Misty from Baby Sign Language contacted me a while back asking if I'd be interested in a guest post to help my readers learn a little more about baby sign language.  I was intrigued!  I had heard so many moms when I had my daughter in 2008 talk about doing baby sign language, they were taking different classes at the EYC and reading different books to help their children communicate. I thought it sounded interesting but never actually looked into it.  I had a few sign language books at home that I got in a box of books at a garage sale and Hannah enjoyed looking though them but never went any further than that.


Now that Everett is here and Hannah has been showing an interest in learning different signs, I jumped at the opportunity to have Misty explain to me and my readers what Baby sign language is and give you some links to their site.  They've got some great resources including flash cards, wall charts, etc.  Check it out if your even a little interested in sign language

What Baby Sign Language Is

Baby sign language is a way of teaching your pre-verbal child to communicate by using hand gestures. Based on ASL (American Sign Language), it is a simplified version for babies and young children. American Sign Language For Babies  is fun, it’s free and, best of all, it really works! You can start to teach baby sign language from birth – in fact, the sooner you start signing with your baby, the sooner she will begin to communicate back to you.

How To Start
It’s best to begin with signs you can use on a daily basis, such as Mommy, Daddy, Milk and More – instructions for these are below. More is (not surprisingly) often the first sign a baby learns to use! Signs that represent something exciting to your baby will be easier for her to learn – begin with these starter signs then build up your range of signs to include other objects, ideas and emotions.

How To Sign
Make the sign every time you say the word to your baby. Say the word that goes with the sign clearly, with good eye contact, while pointing to the thing or person you are describing. Sign when your baby is alert, using an object which is interesting to him, such as Milk or Mummy. Practice the signs beforehand so you feel confident and clear about what you are doing. It’s important to repeat the sign as often as possible – make the sign and say the word every time you do an action or use an object. Once you get started you should be Baby Signing  regularly throughout the day.

Be Patient
Don’t expect too much too soon. Your baby is unlikely to be signing More Milk if she is only 4 months old and you’ve been signing to her for under a week! Research by Dr. Joseph Garcia, one of the founders of baby sign language, says that a baby who starts learning baby signing at seven months old needs around two months of repetition and exposure to a sign to start using it.

Signs To Get You Started

• MOMMY: To make the sign for  Mommy, extend and spread your fingers apart on your right hand. With your little finger facing forwards, tap your thumb on your chin.

• DADDY: To make the sign for Daddy, extend and spread out the fingers on your right hand, then tap your hand on your forehead with your thumb. This is similar to the sign for Mommy but done higher up the head.

• MILK: The sign for Milk  is a lot like the action of milking a cow without the up and down motion. Just pretend you are just squeezing the cow’s udder. Make both hands into a fist, relax and repeat. Milk.

• MORE: To make the sign for More, make an O shape with each hand by meeting your fingers and thumbs. Bring your hands together and separate them a few times.

We were home from the hospital  the next morning to meet his very proud big sister.  She LOVES him like nothing I've seen before and is showering him with TONS of hugs and kisses.  He is nursing great and has already exceeded his birth weight (Fridays weight - 8lbs 9oz).

1. Patiently waiting for the arrival of our second child....only 19 days until his due date!!!

2. Trying to keep the house clean, it's been a struggle but I think Chris finally came up with a good chore plan that keeps us both doing our share of the cleaning/laundry around the house.  It's crazy how much we can get behind on dusting and moping the floors when both of us are exhausted by the end of the day!  And what's even crazier is the amount of mess having 6 people plus 2 dogs (my sister, brother in law, niece and their dog have been living with use for 2 years while saving for their own house) living under your roof can cause!

3. Trying to get the funky smell out of our diapers!  Stay tuned for my full review of Rockin' Green.  I have done an overnight soak and just before I left for work this morning threw them in the washing machine for a good rinse.  I'm not sure how they came out but I'm really hoping they don't stink or hurt my little girls tushie anymore!  I'll have a complete review & my first giveaway on Monday -  Stay tuned!

4. Knitting!

Yes siree...I've been knitting!  Who would have thought me to be a knitter?  I had tried it in the past but was always bored before the project was even finished.  All of my projects were scarves and I'm not sure I ever completed any (even the ones that were suppose to be gifts).

This time around I've been really enjoying it!  I started out with a sweater, I didn't think I've ever be able to do it but I started with a pretty simple pattern and just worked away on it.  It's for Hannah and probably won't fit her now (the sizing is really strange on it for some reason) but I felt pretty good when I got everything sewed together.  I still need to put buttons on it but it's pretty darn cute!


You can find the pattern here.

My next project was to tackle socks.  I REALLY wasn't sure I'd be able to do socks.  I had heard how difficult turning the heel could be and that socks were a real pain in the butt but you know what, I actually really enjoyed doing them.  Once I figured out the pattern and how it was suppose to be done I caught on pretty quickly and did a heck of a job if I do say so myself!   My first set was for "baby brother" and my second set was for Hannah.  I think they turned out really sweet!  I did find that the biggest size 2/3 years was a little snug on Hannah when I was finished but I'm not sure if that was the way I knit it or because she has big feet (size 8-9) or both.  Obviously I don't know about "baby brothers" because he isn't here yet!  But I can't wait to try them on him!




You can find the pattern here.

I found it using a really cool "knitting social network" called Ravelry.  Check it out here.  It's got tons of free patterns, lots of help from people working on the same things, it's a great resource for someone new or old to knitting!  I'm LOVING it over there!  You can find me over at Ravelry under the username kshiell.  Add me as a friend if you're a knitter!  I'd love to see what you're working on and chit chat! :)



So the next thing I'm working on (I just bought the yarn last night) is a pair of mittens and a hat for Hannah and my niece, Keira.  It's just a really simple pattern apparently and I'm looking forward to the finished product!  You can find the pattern for it here again I found this on ravelry.

Anyway, I am totally loving knitting right now, it keeps me relaxed and calm and happy!  I love being able to create something from scratch and since I'm not doing my photography stuff right now (I'll get back to that in January, when I'm half way use to having 2 kiddos at home!!!) it gives me something creative to do.

Well the results are in and it looks like we have a winner....