Baby Words in German, Part 1

At this age (=infant) our Theta has 3 main jobs: eating, pooping + sleeping -- or some combination thereof :)

As we're living in Germany I'm learning (and sometimes chuckling at) the terms for various things that have to do with babies, so I decided to share them with you.

Job #1: eating
Theta is being a champion breastfeeder which I'm thrilled about, because that was (perhaps strangely enough?) one of the things I was very much looking forward to about having a baby :)

• stillen* = to breastfeed (you can also 'still' other needs, but in this case, food is his #1 need!)

• Bäuerchen machen = "to make a little farmer" i.e. to burp
• and after burping has been successful, people often say this to the little one
• Prost = Cheers!
• noch ein Scheibchen Brot dazu? = Would you like a little slice of bread with that?
• Mahlzeit = Mealtime (which is also an acceptable greeting anytime between 11am and 2pm --whether or not anyone in the vicinity is eating)
• der Schluckauf = "the swallow up" i.e. the hiccup

Job #2: pooping (or otherwise filling his diaper)
At this point I'm not going to go into the all of the colloquial ways of referring to these bodily functions (we certainly have enough euphamisms in English as well), but instead I'll talk about words that have to do with the diapering process.

• wickeln = "to wrap" i.e. to diaper or change said diaper
• das Feuchttuch = "the damp cloth" i.e. the wipe
• die (Stoff-)Windel = the (cloth) diaper

He was sooo little!

Job #3: sleeping

• schlafen = to sleep (not unique to babies ;) )

• das Nickerchen, das Schläfchen = (a small nod (like 'nodding off'), a small sleep) a nap

• heia machen = to 'make' sleep (in baby talk)

Just look at that squishy little mouth!!

See? He really does sleep in a bed sometimes (not just on me in weird positions :) )

 He especially enjoys sleeping in this bed from the stroller (with lamb's wool), usually with his binky in his mouth :)

I think this one looks so artistic :) Deep sleep after a bath.

 I have so many more photos to share, but I'll save them for future posts. I hope you enjoyed this adorable German lesson with Theta :)

* I was reflecting recently that Stillen is related to the adjective, such as in "Stille Nacht" (the Christmas song "Silent Night"). I realized that for me "still" in German does not just meant silent, but rather there's also an element of expectation or reverence, respect, perhaps more related to the English stillness :) -- depending on the situation. (However I wouldn't claim that these aspects are involved in stillen :) )