The Emergence of No

For quite a while, Dexter has been very much a "yes" man. He happily replied "yes" to most questions. I don't mean to imply that he didn't express preferences. He communicated "no" when he didn't want to do something by shaking his head. But "yes" was the enthusiastic vocal response to most questions. This all changed on Wednesday when I asked Dexter if he wanted applesauce (generally a "yes" response question) and he said, "No." Now, Dexter puts his newly acquired word to good use, although not necessarily appropriately. Such as when I ask if he wants to go in Mama's car and he says, "no," and then promptly goes to get his shoes and coat. Then there are the times when I say, "It's time to change your diaper," and he not only replies, "no," but runs into another room. Don't get me wrong. I'm happy that he's learning to use more words to communicate what he wants (or doesn't want). I just hope that we don't have a phase where everything is "no."