Signing Fun!

I was first introduced to doing sign language with babies with my sister Rachel. Rachel was very slow to talk (my parents even had her hearing tested) but she caught onto the signing quickly and easily. When Lydia was small we signed with her as well. It was fabulous to have a toddler who, even though she couldn't talk, could sign please, thank-you, more, food, drink etc..

Bethany was an early talker. By fifteen months she would ask "I get down?" every time she got down from anything (even a single step). We tried signing with her, but it went about like this: Mommy~ "Say more Bethany!" (signing "more" contagiously and perhaps obnoxiously!) Bethany~ "More!" (as clear as a bell). Since the point of signing was communication, we didn't push it.

You may remember last fall, as we were struggling to find the right gift for Bethany's third birthday. One of the ideas we had was "Signing Time". I had heard of theses videos before but had never seen them. We decided to take a chance, not that Bethany needed to learn to sign, but we thought that the girls would enjoy them and that perhaps the little ones would pick it up too. All the girls loved it!




It has been especially GREAT for Havilah who still isn't talking very much. Not only did she catch onto the signs quickly, she enjoyed it, and enjoys even more being able to communicate with us better. Here's a sample of some of her favorites!



Signing has been tons of fun for our family. And it's helped with so many "could be frustrating" moments where the little one can actually express what they are wanting or seeing without just fussing about it. I can't wait for all of us to learn some more signs!