I remember wondering what it would be like when my son learned to talk.  He was our first, and I couldn’t imagine this tiny baby suddenly being grown up enough to talk and carry on a conversation.  I would look at his cute little Gerber face at five months and think…never.  Of course, it didn’t take long before he spoke his first word, then more and now I can barely get a word in edgewise.  He’s five.  Some days all I can think is “if I could just get him to stop talking!”  (Apples, trees, yes, I know the expression…)

The second time around, I am impatient.  My baby girl is eleven months old, and I can’t stand the suspense.  I know she is learning all the time, and I want to know what is going on inside that sweet little peach fuzz head.  She’s so animated, so interested and I wish I could hear her thoughts.  I wish she could talk away at us like he does.

She will call me “Ma ma MA!” or happily greet my husband with “Da da!”  She also will help me if I am trying to talk to him when he is upstairs, as I call or yell up she will look up and let out a high pitched “DadadadadaDA!” and then wait expectantly, as though it will help him hear better.  She is starting to make a G sound that will eventually be our son’s name. 

The other day, though, I stopped being so impatient.  I went in to greet her when she woke up, and there she was, standing up and waiting for me to come into her room.  Blinking in the light, she kept on babbling, and then smiled widely and said “Ma!”  I picked her up, greeted her cheerfully and she leaned on me and made her little waving motion with her hand.  I said “How did you sleep, baby?  I’m so happy to see you!” and my baby lifted her head, smiled and clapped her hands.  Then I said, “Oh, that’s so cute, are you happy too?  I love you.”  And I kissed her.  She looked right at me, puckered up and made kissy noises, one after another, at me.

I suddenly realized…I need to stop waiting for her to talk and realize that she already is communicating so much.  I don’t need to wait for the words to come before I can enjoy a back and forth exchange, a give and take conversation.

We made our way through the day.  Bade farewell to her older brother at school in the afternoon, kisses all around.  The teachers at the door smiled at her and greeted her warmly.  She gave them her best wet grin, wiggled and made happy noises.  We left, saying goodbye and one of them said “Bye bye!” right to her.  She looked the woman in the eye and said “Buh!”  I could have sworn she winked.

At the end of our day, we popped out to the store, just the two of us.  Now too big for her carry along car seat, I popped her in the front seat of the shopping cart.  I wrapped a blanket around and underneath her to protect her from the cold and hopefully from most of the germs.  Away we went, shopping, baby smiling at me and most anyone who would watch.  Suddenly she leaned forward and with a mischievous grin, put her mouth close to a bare part of the handle of the shopping cart, about to suck on it.  I grabbed her up quickly, propped her back up and said “No!  Not in your mouth!  Yuck!” and shook my head.  And with an angelic smile, she shook her head emphatically back at me and said “Uck!”

We went home.  I tucked her into bed that night and decided I could wait after all.  Hearing her voice is and will be the sweetest thing since my son learned to speak.  And absolutely, I will be delighted with every new word and sentence.  But for now, I am content.  All day long, she was talking to me.  In her own little ways, some of them recognizable, and I’m sure many that I never even noticed.  So I’m going to slow down and not be so impatient for the words.  She’s already telling me so much. 

I’m listening, baby girl.