They say that only parents can understand their toddlers when they are just learning to speak. I can definitely understand why they say that. Though Aiden doesn’t have a huge vocabulary yet, he is skilled at communicating using the words he does have combined with signs and other gestures. He has signs for almost all of his favourite songs, most of which he’s made up. He also has many words that sound the same.

For example, he will say “do” when he wants you to do something for him. However, a slight change of tone and “do” can refer to a door (among many other things). “Ow” can mean “ow” or “out”, depending on intonation. “Whee-you” can be the sound of a siren he’s heard, a truck he’s seen (he thinks all trucks make that noise) or the wheel on any vehicle.

Most recently has been my discovery of his meaning for the phrase “Boo whoa”. He was using this phrase for a day or two before I could figure it out. I think he means to say “this one” or “that one” or “the other one.” I am pretty sure the “whoa” means “one”, though I have no idea what the “boo” could be. Here he is playing and saying it repeatedly as he chooses different toys:

He will say this now if he’s in one swing and wants to go in another. If he’s finished breastfeeding on one side and wants the other. If he wants a different pair of shoes. It has a meaning, a very specific meaning, but I have no idea what exactly he’s trying to say.