Baby Talk

When Andrew was a baby I talked to him all day long. We had these long conversations where I'd tell him what I was doing around the house: Now we're going to start dinner. Did you see me get more water for Fenway? That's because he's thirsty. Look at all the pretty trees outside! The leaves are blowing in the wind.

Blah, blah blah. And he'd grunt or babble back at me.

I may have gone a little overboard. But he was a great talker, using full sentences pretty early on. I'm sure all that talking helped his language skills, right?

Well, now Caroline gets to listen to me talk to Andrew.



Okay, It's not that I don't talk to her, but I really do talk to Andrew all day long. So she gets the short end of my conversation stick.

Sometimes when I'm changing her diaper and it's just the two of us I realize that she's just lying there and I'm not saying a word, no head shoulders knees and toes. No itsy bity spider, no practicing saying mama.



And I feel so bad about it! I always used diaper changes to say or sing something fun to Andrew. But now it's like I'm all talked out.

I've been making a pointed effort to spend lots of time talking to Caroline while Andrew is at Mother's Day Out. We talk and talk during lunchtime when it's just the two of us.



I know it's important for kids to have down time so I keep telling myself that she enjoys the quiet too. And maybe she does. And I'm sure she listens to Andrew and me talk so surely that counts for something.

But I do worry about it a bit - is she getting enough attention? It's just different being the second baby. I guess you have to learn to share really early on.