Yesterday, Cooper tried to communicate with a table of four guys seated next to us at a restaurant. When their food arrived and they started eating, Cooper began to smack his lips. When no one gave him any food he began to yell and smack his lips. I tried distracting him with keys and turning his chair so he couldn’t see them, but he would twist himself around and continue his lip smacking whines. It was kind of embarrassing and I felt like translating: “What my baby is trying to say is he would like a bite of your chicken and waffles.” Instead, I just said “I’m sorry.” I foolishly had not packed any snacks in my purse, so I ended up feeding him a few sugar crystals from a packet on the table to quiet him down a little until our food arrived (I am such a good mother). The “sign” has always been interpreted by everyone he’s tried it on, so I guess he figured everyone understood.  Hopefully we can teach him not to ask strangers for their food by the time he learns how to express that in words.