Look who's talking

I guess Annie's been "talking" for a while now. In between one hundred thousand "ella...ella...ellla...ELLLAAAAAAAA!" (cinderella) screamings and proclamations of "ahhh done!" I have noticed some real words. And some that have become "real" in the adult to toddler communication process.

For example, we only let Annie have one gummy vitamin. For some reason we feel this is an acceptable loophole to the guidlines on the bottle that you are supposed to give two gummies to children over 2. Our medical minds surmised that it surely is acceptable to give one to a one year old. No harm done, I'm sure.
Annie loves the gummies, and after having one, she always screams for more. But we always tell her, "No, you have had your one." To the point where the vitamin is now referred to as a "one". Annie's head might explode when she turns two and is allowed two "ones".

So there are lots of words, but half hardly mean what you think they mean. Or they mean something else and you have to be fluent in Annie to understand. Crayons are A-a's (long A). Binkie is mimi. Teaching a child to speak is a very powerful position, if you think about it. You could really screw someone up, if you were so inclined. Not that we would ever, but there's some potential there.

Which leads me to yesterday. Annie had casually been lolling around with her finger in her ear. Twice she looked at me, finger in ear, and said "huwt" (hurt). Being the aforementioned medical expert, I figured it was a self-inflicted wound from jabbing her finger in her ear. I mean, she just had an ear infection a month ago, which was treated properly with antibiotics. It can't be another ear infection.

But then there was the melting down at stay and play. And the melting down at naptime. And another "huwt" after nap. So I started wondering if my child actually spoke english and was trying to....communicate something to me. Something other than the crazed desire for her cinderella doll or being all done with her dinner.

Doctor was called, appointment was set up, and away we went to get the ears checked. I sounded like an insane person telling the nurse practitioner that annie "told me" her ear hurt. Yes, eating, sleeping, activity levels are all fine. Just that my 20 month old told me. Yes, with words. I noticed a slight sideways glance as she picked up her pointy ear light inspector thing, probably thankful this was the end of the day and she had a limited number of loony mothers with too much time on their hands to deal with. Light goes in the right ear....

"Well, it seems we've got ourselves a good communicator here!"

I try not to rejoice at the fact that my child has an ear infection, but I did do a little inner Mommy happy dance. Sweet, sweet vindication. Bad, bad ear infection.