What language does your toddler speak?

There was a short time period yesterday where I really felt like I was in a foreign country.  Or maybe it felt more like a game of charades, either way, by the end all I could do was laugh and give my darling 17 month old daughter a big hug for all her frustrations.

My daughter is pretty verbal so far and normally her attempts to communicate are quite good.  She has many words in  her repertoire and it's not that often that I am completely lost in determining what she wants or needs. Yesterday, I was completely lost!  She woke up from her nap on the wrong side of the crib (she was battling a bit of a cold it seems) and that started the whole situation.

She kept pointing to a cup so I figured she wanted some water.  No problem.  I took the cup and filled it with water and gave it to her.  The result - toddler meltdown.  Okay, time to guess again!  Apparently she just wanted to play with the cup, she wasn't thirsty.  Then she was pointing at some muffins we had on the counter so I figured she wanted a snack.  No problem.  I took out a muffin, cut it in half, and put it in a bowl and gave it to her.  The result - toddler meltdown.  I eventually figured out that she wanted a WHOLE muffin (cutting it up is for babies, don't you know - direct result of having an older sibling I'm pretty sure!) and didn't appreciate my decision to cut it.  Whew.

She loves playing with cups!

Another meltdown followed over sitting in her high chair versus the small table we have in the kitchen.  After all three of these little incidents in about 15 minutes, I was laughing - what else was there to do?.  Here I was, sounding quite silly, pitching out a thousand permutations of what she might want (muffin, apple, no snack, etc, etc, etc) and I am sure in her little head she was so frustrated thinking she was clearly communicating as best she could and I was just completely missing her point.  She was speaking a language that on some days I guess I am just not well versed in!

Oh the joys of toddlerhood!  I have to admire a girl that knows what she wants though and after a few cuddles (and finally a drink of water and a snack prepared to her specifications, of course) we went on with our day and had a lovely afternoon.  I guess it could have ruined our time together, but even when I think of it today, it makes me smile for some reason.  I am enjoying watching her grow up and these incidents are a true indication that my baby is no longer a baby at all!