Chase is signing milk!

We all started signing to Chase pretty early, maybe around 3 months. It comes natural to us I suppose since we did it with Tate for so long. Tate is also very excited to teach Chase all the signs. So I suppose I should not be so shocked that Chase is signing milk! At first I thought it was a fluke, but yesterday we were running some errands in the afternoon before dinner and Chase clearly made the milk sign (which looks like you are milking a cow) and whined, like he was saying - "MOMMMYYYYY, it is time for fooddd!!! Feed mee some milk!!!!" It was adorable and I was so excited, so we have started signing everything we can remember and I am going to bust out our signing books so we can refresh our memories.

We had so much fun signing with Tate and I suspect that it might have had a little to do with why Tate has such clear speech - I could be totally wrong, but it doesn't matter, it is so much fun! I found this small blurb about signing with babies and how it boosts vocabulary:

when your pre-verbal baby is exposed to baby sign language, his brain is being "wired" for language. You are stimulating your baby's brain in areas that normally would not be stimulated until several months later. When the time comes for learning more language, be it spoken or written (or in ASL, should you choose to continue learning sign language), your child will pick up words much faster than if he hadn't had a head start with baby sign language. 

I, of course, have been trying endlessly to get his sign on video, but alas, he has become a little "trinket-focused" - as soon as I pull out the Flip or full-sized video camera he pretty much stops what he is doing and just looks at the big shinning "thing". Same goes for his clapping. One of his new favorite activities is clapping his hands together, it is so cute! But I also am having trouble "capturing the moment".

Here is a picture of Chase right AFTER he finished clapping! :)

Chase is also starting to pick up food on the highchair tray. So far he mostly just plays with the peas or pieces of cheese. It won't be long before he can actually get it into his mouth! I am also introducing a sippy (the peach cup on his tray), but he just doesn't dig it yet.

The last Chase detail I want to post is that he is loosing a little of his baby fat. He is getting longer and thinner. He went down in his weight just a touch - as far as the % on the charts - which the doc says is completely normal because he is using more calories to sit up and move around more. I miss his roly-poly belly a little, but it is still irresistibly kissable! He also rolled over from this back to his belly the other day - our little baby is on his way to becoming a toddler!

Other foods in his repertoire now include: salmon, beef, liver mousse, green beans, carrots, peas, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, and cream of broccoli soup - he loves it all!