A New "Skill"

When Elina was about 8 months old, we started doing some sign language with her. After 3-4 weeks, she did her first sign, "more." It wasn't perfect, but it was there and she did it consistently. It was really great that she could do it because it helped us understand when she needed or wanted more of anything. Then she did "milk" and "eat" shortly after.

So we've been showing Eli the signs for "more," "eat," and "milk" ever since he turned 7 months. Man, is this boy lazy! He barely just started doing the sign for "more" when he turned 10 months. It's very subtle because he only does it once at each meal. It's almost like he's saying, "Ok, here's your sign. Now feed me already!!" I've seen him do the sign for "milk" as well, but he only does it right when he's already in position to nurse. One time at a meal I asked him if he wanted more. He looked straight into my eyes, put his right hand out, and made the sign for "milk." The audacity! We know that he knows which signs are which, but he likes to toy with us. Boys.

Because his signing is so sporadic, I can't ever get it on the camera. Instead, I have a video of Eli's other new "skill." He knows how to shake his head. This doesn't sound like much to a lot of you, but it's a big baby thing. We'll say, "No, no, no, no" and he'll shake his head. He does it really well when his head is leaning back on something, like the floor or the stroller. But when his head doesn't have support and he shakes it, it looks like his head is going to fall off. He loses control of it sometimes. It's hilarious! I'll have to get video of that some day, too.