I’d like to present to you a new series on the Limitless Family: Sophia’s words! She is 1,5 years old now – 19 months, to be exact – and all of a sudden her vocabulary grows in rapid space.
Sophia loves to talk, and has been babbling a lot from the moment she discovered her voice. Needless to say, she is very happy we can finally understand a few things that come out of her mouth. She loves it!
Luis and I speak mostly Spanish to her. During the day, when he is off to work, I also mix in a few Dutch words. However, the videos she watches on tv and her toys that ‘talk’ are mostly Dutch spoken. I suspect this to be the reason that her first words were in Dutch, despite the fact she probably hears more Spanish in her day to day life.
We are not worried that she will be able to speak only one language. Nor that she won’t understand her own language. Why? Because both are her own languages.
At this moment we live in the Netherlands, and for school and communication it will be important that she can speak Dutch. But all of her cousins live in Mexico, and even though they do learn English on kindergarten, let’s not confuse the whole thing with adding yet another language. She needs Spanish to be able to communicate with her Mexican family, period.
This means that most words she knows are in Dutch, but she also learned a few in Spanish. I’ll add the versions she uses and their English translation.
First words
As you can imagine, her first words were mama and papa. Possible in both Spanish and Dutch. I’m still not sure if she understands the concept of the word though, as she sometimes seems to randomly shout it to objects as well. Sometimes she calls me papa, and Luis mama. But hey, these are just details, right!
And how come toddlers learn to say ‘no’ way before they learn to say ‘yes’?
Another important word in the Garcia-Vertommen household has been ‘Poes’. From the moment she met cats, and we gifted her a stuffed animal of a cat, Sophia learned the word poes. Right now she probably believes every kind of animal is a poes, but she does shout ‘poes’ at cats with a lot of enthusiasm. She also learned how to me-ow, though her favorite animal sound is ‘waf’ (dog).
Da-daaa! (bye) and Oh-Oh are her standard sounds, and the word she probably loves the most is ‘proost’ (cheers). Better said, the version she makes of it.
The New Words
More recently we started noticing a new level in Sophia’s words, and she also seems more perceptive of learning new words. Yay!
- Koek = cookie, used for cookies, bread, anything that can be aten or looks as food
- Schoenen = shoes, when I ask her where her shoes are, she goes and finds them <3
- Nijntje = Miffy, a bunny. A childrens figure.
- Appel = apple, or fruit in general
- Mas = more in Spanish, but she also uses it for tomato (tomaat)
- Agua = water in Spanish
- Tut = pacifier
- Eten = eat, when she wants to eat or when she’s happy to see what we’ve served her.
- Kom = come! And she grabs my hand or signs me to come over
- Bumba = her favorite show, don’t ask me why
- Oso = bear, because of Masha y el oso
- Koken = cooking, she got a wooden kitchen for Christmas
- Aca = here, and she says it while she is pointing at something <3
- Auto = car
- Baby/bebe = she says it to her doll
- Gracias = thank you, or as Sophia says it: gashas
Versions of saying goodbye
In the Netherlands we have different ways of saying goodbye, add the Spanish words and you have a whole vocabulary by itself just to say goodbye. Sophia is already becoming an expert.
Dadaa = daag
Doei = bye
Bye = bye
Adios = bye
As you can see, we have a lot more to talk about. Sophia can finally show a couple of things she wants and she loves playing with words and us. I think it’s one of my favorite periods in motherhood. The moment she sounds as if she just spoke out a word she never used before. The countless times after that you try to repeat that exact same word, in order to let her repeat it. And if she feels like it, she will actually repeat it. With a big smile on her face.
It’s also with a smile on my face that I’m writing this article right now, remembering all of Sophia’s words and her happy face when she notices someone actually understands her.
Looking for the new words that are still to be learned. I can’t wait to find out – and share – what she’ll learn in the next round!
