He's A Talker, Like His Momma

Paxton said his first two words on Sunday morning. Not at all surprisingly, they were "cat" and "dog". Chris was holding him as I walked the dogs, and the cats ran along after us. Paxton looked at one of the cats and pronounced her "Cat!". Chris and I stared at each other wide-eyed, careful not to make any sudden moves that would leave Paxton afraid to speak again. "Cat," he repeated, confidently. Chris mouthed "wow", while I tried to play it cool. I said, "and that's a dog". "Dog," he repeated. "Dog".

Now, to be clear, I have no idea when babies are supposed to reach most milestones. It's a blessing that way, because I never think, "Oh, crap, he isn't walking yet" or anything like that. Instead, I am flummoxed and awestruck when he achieves any small stepping stone, leaving me certain that he is nothing less than a genius. It works out well for both Paxton and me that way.

The next day, I was at the library and wanted to show my friends that he could say these words. I found a book with a cat on it and showed it to him. Everyone watched with bated breath. And he said...nothing. He looked like he wanted to say something. He even readied his mouth as if about to utter a word. But until everyone looked away and started talking to one another again, he said nothing. Confident that the attention was turned away from him, he quietly said, "cat". Carmen swears she heard him. But she's also really nice.

I took him over to Mom's house after to show off to her. He saw her cat Sweetie and declared, "Cat!". I had him say it a few times for good measure. But Mom, being the eternal speech therapist, said that it was coming out more like "dat". It's true that by day two, he was either getting lazy with his enunciation or he was confusing "dog" and "cat" into one new word. But still--he's 10-months-old and he has a specific word for a specific object. That's freaking amazing to his shell-shocked mother.

Yesterday, he crawled all through the house saying "cat", "cat", "cat", "cat", and when he actually crossed paths when one of our five cats, he would excitedly shout "CAT!!". If he is dropping the "C", I direct him "ca-ca-ca-ca" and then he says "cut". He says the "t" with a real edge. It actually comes out "cat-uh" like a little Russian boy. "Dog" is "dog-uh".

He wants to speak so badly now. He is saying little made-up words for most of his waking hours. Sometimes the words that he chooses are a little bawdy. At the thrift store today, he kept saying "cock", "cock", "cock", "cock". I'd say, "I think you mean 'dog'" with a red face and he would shout out "COCK!!". The woman behind the counter said "well, my goodness", as I awkwardly laughed it off.

In one week, Paxton will be 11-months-0ld. I've just started making plans for his first birthday. We're going to have his party a week after his actual birthday, in hopes that people will have more spare time after the excitement of the holidays settles down a bit. I read an article that said you shouldn't invite more than 10 people to the party, as it may make the baby feel overwhelmed. I hope that's not the case, because I have met such great people who have babies who I'd love to come to Paxton's party. And, of course, family can't wait to celebrate the little guy's big day. Luckily, he's used to being around big groups of people. He's a social butterfly who loves to crawl around a room, getting attention from everyone. I think as long as we make sure to keep the party under two hours, he'd have a great time. How could he not?