First word, revisited

I was thinking, when I got home last night, that it's actually pretty incredible that Samson's first word was cat.

Not because it's a difficult word or a foreign concept for him, but because every time he goes near our cat [and by go near, I mean lunges at with his mouth open], I hear myself saying "Samson, gentle; be gentle with Ishmael." So for all he knows, the cat's name is Samsongentle.

That probably would have been a mouthful for a first word, however.

This photo is a few months old, but the story remains the same. We assumed, in all our parental wisdom, that if we let him "bite" the cat once or twice --- in addition to keeping Ishmael on notice --- it would serve young Samson well to learn that biting the cat is gross and lands you with a mouthful of fur.

Sadly, he has ignored this lesson. Although it does still work to keep the cat on his toes.