Friday, January 23, 2009

Signing away!

Thank you for all the prayers and words of encouragement! Please keep them coming! I am on strict directions to sleep as much as I can today -- not only to make up for no sleep last night but also because these major contraction bouts seem to take place in the evening. If we get another bout tonight, I want to be as rested as possible. I am taking a quick nap break to exercise the dog before returning to bed. But, I wanted to share some other fun news during the wait . . .

Wednesday night, Isaac clapped for the first time. Clapped and clapped back when we started doing it. Way fun. My mom wants it on video. It's hard to capture these tiny moments on camera, but I'll see what I can work out.

But even more fun than the clapping was that last night, Isaac did his first sign! We've been doing some basic sign language with him since he was four months old. If you aren't familiar with this, it basically works its way back to the fact that children of deaf parents are able to communicate long before the children of speaking children. I still remember being at my friend Beth B's house in Minnesota, and her daughter signed "please" when we were eating pie. Instead of throwing a fit because she wanted something and no one knew what it was, she was able to tell us, "I want that" or "please." At that moment I knew this was something I wanted to do with my child. Many people worry that it effects the language development of children, but there has been no research to show that to be the case.

The biggest sign I have been doing is "milk". I do this every time I give him a bottle in hopes that he can tell me he is hungry. Well last night, he started fussing. JB asked him if he wanted milk and gave him the sign. Isaac did it back! Way cool! The author of the book said that his son did his first sign at eight months old. Isaac is eight and a half months so not too far behind! This morning, Isaac proved it was not a fluke when he did it again! Go Chubba Chubba!

We are working on a few other signs including "eat" and "finished", "bath" and "more", "please" and "thank you" but I haven't introduced many more yet mainly because I wanted to see if this could work and also because I have trouble remembering too many signs myself. (This may go with my pregnancy Dory brain. The other day I mailed JB's medical board letter without the letter in it. It had a stamp. Had a return address label. But it didn't have the letter inside. Oh well. Resend.)

Anyways, the fact that Isaac might be able to tell me he is hungry way before he can talk is exhilarating! it's nearly as exciting as the moment that Scrubs connected ringing a bell with being let out to use the bathroom. Who needs words or barks in our house!? Yippeee!

11 comments:

Beth said...

Congrats on your first sign! I read that most kids don't sign back until 12 months--so 8 1/2 is a great accomplishment. We still use sign with Sarah even though she can communicate easily with words. Thank you was a great help over the holidays as we could ask her to say thank you without embarassing her. Yeah Isaac--keep it up!

Sam said...

I'll be praying for you and thinking of you! Wow, Nolan didn't sign until about 11 months and then took off with it about 12 months. It really was so fun and rewarding to sign! Yay Isaac, way to go!

Bethany said...

Good job, Isaac. I didn't start signing with the boys until around 10 mo. and they signed back around 12 mo. I'm so glad I taught them sign. By the time they were 2 they knew about 50 signs but used about 15-20 consistantly. One of the best signs I taught the boys was "help." I didn't do the ASL version, but patted my chest twice for it (hopefully that's not an ASL sign that means something bad - I did read in my baby sign book that the author used that for 'help' until his son had more fine motor control for the real sign.

Get lots of rest. Praying for you.

Bethany

Jenny said...

That's great about the signing! We are working on it. It's good to know that maybe one day she will stop looking at me like I am a complete idiot everytime I sign to her.

Rest up!!

Jenny

Rachel said...

Ahh signing. We did that with our kids. Carson took to it by 6 months, kid you not, he was signing more and please!! Addison didn't get in to it as much but she does the please, thank you are her favorite.
Take care and hopefully you are resting!!

Alyson said...

Congrats on Issac's first sign.
Funny story, I was talking on the phone with my sister whos youngest daughter she taught signs too. So we are talking on the phone and I can her her husband in the back ground and we are all having a conversation, her other kids are already in bed and Emerson is in her highchair having a snack, with a signing child of course you have to be looking at them to see the sign. So faintly in the back ground I hear "more, more, more" and I ask my sister which of my other "3" nieces are out of bed, The "mores are still continuing and my sister starts cracking up. She says "clearly Emerson felt we were not giving her enough attention while we were fixing our dinner so she is now not only giving the sign for more over and over she is now decided to say it as well". It was soooo cute. She is now 27 months old and still signs. We love it. I will pray you have a sweet little baby this weekend.
Alyson

Anonymous said...

Wendi and John: Have been following for years. We are wishing your family the very best (we know you will do great!). You deserve all the happiness in the world.

Love,
Summer and Billy

Anonymous said...

Wendy good luck on your labor, I know you will do wonderfully!!! I hope to follow you soon we just started trying so wish me luck!!
Joy

Blessed Blackman Bunch said...

Yay! Nothing better to me than a signing baby. I don't do whining and the likes so this kept me sane!
You have the basic/best ones. Good for you and John and WAY TO GO Isaac! :)

Anonymous said...

Josh says...

So that's why my wife hung that bell by our bathroom! I KNEW IT!

Anonymous said...

Oh wendi i have been checking the blog way to much, i am thinking about you lots and hoping you go soon. give isaac lots of love for me!

-bri