It’s was pretty funny watching my 20 month old worth through some signs with his mitts on! This is one of the reasons that signs take to the wayside just as soon as a baby can start talking. Glove covered hands, hands carrying toys, hidden hands around corners or in other rooms, or buried in pockets, all give toddlers valid reasons to start using more vocalizations.
This is why worries about signing inhibiting signing is so unfounded. Babies understand that other people talk and they want to imitate them just as soon as possible. They figure out quickly that most people don’t sign in their everyday life and learn that talking is where it’s at. They figure out that their little friends talk too and so they want to exchange pleasantries, and play together, they need to start talking.
So, hands hidden in mitts is just one extra reason toddlers move toward speaking, but it’s still amusing to see babies try to sign various things even when they can be barely made out!