TODDLER TALK WITH JACOB AND CLINTON JACOB

He's not exactly talking, but we sure do communicate!  He's a toddler with high energy, arms out-reaching, and purpose,   "I see.  I get."

That's Jacob, a blue eyed, under 2 feet tall, 16 month old, toddle-like walker who's in that excited discovery stage "I see it.  And, by golly, I'm gonna get it!"  

Communication without words?  Here's examples, these were all in one afternoon:   a bite of deviled eggs from GrammyPam gets an "ummmmm" from his hungry lips, a grabbed small poinsettia plant evokes a "ahhhhhh" of pleasure as he reaches up to pull it down to his eye level, and an empty mouth spying desired food on someone's plate provokes, "uh, uh, uh" as in want, want, want.  

And, boy howdy, is he speedy!  He came into the family room waving my pink dowel rod that was stashed behind the utility room door, and we didn't even realize he'd left the room!

Currently master Jacob likes to put things in his mouth.  Yesterday he wandered into the kitchen and came out with food, a club cracker in each hand!  Where he got those is a mystery, and that's funny.  

Mom says he's discovered that if he gets into the bread drawer he can shake a loaf of bread until it pops open so he can have a slice.  I keep saying she's got a hungry boy who's growing more muscle than that little Lilly girl!  Lilly has aversions, and doesn't always eat well.  This boy is a whole new ball game.

His father, Clinton Jacob, confessed.  He told us a story from his own youth.  "Mrs. Gable, probably 60 years old, was my teacher.  In her class I ate a whole glue stick.  I told her,  "Mrs. Gable, I ran out of glue."  I'm sure she looked at me funny since I had pink lips!"  

I just sit there in shock with my own mouth wide open!  Ew, a whole glue stick!!!

And then my mind wanders back to those sayings around the house that emerged from the boys' growing years.  One was  "I'm as hungry as I ever been."   

Another was purloined from my father,   "I'm so hungry my big gut is eating my little gut!" 

"Feed this boy" and the male speaker usually points a finger to his own chest.

"Are you hangry?  Huh, huh, huh, are you hangry?"  (This was brought to us 20 years ago by cousin Jack before it was ever said on TV.)  It means, "Are you so hungry you're angry?"

"Milk this boy!"  means give this boy a glass of milk, or if age appropriate, a baby bottle.

"I need a Hungry Man meal!"  Again, a purloined phrase, this one is from Campbell's soup; you can hear the commercial in your mind, right?  "How do you handle a hungry man?  The man handler."

Sometimes my teenagers would open the refrigerator door, stand inside and holler out, "She ain't got nothing, who wants to go to Hardees?"

They grew, they made sure of it, they left home like good adult sons do, but sometimes on their way back home for a visit they phone,  "Do you have something fixed, or do I need a drive-thru?"  During my pause, thinking of what's in the fridge, or what I might quickly cook-up, they make a quick decision,  "Never-mind, we're going to a drive-through!"

Click.

Well, durn.  Not my arms, but my voice is out-reaching, like Jacob, I need to communicate, "Hey, I'm hangry, too!  Uh, uh, uh."