Mad Gab

Ever feel like you're playing a game of Mad Gab when you're trying to understand your toddler?

Kip has a pretty big vocabulary for his age, even if no one besides our family ever hears it. He's like his daddy in that he's pretty quiet around others but talks nonstop at home with us. 

He of course copies so many words we say throughout the day. But he also adds new words/phrases to his vocabulary every.single.day...it really amazes me!!

Since I'm with Kip 24/7, I understand him better than anyone.  I know the code words he uses for things or can piece together bits of conversation to figure out new words he's saying.  I can usually figure out what he's saying pretty quickly but if I can't he gets pretty frustrated. I try to get him to show me, but sometimes that doesn't work either.

Poor Eric tries to understand, but a lot of times he's way off. Mostly because he doesn't observe the surrounding situation and just reflects what HE wants onto what Kip is saying.  :)

Kory's the worst though. She completely makes up what Kip says...all.the.time. The other day after I picked her up from school Kip was saying something to her and getting frustrated because she didn't understand. I couldn't really hear him and couldn't turn around to help out. Next thing I know, Kory says, "He's saying, 'down low you're too slow'". Ummmm...pretty sure he's not.  He'd never heard that before. Lol.

Today in the bathroom he was hanging onto the tie of my robe and swinging. It was hanging on a hook; I wasn't wearing it. ;)  He kept repeating something over and over, a phrase not just a word.  It sounded like this "mommy, ookame." He said it over and over. I just kind of chuckled in response. Then it hit me, he's saying, "Mommy, look at me!".  So I repeated it and he smiled and continued swinging from my robe tie and saying "ookame".

Score 1 for mommy on today's round of Mad Gab!!

However, there's one thing he used to say all the time that none of us could ever figure out. Now it's just become a joke between us. Sometimes he'll just say, "Mommy, upitall.". Then we both laugh because we don't know what it means. If he's fussy or getting restless in the car I'll say, "Kip, upitall.". And he starts giggling. I'll be interested to know if we ever figure out what he meant when he first started saying "upitall". :)