So in all my 18 months of existence, I’ve always been mystified by this mere action called “talking”. Adults seem to do it very well, one party rattles on and on and the other grunts an occasional acknowledgement to eventually be screamed at by the rattling party accusing the grunting party of “Not listening to a word she was saying”. Then the grunting party will vehemently deny any tuning out and daydreaming behaviour, duly satisfied the rattling party will then again resume the constant whip lash of information. Parties observed were of course my dear parents, Mum rattles and Dad grunts and they call this a conversation.

So eager to please and show my dear ones my amazing powers, I, yours truly also decided to emulate the dear parents and engage in this action called talking. When they said “Hello baby”, I offered my views about the state of affairs on Indian politics, “Oh he needs a bottle”, Mum goes and stuff “said bottle” in my articulating mouth. Or when I was discussing with Dad on “What really happened to Jay-Z in the that elevator, looks like he’s got 100 problems now, eh Dad and Solange is the biggest one!?”. Dad shouts hey the baby’s crying , he might need changing. Whattt..hey I was just making conversation, stop sniffing my bottom Mum. So I was baffled, how come when the parents talk, they understand each other..even though one grunts, but when I talk they all think I’m crying..WHAT..craziness is this. Where’s my right to be heard?!?

Big Sister feeling sorry at my “squealing” attempts, lets me in on a few life secrets.”Hey diaperboy”, she goes. “Babies don’t talk, your shouting just sounds like crying to them, wait a year or two you’ll get the hand of it”. Initially I was a little dubious believing a two feet sized someone who still calls a dog “Bow wow” and a cat “Miaow”…I mean c’mon, Mensa ain’t knocking on your door Big Sister, but then I hate to say it the parents do seem to understand what she says, where I always get something stuffed in my mouth every time I open it to shut me up.  So after an year long wait I finally cracked the code, my mouth moved in the right way and I was able to say “Dada”…Oh the household went crazy..Mum broke down in tears, of joy of course, Great Aunt Gilda danced a jig and my proud Papa even recorded it as his ring tone, my son just spoke he strutted around and his first word was Dad, he was a  proud Papa Bear…Dada..Dada Dada..I was so bowled over by their reaction I called everyone Dada, from the postman, frown from Dad on that one  to even the neighbour’s cat. HEY I finally cracked the code, I felt like I was journeying this past year in the Matrix and I was Keanu and it all made sense…WOAH! Mind blowing..so yeah I’m just going to stick to “Dada”,the family’s happy, I’ll utter another word next year. DADA!!!!

When does your baby start talking?

Your baby learns to talk during his first two years of life. Long before he utters his first word, he's learning the rules of language and how adults use it to communicate. He'll begin by using his tongue, lips, palate, and any emerging teeth to make sounds (cries at first, then "ooh's" and "ahh's" in the first month or two, and babbling shortly thereafter). Soon those sounds will become real words – "mama" and "dada" may slip out and bring tears to your eyes as early as 6 months.

From then on, your baby will pick up more words from you and everyone else around him. And sometime between 18 months and 2 years, he'll begin to form two- to four-word sentences. As your baby makes mental, emotional, and behavioral leaps, he's increasingly able to use words to describe what he sees, hears, feels, thinks, and wants.

What can impede a baby from talking?

If your toddler seems to be developing speech and language problems, a pacifier won't help matters. That's because sucking on a pacifier locks a child's mouth in an unnatural position, making it more difficult for him to develop his tongue and lip muscles normally. If your child is just learning to speak, talking around a pacifier may also limit his opportunities to talk, distort his speech, and cause his tongue to unnaturally flatten at rest. In some cases, using a pacifier frequently can cause the tongue to push forward between the teeth. This sets the stage for dental problems and the development of a "lisp" when producing the sand z sounds. It is also important to make the transition from puredd foods to more chuncky foods, this encourages the child to use muslces around their mouth and strengthen them for speech.

What are babies first words?

At 6 months, your baby begins babbling with different sounds. For example, your baby may say "ba-ba" or "da-da." By the end of the sixth or seventh month, babies respond to their own names, recognize their native language, and use their tone of voice to tell you they're happy or upset. Some eager parents interpret a string of "da-da" babbles as their baby's first words -- "daddy!" Most babies say a few simple words like "mama" and "dadda" by the end of 12 months -- and now know what they're saying. They respond to -- or at least understand, if not obey -- your short, one-step requests such as, "Please put that down."

By Mayuri Jayasinghe