AW: first word!

joynalanson · April 2014

The other day during mirror time my lil one said "hi"! I thought it was just a sigh but then he kept saying it! I even got it on video. I'm so pumped! The crazy part was I was trying to get him to say "dada" and joked that he would say "yeah" first because when he's babbling that's my response.

Anyone else's LO said their first word? My son was 3 months 1 day old.

nolagal79 · April 2014

You aren't serious, right?

joynalanson · April 2014

Quite serious. I said my first word early too. I called my ma.

nolagal79 · April 2014

At 3 months 1 day the brain is not developed enough to have "words." Words require meaning and understanding and ownership - comprehension. What your baby "said" was a combination of sounds - cooing - the air stream being manipulated by oral structures.

cnctf · April 2014

My DD is no where near saying anything real. She just started baby babbling recently, and your son already is saying hi??

sunnyplaces · April 2014

Congrats on special time with your LO! My understanding of cognitive development is that our LOs do engage in a form of verbal communication at this age in that they are using and hearing their voice for the first time as they coo and make non-sense sounds. Describing the 'hi' as a first 'word' is cute but not accurate as a word has meaning and the baby's brain has a lot more growing to do before it can understand the meaning of our words and respond to them. That said, it sounds like you're having fun communicating in your own special way, congrats!

BABYROSEJEANS17 · April 2014

My DS says "hi" but I attribute it to his babbling which he's doing more of. I don't consider this to be his first word.

wifetomrb101 · April 2014

nolagal79 said:

At 3 months 1 day the brain is not developed enough to have "words." Words require meaning and understanding and ownership - comprehension. What your baby "said" was a combination of sounds - cooing - the air stream being manipulated by oral structures.

This. All of it.

Toribaker171 · April 2014

DD says "ma" too, but it doesn't count as her first word since it's just a sound she babbles and has no real meaning to her at this age.... Babies vocalize all sorts of things at three months, just because it sounds like a word, doesn't mean it is.... Agree with PP, they have to be able comprehend it for it to be a word, and at three months that's not possible.

joynalanson · April 2014

I figure if he's able to copy me it counts. I don't thoroughly expect him to start greeting ppl at the door but the interaction we had was cool and I'm excited about it. If he had said mama or dada I'd have been just as excited.

Toribaker171 · April 2014

I completely agree @joynalanson, it is an awesome interaction! I loved the first time Allie said "ma" and every time she repeats it I love it more even if she doesn't know what it means yet. This is a very important developmental stage for them so you should definitely enjoy talking to him often. I was just pointing out it isn't technically his "first word", but it is setting the stage for him to learn communication skills and eventually his actual first word! It's definitely something to be excited about

peanutmuse · April 2014

joynalanson said:
I figure if he's able to copy me it counts. I don't thoroughly expect him to start greeting ppl at the door but the interaction we had was cool and I'm excited about it. If he had said mama or dada I'd have been just as excited.

Copying you is cute and exciting -- I feel the same way -- but it definitely does not "count" as a word.

But yeah, still cute anyway.

RedSaffron · April 2014

I totally understand how you feel about the excitement. We said hello and DD coo'ed back and it really sounded like she said the word hello back. SO and I laughed about it, but knew it couldn't count as her first word yet.

holly142 · April 2014

tarajeannette said:

Is "mirror time" a thing I should be doing too?! I'm way out of the loop on modern parenting.

My DD loves looking in the mirror and often when she is upset we will go make faces in the mirror, which usually makes her happy. I don't have this on my mental list of something I should do everyday, like tummy time or my DD's physical therapy stretches which both are important for her physical development. It is just something we do for fun

pinkyxboo · April 2014

sunnyplaces said:
Congrats on special time with your LO! My understanding of cognitive development is that our LOs do engage in a form of verbal communication at this age in that they are using and hearing their voice for the first time as they coo and make non-sense sounds. Describing the 'hi' as a first 'word' is cute but not accurate as a word has meaning and the baby's brain has a lot more growing to do before it can understand the meaning of our words and respond to them. That said, it sounds like you're having fun communicating in your own special way, congrats!

Exactly.

sugarland726 · April 2014

sunnyplaces said:

Congrats on special time with your LO! My understanding of cognitive development is that our LOs do engage in a form of verbal communication at this age in that they are using and hearing their voice for the first time as they coo and make non-sense sounds. Describing the 'hi' as a first 'word' is cute but not accurate as a word has meaning and the baby's brain has a lot more growing to do before it can understand the meaning of our words and respond to them. That said, it sounds like you're having fun communicating in your own special way, congrats!

By far one of the most tactful and kind responses that could have been written to a post like this.

joynalanson · April 2014

holly142 said:

tarajeannette said:

Is "mirror time" a thing I should be doing too?! I'm way out of the loop on modern parenting.

My DD loves looking in the mirror and often when she is upset we will go make faces in the mirror, which usually makes her happy. I don't have this on my mental list of something I should do everyday, like tummy time or my DD's physical therapy stretches which both are important for her physical development. It is just something we do for fun

Right i don't think mirror time is a thing, but he likes looking at himself an it's a good calmer when he is upset. I just didn't know what else to call it.

As for the rest, call me stubborn but again, what else am I supposed to call it? I'm on my cloud and I'm gonna stay there. Like I said, it's not like I expect him to say it to everyone but I enjoyed the moment. I understand from a scientific standpoint but from an emotional standpoint it's something different.

peanutmuse · April 2014

joynalanson said:
As for the rest, call me stubborn but again, what else am I supposed to call it? I'm on my cloud and I'm gonna stay there. Like I said, it's not like I expect him to say it to everyone but I enjoyed the moment. I understand from a scientific standpoint but from an emotional standpoint it's something different.

I would call it mimicking your sounds, personally.

nolagal79 · April 2014

I would call it cooing. It's the appropriate developmental milestone for this age. It's very exciting, but developmentally that is all babies are capable of at this age.

bethughknee · April 2014

joynalanson said:

-snip-
Right i don't think mirror time is a thing, but he likes looking at himself an it's a good calmer when he is upset. I just didn't know what else to call it. As for the rest, call me stubborn but again, what else am I supposed to call it? I'm on my cloud and I'm gonna stay there. Like I said, it's not like I expect him to say it to everyone but I enjoyed the moment. I understand from a scientific standpoint but from an emotional standpoint it's something different.

Cooing. My DD coos in the "hi" sound a lot, too. When she uses a word intentionally (like looking at MH and saying "dada") that's what I will count as her first word. Until then, it's all very cute and articulate coos.

LuGal623 · April 2014

I agree with PPs that babies are not cognitively able to "talk or say a first word" it sounds like mimicking to me. My LO babbles constantly and his noises sometimes sound like he is saying a word or trying to say what I say but I know he isn't there yet. Still love all the noises he makes and it's good to keep encouraging chatter/babbling.

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