"help"

It's been said that sign language can help babies communicate, thereby helping to eliminate frustration. That's one reason to teach your kid sign language. Then there's this one: Who doesn't want to see a baby signing like a little monkey?

We started teaching Elian signs thinking it might be fun. If it helped him communicate, well then, all the better. The only problem is, now that he knows quite a few signs, you just can't pretend you don't see them and ignore his requests. To let him know he's been understood, you sort of have to give him what he wants. Even though he can say the word "milk" well enough for us to understand, it's not uncommon for him to aggressively squeeze an invisible cow udder when he wakes up in the middle of the night until we cave.

Then there's the little "game" he's been playing since Valentine's Day where he takes the mylar heart balloons I bought him and releases them to the ceiling at the landing of the steps where you have to climb the stairs in order to reach them. "Help" he pleads desparately beating his chest with both his palms. This continues until you go up the stairs to fetch said balloon and bring it back down to him. Repeat 10,000 times. Come to think of it, the only time this request for help has been used is when he wants me to fetch something out of his reach (balls, balloons, Target, etc.)

We originally taught him "all done," so he could tell us when he's done eating. Now he uses it in any circumstance when he's had enough of what's going on, as if to say, "BO-RRRRRINNNGGG, let's move on to the next thing. I'm SO all done with this. Remove me from this current setting and show me something more exciting."

Stupid sign language.