I Can't Keep Up!

During Logan's home visit with his speech teacher, Ms. Pam on Monday, she noted, "It's like a switch went on for him all of a sudden." I agreed, adding, "He's just so much more engaged in everything." It is so awesome to hear how he has progressed. She showed him several photos of children doing various activities and asked him to identify verbs by asking things like is she "brushing her teeth" or "eating" and he answered every one correctly, not just saying several words I had never heard him say before, but also adding "ing" to each one! That really amazed me! Verbs that Logan said included "drinking," "catching" (totally new), "eating," "running" (new), "crying," (new), "brushing," (new), "sleeping," (new), "riding," "climbing," (new), and "crawling," (new). I also gave Ms. Pam a long list of words and approximations that he had said since the last time she visited the house on October 13:

1. "hi"
2. "football" (approximation)
3. "owl"
4. "ready"
5. "pebble"
6. "yellow"
7. "tractor"
8. "banana" (approximation = "nana")
9. "please" (approximation)
10. "red"
11. "bowl"
12. "tickle tickle tickle" (approximation = "ga ga ga")
13. "on"
14. "in"
15. "wet"
16. "pod" (his approximation for "iPod")
17. "hat"
18. "down"
19. "hop"
20. "show"
21. "coat"
22. "airplane" (approximation)
23. "under"
24. "work"
25. "home"
26. "blankies" (approximation)
27. "clean"
28. "ride"
29. "mine" (Admittedly, this is my least favorite thing he has learned to say. In true 2 year old fashion, however, he has it down pat.)
30. "good"
31. "candy"
32. "arm"
33. "hard"
34. "me"
35. "leg" (approximation)
36. "hoop"

Now, prepare to be really impressed. Logan also started putting together two-word phrases! On Friday, October 28, he looked out the window and informed me "Gaggy work." (Remember, "gaggy" is his version of "Daddy." That is the first time I heard him say "work.") He had been sad all week that Brett wasn't there and I kept telling him that "Daddy is at work," but I didn't think he necessarily understood that since it is fairly abstract. Maybe he doesn't get what it means, but he definitely can say the words now! Later in the day, he said, "Bye, llama!" to the llama at the farm behind our house. We visit frequently, and I always tell him to say goodbye to the animals when we are ready to leave. Then, while reading, he pointed to a picture and said, "Bobby Elmo." ("Bobby" is his approximation for "baby." "Elmo" is a new word.) Since then, he said, "mummy dog" when he was excited about our pre-Halloween dinner. ("Mummy" is a new word.) He also said, "Bye doggie!" when leaving a house after trick-or-treating. Yesterday, I went to a doctor's appointment and when I returned home, Brett reported that he said, "Mama home!" Last night before bed, he asked for a stuffed "animal" to be put into his crib with him.

Honestly, I am not sure how many words Logan knows at this point. I will try to tally them up, but it may be reaching the point when I don't need to keep track as religiously. The important thing is that he is communicating, and the really exciting thing is that he is starting to string words together!