Sunnyboy's favourite sayings and 'manners'

When I started this blog one of Sunnyboy's favourite sayings was "Sunny day today mama". I quickly realised that what he meant by this was "I have strong feelings about you/this situation, and I don't know how to express them" and "I love you". He would say it whether it was sunny or raining, and sometimes would sit up in bed and say it in the dark in the middle of the night. Even in the short time since then his language has developed phenomenally and generally now when he talks about the weather he is referring to the weather. He has so many new phrases now that he uses regularly and I thought I'd list a few of his current favourites.

"What are you doing mama?"
"Let's do it again!"
"...for some reason."
"Not reeeally."
"That's right."
"I got an idea!"
"Hmmm, can't decide."
"Oh, Thanks!"
"Yes pease!"
"I'm so sorry."
"Feel better now?"
"Never mind."
"Oh well."
"Buba will help." (our word for nursing)
"Got something to tell you...I 'ove you."
"Hold on tight!"
"I do it."
"I think so."
"Where could it be?"
"It's a mystery."
and of course there's an old favourite, "To insity (infinity) and beyond!"

It's interesting that although I have never once told him to say please, thank you or sorry, he has been saying all of them to me (and Nozy) frequently and sincerely, for quite some time and is also now starting to say them regularly to other people. Just as I have never tried to teach him how to use pronouns and over the last 2-3 weeks he has started using them frequently and usually correctly, he's also learning 'manners' in a way that he's developmentally ready to do and without any 'teaching' necessary from me. In fact 'teaching manners' by instructing a child to parrot words and phrases seems a pretty rude way to speak to him or her and is not how I would speak to another adult, or want to speak to Sunnyboy.

How Children Learn Manners by Naomi Aldort