...is sick. :( The other night when we were over there for game night, suddenly, out of nowhere, he started to throw up. Yuck! He's done this before, when he's had an ear infection. So, yesterday, Trisha took him to the Dr. and sure enough he has fluid on both ears, and he has some bronchial stuff going on, causing him to cough a lot. He is on anti-biotics, so he should be feeling better soon. But, while at the Dr.s office, the dr. asked Trisha if he was talking yet, saying any words. While he does say "words", (i.e. "ock" for sock, "bu" for bunny, ba-ba, "da" for dog, "eese" for cheese, and my favorite "SaSa" for Alyssa) he doesn't say the complete word. The Dr.s comment was, "...so he's not making any sentences yet? Next time he comes in lets test his hearing." Grrrrr. I'm somewhat aggrevated, so I got on line to check the developmental stage of a 16 month old. It said that a 16 month old might be able to say as many as seven words, but they still rely heavily on non-verbal communication, like pointing, to get you to understand what they want. And, it said that at this stage you can tell they are understanding what you say. For instance, if you ask them to go get the hairbrush, they actually go get it and bring it back to you. Ethan has been doing this for quite a while actually! It seems like he started this stage at 11 or 12 months! I remember Trisha calling me, exclaiming how smart Ethan was, when she asked him where his baby was, and he went and got it out of the toy box and brought it to her! So, I think the Dr. is full of poo. LOL. I think Ethan's speech is just fine, and I think he's doing very well developmentally. As far as his ear infections go, those definitely need to be watched since he gets them frequently.
Any thoughts?
The Last Minute of 8th Grade
11 years ago
Hi Mary,
ReplyDeleteI hope you don't mind a "stranger" commenting ... I linked to your blog from my sister's, Lisa in Gaylord, MI.
My daughter is also 16 months and is not "talking" ... she babbles all the time and has a handful of words and phrases (like da, ma, hi, by, and "i did it"), but she HEAVILY relies on non-verbal communication. She is constantly pointing and demonstrating what she wants (like pointing to her mouth if she's hungry).
Our doctor told us she was right on track, and as long as there are signs of communication and understanding (such as picking up a hair brush as you mentioned), then there's no need to worry. Anna developed her motor skills quite quickly, and is now more interested in learning how things work than talking more since she's able to communicate to us in her own way.
Don't fret too much, maybe the doctor misread the chart and thought Ethan was older - he looks quite tall in the pictures. Either way, I hope the results come back normal if you do get his hearing checked. Also, the doctor may not have taken everything else Ethan is able to do into account.
I just read yesterday that you shouldn't think of the development guidelines as "deadlines" because every baby is different. Some skills come much earlier for some babies, which may cause the other skills to come later.
Take care,
Krista
PS - Someone told me that Einstein didn't talk until he was almost three years old because he was too busy learning how things worked instead of learning how to talk. Don't know if it's true or not, but it helps me feel better about Anna's stage of development, especially since one of "her friends" has been hammering out sentences since she was 13 months - of couse the friend developed her motor skills way later than Anna.
PPS - Sorry for such a long comment.
Hi Krista! If you read this, I don't mind you, or anyone for that matter, commenting on my blog! I love it and I love the feedback. Especially regarding something like this. Thanks for all your input! I really appreciate all you said, especially since you have a 16 month old. It's amazing to me how doctors tend to say things because some chart or book says a child is 'supposed' to be doing this or that because of their age. Like you said, all babies are different and they need to take that into consideration. I'm sure some doctors do, and this was probably just 'one of those times', but it just made my daughter feel anxious as to whether Ethan was developing okay or not. So, thanks again for your input. I will be sure to tell her what you said!
ReplyDeletePS. Comment more whenever you feel like it and thanks for reading!