The Silent Day
The day that I didnt speak to my baby was a day that I learned so much about communication.
Seven month olds can't speak. They can't read our minds and we can't read theirs. Communication has to come in a different form when it comes to babies.
About a week ago, we woke up early Sunday morning with a crying and hot baby. He had a fever. The fever broke later that day but a stuffy nose, cough and sneeze replaced it. On Monday, I woke up with whatever he had. For a whole week, we swapped this nasty cold. Even my husband came down with the cold.
By the weekend, I was losing my voice. By the following Monday, I was hoarse. When I tried to talk, Baby E would jerk away and cry. I sounded like I was stuck in a vacuum cleaner. I couldn't talk.
So it began, the day that I didn't speak to my child. This is what I learned.
1. Quiet book time is still considered reading. Each day I flip through a half dozen of picture books. I tried to focus on the pictures while reading the story. When I was hoarse, I just pointed, tapped, and mimicked the pictures. I felt like a silent black & white movie character. Baby E was so intrigued and laughed alot.
2. (My) Sign Language works! Hubby and I have been signing to him for over 6 weeks. Sign language is very popular amongst young parents. As someone who learned a little bit of sign language growing up, I knew that I should try to teach my son something. He reacted to 3 major signs and made the day easier.
3. Just looking at him was enough. There were times that Baby E would make crying or whiny sounds. Before this day, I would call out "What's wrong?" or "Where are you?" But the day I was hoarse, I just looked at him. Nothing was wrong as before, but I noticed he just smiled and went back to making his sounds. Perhaps those are his play sounds. It dawned on me that I was disturbing his before. No need to disturb him by requesting a response to my calling.
Those are the three lessons I learned on the day that I couldn't speak. These might seem like small lessons, but the realization of one's own actions is the beginning of success.
The next day I was able to speak a little louder, but I became hoarse by noon. I knew exactly what I needed to do in order to get through the day. Now it's a week later and I have found myself implementing some changes in my day. I no longer call his name just because he made a whining sound. I have added two more signs to the day. Im hoping to see the fruit of my labor, but I am still waiting for him to sign to me. And finally, we read a least one book silently. I just point and flip pages. He is starting to actually look at the pictures rather than looking at the room.
Have you ever had a similar speechless day? What happened?
Seven month olds can't speak. They can't read our minds and we can't read theirs. Communication has to come in a different form when it comes to babies.
About a week ago, we woke up early Sunday morning with a crying and hot baby. He had a fever. The fever broke later that day but a stuffy nose, cough and sneeze replaced it. On Monday, I woke up with whatever he had. For a whole week, we swapped this nasty cold. Even my husband came down with the cold.
By the weekend, I was losing my voice. By the following Monday, I was hoarse. When I tried to talk, Baby E would jerk away and cry. I sounded like I was stuck in a vacuum cleaner. I couldn't talk.
So it began, the day that I didn't speak to my child. This is what I learned.
1. Quiet book time is still considered reading. Each day I flip through a half dozen of picture books. I tried to focus on the pictures while reading the story. When I was hoarse, I just pointed, tapped, and mimicked the pictures. I felt like a silent black & white movie character. Baby E was so intrigued and laughed alot.
2. (My) Sign Language works! Hubby and I have been signing to him for over 6 weeks. Sign language is very popular amongst young parents. As someone who learned a little bit of sign language growing up, I knew that I should try to teach my son something. He reacted to 3 major signs and made the day easier.
3. Just looking at him was enough. There were times that Baby E would make crying or whiny sounds. Before this day, I would call out "What's wrong?" or "Where are you?" But the day I was hoarse, I just looked at him. Nothing was wrong as before, but I noticed he just smiled and went back to making his sounds. Perhaps those are his play sounds. It dawned on me that I was disturbing his before. No need to disturb him by requesting a response to my calling.
Those are the three lessons I learned on the day that I couldn't speak. These might seem like small lessons, but the realization of one's own actions is the beginning of success.
The next day I was able to speak a little louder, but I became hoarse by noon. I knew exactly what I needed to do in order to get through the day. Now it's a week later and I have found myself implementing some changes in my day. I no longer call his name just because he made a whining sound. I have added two more signs to the day. Im hoping to see the fruit of my labor, but I am still waiting for him to sign to me. And finally, we read a least one book silently. I just point and flip pages. He is starting to actually look at the pictures rather than looking at the room.
Have you ever had a similar speechless day? What happened?
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