More words?

I already wrote about Laurel's first word, "uh-oh," which she began using right after she turned one year old in January. She sometimes said "Mama" and less frequently "Da-da-da" -- but as these words were not usually directed at us, we weren't sure exactly what she meant by them! We're still not sure, for that matter.

She also shakes her head back and forth, which confusingly means "yes." But did I tell you she knows how to say "hi"? She says it in response when others greet her, but she says it on her own as well. She is very friendly.

Now at 14 months, she babbles and jabbers frequently, but until recently I hadn't been able to pick out any additional words, even the most rudimentary or emerging, since she doesn't use any of her word-like syllables in a regular way. Her most common verbal expression is a non-vibrating raspberry, blowing air out in one short blast as she sticks out her tongue, and I think it is used as an all-purpose noncommittal exclamation like we would say "oh" or "huh."

But lately I have spotted a few emerging words. She likes to copy what dogs say, and tries to say both "arf" and "woof." She can say either the beginning or the ending of "arf," but she can't put them together yet, and she can say the ending of "woof" (okay, it sounds like an F, much like the ending of "arf"). She says "eye," which I think means both "Isaac" and, unsurprisingly, "eye." She says a garbled form of "yummy" when she likes something she's eating -- and especially when she wants you to hurry up and give her more of it.

And once or twice she has very clearly said "baby." She loves to look at pictures of babies, so that's not surprising.