Coping with limited language skills
I’m talking a lot more now but people still cannot understand what I’m saying (mostly I talk to myself when I’m bored in my crib – I’m getting pretty good at vowels). The adults listen to what I say and occasionally say things back to me but its pretty meaningless – they sound something like: “blah blah PIPER blah blah blah blah PIPER blah blah” (but they do seem to be impressed when I turn my head when they say “PIPER”). I’ve tried talking to the mobile stuffed animals which hang over my crib but I have come to the conclusion that they’re not listening – they just sit there - until I make them dance by kicking my feet on the bottom of my bed (I like doing this a lot). I guess that's a lesson in life: sometimes its best to talk and other times, when talking seems futile, you just need to give things a little kick. Until parents and others can understand me I have instigated the following code system that even they can understand:
1) Laughing – good general positive reinforcement signal. I’ve noticed that this is more effective if used sparingly but a lot of the time the smiles and laughs just slip out.
2) Irritable groans – this is the signal that I want to do something different (e.g., get out of bed or get something to eat). It’s also a two minute warning that I’m going to cry.
3) Low intensity crying – used when I’m fed up with waiting for something or to indicate that I want to eat or that my diaper is wet.
4) High intensity crying (hollering) – this is used when someone is trying to cut off my leg or if there is some poo ACTUALLY touching my skin (this is also most effective when used sparingly)
The really good news is that I’ve figured out how to use my hands. They’re excellent appendages for grabbing stuff (like hair or newspaper) and moving it into my mouth. My next major project is to figure out how to get more mobile.
