am i being overly worried for nothing?

[beckyand3littlemonsters]

My ds is 26 mths old and is still not really talking much, well not really anything very understandable he can say mama or mummy he's only recently started being able to say no though most of the time he will shake his head, he doesn't say yes yet will just nod. he started saying lala lala (lier lier) yesterday and if we sing row, row row your boat he says row row or if sing wind the bobbing up he says pull, but mostly he only makes noises and points example when were out everything is b (pronounced phonetically) or if he wants milk he points and says m (also phonetically). he has really good understanding of things and if you say for example caden can you get me a red brick he will. I wasn't over concerned before but now my lo's dad has started saying when do you think we should start worrying about his lack of speech every time he comes to see the kids. my friend thinks he just can't be bothered because at the moment he can get what he wants/needs just by pointing and that he will probably just go straight into talking in sentences. it's hard not to compare him to his brother and sisters because even though caitlin was behind chloe and cameron speech wise she was saying more than caden is now iykwim.

[sapphire_chan]

Since you weren't worried before your FIL said something, I'm less worried about him as an outside observer.

By the numbers, what you describe is a delay. Whether it's a delay that needs fixing or not depends on the kid. It is often free to have an evaluation done so it could be worth doing just to be able to tell your FIL you had him checked.

sorry it was his dad not his dad's dad. If a parent has a concern getting an evaluation is definitely a good idea barring known paranoia about this sort of thing.

[lilmom]

He's the baby of the family right? The reason I mention that is because my brother, also the baby, was really slow to talk. I mean, really slow. At your DS's age, my brother said one word, cookie. that was it. And that stayed his only word for probably a year. BUT, he understood everything and he followed instructions, etc.

Eventually my mom figured out that he didn't talk because he really didn't have to. His older sisters (myself included) talked FOR him and he really had no need to bother with it. So she had us quit talking for him and it did resolve the problem, he started talking like crazy.

He ended up graduating in the top 10% of his class and he is very, very bright. No delays. Just didn't need to talk.

I am not saying for SURE there is no problem with your son's speech but honestly I just don't know if I would be totally freaked out YET.

[peaceful_mama]

Mine is the baby and seems to talk MORE because of it. Just hears more, picks up more, and I think wants to be part of the 'tribe.' He definently sings more. (and he will walk right up to the older two and yell his word for whatever it is )

But I wouldn't say yours is worrisome yet...I would seriously look at and consider whether maybe everybody else just talks for him, or gives him things without him having to ask, like a pp said, and change the situation if that's the case.

[beckyand3littlemonsters]

Thanks for the replies yes he is the baby of the family, i'll try see if it is his brother and sisters talking for him why he doesn't say much and see if by getting them not to do it so much helps, though i'm thinking it's probably more me than them if i'm honest he will point and say m if he wants breast feeding and i'll ask him do you want milk and he'll nod, smile and get giddy.
there dad only see them once every 1-2 wks at most and doesn't really spend much time with caden so i don't know why i worry about he thinks because he doesn't spend enough time with him to really form an opinion, also i'm wondering if he is sort of deflecting from the issues with caitlin as her behaviour seems to be getting worse, my dad thinks she has a mild form of autism though as he is not a medical expert i'm not really going to worry what he thinks in regards to that.

[sapphire_chan]

Originally Posted by beckyand3littlemonsters

Thanks for the replies yes he is the baby of the family, i'll try see if it is his brother and sisters talking for him why he doesn't say much and see if by getting them not to do it so much helps, though i'm thinking it's probably more me than them if i'm honest he will point and say m if he wants breast feeding and i'll ask him do you want milk

That's actually GOOD for language development. The more the baby's attempts at communication are acknowledged, the more they do.

One reason younger kids don't talk as much as the older ones is that because the other kids talk so much the baby doesn't get as much feedback on the babble.

You could watch to see if your kids listen to to your youngest.

[greenmagick]

My son is 2 1/2 and really just started saying lots of words. I mean he was "talking" before but not much and mostly was repeating things etc. Now he is off and running.

Was your son early in other areas? It was hard for me because my dd was an early talker and is very articulate...but then when I think about it, ds was so much further ahead of her with gross motor...like he was starting to walk at 9 months and pretty much off and running by 10..dd wasnt until about 14 months. Ds can run, jump, climb, etc....that is where is energy was focused first, and thats ok

[ElliesMomma]

my daughter was like that up until 2 and a half years old. then she went to sentences and now talks nonstop all day. very advanced vocabulary. my hairdresser says it's like talking to an adult!

yes, if a parent is concerned is sorta a red flag. but it sounds like your child's father merely visits the kids and doesn't live with you? if so, that makes me less worried, if the father is not interacting on a day to day basis.

in our case, i was verrrry in tune with what my daughter was saying. we had it all worked out, our very own "sign language" and grunt and pointing system. plus i communicated with her on an "advanced" level -- no "baby talk".

my parents were all worried, and they got me all worked up but in the end, we did just our normal thing and she came around... with a vengence! sometimes i have to say to her, "Ellie, would you please just stop talking for a minute!"

[LadyCatherine185]

I would talk with your ped, and probably have him evaluated. My brother wasn't talking much and it was because he couldn't hear-- he needed to have his tonsils and adnoids removed and tubes put in his ears. He also needed some speech therapy, but after all of that was settled he started talking fine. He is also very smart and you would never know he had the delay as a toddler.

[beckyand3littlemonsters]

Originally Posted by greenmagick

Was your son early in other areas?

no not really he crawled at 10 mths and walked at 14 mths

Originally Posted by LadyCatherine185

I would talk with your ped, and probably have him evaluated. My brother wasn't talking much and it was because he couldn't hear-- he needed to have his tonsils and adnoids removed and tubes put in his ears. He also needed some speech therapy, but after all of that was settled he started talking fine. He is also very smart and you would never know he had the delay as a toddler.

i'll be seeing my health visitor tomorrow so will bring it up with her, though i'm pretty certain he doesn't have hearing trouble as he does respond when ever he is spoken to just not always in an understandable way iykwim. though i guess it wouldn't hurt to check.


in a way i think i am being over paranoid but then i can't help but compare him to his older brother who walked at 11mths and was talking in full sentences before his 2nd birthday. but i shouldn't really get worried by what his dad says just about it now he said the same thing about chloe when she was 18 mths and she was saying more recognisable words then than caden is now. i feel like a terrible mum because i can't remember if caitlin was talking much at this age or not though.