8/23

This morning I was putting the nipple back in one of Zac's sippy cups when I heard him cry out, "ba ba!" He stretched out his arms and reached for the sippy cup, still lovingly demanding his "ba ba". I filled it up with diluted apple juice and gave it to him, strangely proud that he had connected a word with an object.

I've tried not to get my panties in a knot about Z-man's development. Yes, he started crawling late, standing late, and talking late. At his 12-month physical, the Doctor asked me if he could say 1-3 words. His repertoire of sounds is varied and complex, but actual words connected to an object or person - no.

When he's happy, he usually babbles "da da daddadaddadda". Do you have any idea how awful it is to hear my child babble that for hours at a time? It's like sticking a knife into the eye of single mothers everywhere. Sometimes, if I'm feeling bitter, I tell him that he doesn't have a Dada and he should start calling out for Mama.

When he wants something, he yells, "na na nanananananana". This demand may or may not be connected to a sighting of a banana. My child gets orgasmic glee every morning when I share my banana with him. Honestly, I never imagined that a kid could get so happy chewing on a piece of fruit. He looks like he's died and gone to a vegetarian heaven, located somewhere off the coast of Fiji. The banana is the magic fruit that transports him there.

Everyone says that I'm going to hate it when he can actually talk back to me and tell me what he wants. I think those people have clearly forgotten how frustrating it is to hold an inconsolable baby at 2:30am and not have any idea what is wrong with him. Or to have him demand the box of Nilla Wafers, only to start stacking them into architecturally-sound piles after wetting them with his saliva. I've spent the past thirteen months guessing what it is that my child needs, wants, or hurts from. I'm ready to hear him, although after living exclusively in the Not-so-Pregnant household, I'm guessing that his first full sentence will probably include some variation of the f-word.