This morning my 2 year old (2 yrs 3 mos) looked outside and said “It’s dark outside.” Followed by “I can’t see anything.” He started singing Old Mac Donald and usually picks an animal, but this morning he said the farmer had a “hat.” I was just about to correct him or ask if he meant “cat,” then he started singing “on his head”, “on his head” and patted his head to the beat.

We play a game- What are you doing?/ Where is so and so? For awhile now LO will say something like “I’m driving in the car” or “I’m eating yogurt” or “Daddy is working in Chicago” and get more specific than just the verb. He’ll tell me “I need my napkin” and “my napkin is in my lap.” If he wants to follow me he will say "I go upstairs with mommy” and tell whatever he has left behind “I’ll be right back milk.” If he’s doing something or observing something he will say “I’m spinning” or “the paper fell.” Then, of course he can tell us exactly what he wants, “I want cake” or “I want to color” or “I want my doggies (Paw Patrol vitamins).”

My husband an I are POC and a little sensitive when people compliment LO on speaking well. Over the last two months he’s been seen by doctors, nurses, family, friends, strangers while running errands, and most recently new caregivers. They all have made positive comments. Some of them like pediatric doctors, a couple of my besties, and the new caregivers for sure interact with kids his own age on a regular basis.

So does he speak well for a 2 year old? Or is there a layer of awe because he’s a black kid? Genuinely curious. We aren’t trying to raise a special snowflake where he gets kudos for just being normal. His daycare teachers are not heaping out a bunch of praise on LO. His class is mixed, but a majority of his classmates are white. For the most part when I speak to the kids at drop off/ pick up I can understand what they are saying although if I ask them to identify the color of an object they are holding most cannot whereas LO can.