You know the typical warm-fuzzy TV show or movie that features the little baby saying his first word? The first word, with lots of clarity around what it was and when it happened? Yeah, it doesn’t work that way. At least, it hasn’t worked that way with Mathias. He’s been quite proficient at pumping out the baby babble for some time now, including “da da da da” and “ma ma ma ma,” but assuming he knows what those sounds mean has always required a bit of a leap of faith on the part of Lisa and I.

As of today, there seems to be sufficient evidence that he has grasped “da da,” “ma ma” and a new one, “a da.” “A da,” which translates into adult-speak as “all done,” appears to count as his first multi-word statement as well. After weeks of “all done” from Lisa at the end of each of Mathias’ meals, Mathias has started dropping “a da” when he’s done eating.

Tonight I came home just a few minutes before Mathias was to go down for the night. Lisa, hearing me enter, asked Mathias “Do you want to see da da?” The response was clear and distinct, even from outside his room and down the hall: “DA DA!” And, true enough, he was looking for me as Lisa carried him out of his room.

Growing up, I never imagined myself as a parent. And now here I am, having little things like this melt my heart.