Favorite Words

My little boy is taking a little longer to speak.  It's not that he's afraid of speaking; it's just that he has his own language full of "um gees" and "a diba daba duh" that feels comfortable, perhaps even natural, to him.  Yes, my little boy loves to talk, and when he's using his own made-up sounds, he becomes excited, animated, and dramatic.  Sometimes he even uses his hands for extra emphasis.

In the past few months, however, his speech has been changing.  At times I'll still catch him using his own chatter, but lately he's been experimenting with "real" words and combinations of "real" words.  While his vocabulary seems to get bigger every week, he still holds onto his "favorite words," and now, everyday, he uses his favorite words constantly--meaning they are repeated 50 times per hour times twelve hours in a day.  (Yes, I'm not exaggerating; some of these words will be spoken  600 times per day.)  So...instead of listening to "a diba daba duh," I'll be hearing my little guy repeat "poopy," "poopy," "poopy" (insert fart noise--yes, he knows how to do this) "poopy" all day long.

So what are these favorite words, you might ask.  Well, seeing that I've already shared one of them, I'll list a few more...strictly for informational purposes only.  Oh, who am I kidding?  I'm listing them because they make me laugh, and I'm dying to know if your toddler keeps repeating the same babble all day long too.

Here are some favorite words or phrases:

Family Names:

• Mommy
• Daddy 
• Ninny (my husband's mom)
• Papa (my husband's dad)
• Ma (my mom)
• Re Re and Ki Ki (my mom's two sisters)
• Baby (how he refers to himself)

 Phrases:

• "Mommy home," "Daddy home," 'Baby home," "Re Re home"--yes, he's obsessed with the word home, and I suppose, the concept of everyone being at home.
• "Hi Re Re, Okay, Good, Bye Re Re,"--yes, a dialog he likes to use when he's pretending he's on the phone or even when he doesn't have a phone in his hand.  For some reason, "Re Re" and "Ki Ki" are his favorites, probably because my mom is always talking to her two sisters on the phone.
• "Mommy, fi fi, night-night"--translation: "Mom, I'm just reminding you that you told me my "binky" or "fi fi" is only used for going "night night."
• "Mommy, outside...Mommy shoes...Mommy coat...Mommy shoes...Mommy coat"--yes, this is when my little boy is hinting ever so subtly that he wants to go outside.  If his wish isn't granted, then I can hear "Mommy shoes" all day long.

Other favorite words:

• Phone
• Uh oh!
• Oh no!
• Oh man!
• Cool!
• Bath
• Car
• Cookie/toast

I'm sure I'm missing other words that are now part of my little boy's repertoire, but for now, I've captured the main ones that keep life interesting day after day, hour after hour, and minute by minute.  As his vocabulary grows, I know my little guy will have tons of stories to tell me, but for now, his enjoyment comes from telling me that everyone's home, binkys are for night-night, and that farting noises equal, you guessed it, poopy.