road I don’t have to add this to the list of moments I completely forgot), here’s a quick dictionary of Owen’s current favorite words and phrases. And no, I am not entirely shocked that “‘sup” made the cut.

Hiiiii (and Byeeeeeeee) - Self-explanatory and easy to understand. Also impossible to ignore since he screams both words whenever someone enters or leaves his peripheral vision.

Hello - Similar to above, but reserved for when he answers the phone (or puts any electronic device up to his ear).

Yeah, Yeah Yeah! - When he agrees with something. He rarely offers a singular “yeah”. He usually triples it up for emphasis and includes a nice enthusiastic head nod for good measure. (See the above video for proof.)

No, No No - Said combined with a finger shaking when he doesn’t want to do something. He’s basically mimicking the way I must look when I scold him, which is hysterical because it makes me realize how not-scary I am when I’m mad. Oh well…

Uh Oh (sometimes replaced by “Oh No!”) - When he drops something (aka throws something on the floor). So, we hear this one A LOT.

Nana - Nope, not in reference to either of his Grandmothers. Here he’s talking about the “ba” kind of nana. As in, banana. In related news, I’m working on teaching him to say “that’s bananas” but so far no dice.

Fank Fu (otherwise known as Thank you) - The good news is, my boy is learning manners. He might not be able to pronounce his “th” sound yet but at least he’s got most of right. And here’s hoping he learns his “t-h” before his “f-u”.

I Wuv Woooo (I Love You) - He apparently also can’t really squeeze out the “L” sound. But his inflection is perfect. Plus he does a nice little hand motion where he puts his finger to his eye when he says “I” then across his chest for “wuv” and then he points at pretty much anyone walking by for “woo”.

Ah-na Sure (I’m Not Sure) - And yes, I know that’s what he’s actually saying because he shrugs his shoulders and lifts up his little hands like he’s confused every time he says it.

‘Sup (short for our attempted What’s Up) - Let’s be honest, we all use the phrase “what’s up” 90% of the time when greeting one another. Or maybe that’s just me. It only seemed appropriate this be one of Owen’s first words. The best part is, he’s already too cool to say the fully pronounced “what is up”. He jumped right to the slightly more ghetto “‘sup.”

Sock (and Shoe) - As if getting Owen dressed wasn’t getting difficult enough now that he wants to do everything himself without help. Now that he knows the words “sock” and “shoe” he also insists on taking off his socks and shoes just so he can say the words as he throws the items on the floor.

Sissy (short for Sister) - And NO! I’m not pregnant. When he says sissy he is solely referring to his dog, who is 100% his sister. A much hairier sister with far fewer words in her vocab, but a sissy nonetheless.

So Many Phases So Little Time

Written by GWEN

When I look back on the last 14 months, it’s a bit of a blur. On the one hand I can’t believe how fast it’s gone. But on the other hand, it seems like we’ve already packed a lifetime into just over a year. There have been so many phases, trials, tears and moments of joy packed into such a short time. I’m feeling reflective this week (can you tell), so here’s a short list of phases and triumphs over the very special life thus far of Mr. Izzy Mylo.

I remember….

1.) When the mister and I used to lie awake at night in wonder at the ridiculous noises coming from the Moses basket next to our bed.  Mainly the amazingly loud farts.

2.) How Izzy’s tongue used to ALWAYS be out. I think it’s kinda unusually long and when he was really little, it just didn’t fit.

There’s that tongue!

3.) At around 7 months, Izzy finally learned to sit up on his own. So every night he would wake up every few hours crying because he had sat up in his sleep, but  didn’t yet know how to get back to lying down. It was so sad and so cute. And so tiring.

4.) Around that same time, Izzy also decided to wake up at 5:30 every morning. This was ridiculously discouraging, but now he sleeps until 7:30 most mornings. The other day he made it until 8:15. I had NO idea what to do with myself.

5.) At three or four months, we really had a great boob feeding routine down. I would take Izzy up to my bedroom, latch him on and I could actually read a book for half an hour. It was so quiet and peaceful and special.

6.) Then at the very end of the year, as I was winding down his feeds, Izzy bit my nipple to the point of bleeding every time. That was not so peaceful or special. 

7.) At the moment Izzy is in what the Mister calls a Schadenfreude phase.  Basically he thinks it’s HYSTERICAL when anybody falls, hurts them-self, trips, drops something. He may have gotten this from me. Apparently I’ve been in a Schadenfreude phase for the better part of the last two decades. I try to discourage it with Izzy, but it’s SOO sweet when he giggles. 

8.) During the tricky period where Izzy was waking up super early, I admit to putting on Baby TV from time to time. He was OBSESSED with a show called Egg Bird, which consists of decorated eggs with legs, who every episode meet a new egg bird and find him a costume. It’s really very cute. And I SWEAR Izzy shouts, EGGBIR, EGGBIR, every time it comes on.

9.) The drum phase! On Friday mornings, we go to a sing along where at the end every baby gets to bang on a lollipop shaped drum while we sing goodbye to them. Izzy became SO obsessed with this drum, that the teacher had to save him for last every week, so he could play with the drum once the session was over. Then when I finally dragged him away, he burst into tears. We finally got him his own, which he still plays with, but isn’t quite as attached to anymore.

10.) The Leroy phase. Seems to be a lifer. He just LOVES that lion.

Another phase… Izzy used to fall asleep on our bed or on the floor all the time!

I could go on and on, but you get the point! Here’s to another year of god knows WHAT!

Milestones

Written by GWEN

Snoozin’ on the plane.