I found some research awhile ago that encouraged teaching and using sign language until age 3.  That may sound excessive, especially if your baby has started talking.  But I was reminded recently why this is important.

When a baby has learned to sign, that is their introduction to words and word meaning.   Your baby has learned that producing a sign not only causes a reaction, but helps them learn more about the world.  When your baby starts to talk, the muscles that produce speech are still developing, that is why words don’t come out right and we have a good chuckle over it. 

“I’m too busy to teach my baby sign language”.  I hear this statement often when I ask new parents if they are using sign language.  It’s a phrase that, quite frankly, baffles me.  As I considered this statement over and over, I came to realize that we don’t actually ‘teach’ our baby sign language, we learn a sign and start using it.  Learn and use. 

Recently I was at a local mall and spent a lot of time in front of the infant/toddler play area.  I love watching interaction with parents and their little ones.  I think we forget (in our busy days) that our babies are constantly learning

At the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference & Exhibition in Boston this October, a policy statement regarding media and young children was released.  Studies dating from 1999 consistently show nothing beats the one-on-one learning experience a baby has and from experience, baby learns best from parents.  Link below.

Pick up a book, cuddle with your baby and have the most wonderful experience there is!

http://www.aap.org/pressroom/mediaunder2.pdf

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Can summer be over?  What an experience for Potts this summer.  The local St. David’s Summer Adventure program has always been a staple for Chad.  Remember that’s how Pete and Rachel met and how it changed their career paths?  (The Story of Potts)  I decided he needed to have fun this year and we skipped the usual summer school.  The camp is a distance from home, so we tried some new transportation.  Oh how does a mother raising a child with special needs ever let go???