First Words

Do parents ever know for certain when and what a baby's first words are? We have been wondering for weeks if Liam has been using words. He seems to be saying "mama" and "dada" to try to get our attention--sometimes. I thought I heard him refer to Finbar as "oggie." Nana was sure that he was saying "car" over the weekend. I wonder if we have missed some of his words in translation or if we have invented words out of his sounds. Of course, he rarely responds to our prompts to use a word. Then, yesterday we had a breakthrough with witnesses. When Evan and I arrived at day care to pick up Liam, Liam said very clearly and loudly "Ev-Ah" after hearing his brother's voice. I actually thought it was another one of the kids, but his day care provider confirmed it was Liam's voice. As if to further show off his new skills, Liam walked up to Finbar this morning and said "uggie." Why waste time with one syllable words when you can go straight to two syllable words? Evan better watch out. The competition for air space will soon begin.