Enjoy Speaking with Your Baby
After months of effort, you are finally able to communicate with your baby in a way that would not have been possible without the use of sign. He is sharing with you his wants, feelings, and observations in a way that not all babies can. And while his signing is bridging the existing communication gap, it won’t be long before your baby begins to speak. You may find that you have bittersweet feelings as he learns to talk.
Every milestone in your child’s life and every stage in his development are beautiful and exciting moments that should be treasured. This time of personal and intimate conversation, however, may be especially poignant to a parent. After all, you are connecting with your child in a very deep way, and you have worked hard to get your child to this point. When he begins to talk, his signing days may be over.
E-SSENTIAL
Babies will naturally drop their signs as they learn to speak. However, if you want your child to continue signing into toddlerhood and childhood, just keep signing. As long as you do not stop modeling the sign when you or he says a word, he is likely to continue to enjoy communicating through signing.
When your little one does learn to talk, you will begin a whole new adventure in communication. You will delight in listening to him as he chatters about anything and everything, and the two of you will enjoy new realms of communication. However, you may find that you still miss the days of signing with your baby. So be sure to enjoy this very special time and the intimate conversation that you share exclusively with your baby.
