AIBU to think I can't be the only parent who....

[thatsnotwhatitsusedfor]

...can't remember their child's first word?!

DD (5) asked me yesterday (no idea where the question came from or what prompted it) and I honestly could not remember.

I panicked, told her it was 'Dada' and have racked my brains ever since but honestly cannot remember this milestone. This has also made me realise I can't remember DD2's either, who is 11 months younger than DD1 (yes, bit of a surprise).

But, anyway, I mentioned this to a friends this morning who has a DD of the same age and she was, frankly, horrified and said she couldn't believe anyone would forget such a thing. Now I feel dreadful!

AIBU for thinking surely I can't be the only one who can't remember this?? From memory there was a long period of general babbling and then a smattering of words.... friend implied I should have a very, very, clear recollection of this momentous occasion and that I was weird for not.

Am I dreadful?

PS. I have one of those baby books for each of them which I have checked, and seems I abandoned writing anything in at all after about three weeks......

I don’t. When I told my mum she admitted she hadn’t remembered ours either but had made them up when we’d asked (probably for a school project or the like) and they’d passed into family lore - “aplane” (aeroplane) and “samich” (sandwich), which with hindsight, don’t seem that believable.

I used to think my Dad was terrible for not being able to remember such stuff about his children. Now, I realise he was merely honest.

My Mum makes it up with confidence.

Anyway, I know dc1's because I wrote it in her book. Dc2 ... ? Have no clue.

Ahaha, nope! In the last two years, both me and my sister have had babies and we've asked our mum about when we crawled, walked, talked etc. She can't remember anything!

I think the speech thing is particularly tricky, because they seem to build up to it slowly and you think "was that a word? Was that??" I know our son said "dada" first (traitor), but I couldn't tell you when, and it was only within the last few months!

I know my friend's son but not my own! About 28 years ago, my friend said to offer him a biscuit. So I did, I asked 'Would you like a plain biscuit or would you prefer a chocolate one?' And clear as day came the reply 'Kokolat'. He got offered a few more biscuits just to make sure!

I do have somewhere I diary I started writing 'new' words mine said, but gave up after a month or so as there were 20+ some days.

I remember a distinct first word but practically nothing else - first steps, first tooth all that kind of stuff, I had baby books but never filled them in!

Can't remember her first actual word, I remember her mimicking conversations all the way down to the laugh at the end as if someone had told a joke. I remember her making remarkable chicken noises at chickens and woofing at a pig. Speech was just there one day, it crept up slowly without a first specific word.

I think most people are like this tbh if they are honest. Most babies start of with babbling sounds and dadadada is one of the easiest so loads of babies are said to have said 'dada' as their first word when it probably wasn't really!

I only remember because DS1's first word was 'boogie' when I was dancing him around one day. It was so hilarious that I can't help but remember... DS2's first word was the far more common boring 'Dada'

DS1 was “cheese”. No idea about DS2. So I made one up.

In fact, I can remember almost all of DS1’s milestones but DS2’s first couple of years are a complete blur.

Eldest said dad dad dad dad dad first

Youngest said mam first no repetition for me!

Couldn't tell you how old they were cutting first teeth, crawling, or walking though. I have a rough idea that with the exception of teeth they were distinctly average.

Unless you diarise these things it's incredibly difficult to remember and certainly doesn't make you dreadful. I think knowing what's important right now in a child's life is far more important than clinging to past memories...for example, shoe size, clothes size, allergies

I have said to people time and time again, when my DD was a baby and she done her "firsts", i can remember at the time thinking OMG that is so precious, i am never going to forget this.

anyone asks me how old she was when she first sat up; rolled over; spoke...i could give you a general time frame, but it won't be an exact science (could even possibly be made up if i feel it something i should really know and remember)

don't feel bad, we all do it, some just don't like to admit to it x

I remember one of our 3 dc first words as unusual.
The others goo good for a while, various forms of mumum and dada.
dd first word was tigger.

I have a vague recollection, but what I find amusing is when parents of toddlers confidently tell you their child has 50, 95, 3000, whatever words.
Do they keep a spreadsheet?

I don't have any kids but my first word was "bum" because my mum used to say shall we go and change your bum? Instead of nappy

I only remember because it was so clear and funny. We were driving somewhere, and I said to DH 'oh, shall we have fish pie for dinner' 'ds, what do you think?' and this very clear NO came from the back seat

With the dds it was a general..''mama...dada..baba'' type thing.
With ds is was a definite ''yep'' followed a bit later by ''mama'' - but he was 5 and we thought he would never talk, so it was fairly memorable!!

I don't really think they have a definitive "first word".

They babble, and gradually more and more words become understandable. I think day by day words become clearer and better formed, but they've been communicating and using their "words" for quite a while before they become recognisable to anyone else.

Dada is often the first "speech sound" that they use, but often not with meaning. Mama is apparently a harder sound to form, so comes later.

So no, I can't really remember their first words. I can remember my daughter pointing at everything and saying "ook, ook" (look, look) and my son standing at the baby gate to the kitchen and demanding "dink, dink" (drink), but they were early words that they used repeatedly, not necessarily the actual first words used with meaning.

DC1's was dogs or rather gogs, closely followed by shoes.

DC2's was definitely car and that's only word said for a long time.

DC3 and DC4 I'm not sure at all possibly fish or juice (dooosss) although I remember DC4 had a word for drink that sounded a bit like lager which was used until about 3 so I can't think it was juice for them.

DC1 turned 18 recently and I was gobsmacked and dismayed at the detail I'd written in the baby book. I'm not even sure the younger two have baby books!

My eldest dds first word was apple. She said it as two clear syllables: app pel. It was definitely what she said because she was pointing at an apple on the table which she wanted. Younger dds was Doda because eldest's name is sounds like this but she couldn't pronounce it properly! There are 5 years between them and she idolised her.

I have no idea but I'm definitely going with mama if I'm ever asked 😂

I can remember my 3 DC first word but I can't remember the time they were born!

I remember ds1's

No, and I'm always glad for reassuring threads and conversation like these. I can remember one of mine as he was quite delayed talking and it came out of nowhere at a restaurant, but the rest...not so much.

But not ds2's.

Haven't a clue for either of mine but I do remember DD1's first sentence: "Fuck off."