Today was a totally awesome day having spent it with my parents and siblings although my older brother made me cry today. Unfortunately for me he doesn’t like it when I go into his room and take his things and hide them. I only want to play hide-n-seek with his things but I can never remember where I put them and he doesn’t like it one bit. Maybe he needs to hide them before I get to them then he won’t need to find them. How about that for a solution!
After playing outdoors for a while today with my pets it was time for lunch. It’s fun watching them tempt me with food in order for me to eat. I’m trying to maintain my supermodel figure so I’m really picky now when it comes to eating food. Mommy decided that in order to supplement my diet that she would introduce Pediasure so that I could get extra nutrients as well.
I do love that, it tastes so much better than regular milk that they now insist that I have to drink all because I’m now a year old. Why did I have to grow up? I don’t like being old! Can you imagine how mommy feels?
My speech therapist also came by to visit me today. I’m getting speech therapy because mommy was concerned that my language skills was not up to par with what I should be doing at my age. Maybe mommy needs to recognize that I’m my own individual and maybe I’m not ready to speak as yet. I know the doctor said that I should be speaking lots of words but really the only words I like saying is “mine” and “no”. After all it’s mine and no you can’t have any.
My therapist spends an hour with me trying to get me to say words but I’m not really interested in what she has to say. I’m more interested in looking through her picture and story books that she brings every week. Now those are fun. I think I’m just going to surprise them one day with a full blown sentence and they’re really going to be shocked then. Say what?!
Mommy was a little more concerned for me since I have an 8 year old Autistic brother so on a more serious note if you think your child may be delayed its best to have him/her checked sooner than later. There are signs to look out for and although I seem to be on track it doesn’t hurt to have extra help. There are lots of ways to encourage your child’s speech development.
Reading plays a big part in it. Constantly read to your toddler. It’s one of the reason I have so many books and I enjoy reading them with mommy. Help your child build vocabulary by repeating words over and over, building on them and being descriptive. Don’t just label items, describe them. For example if your child can say dog like I can, then you would say “dog says woof” or “dog is black/white”. Touch and feel books are great for this and even a trip in the car and to the grocery store can help with this. Describe the other vehicles you pass by and the fruits and veggies that you pick out in the fruit and vegetable section. Not only is the apple red but the apple is red and round.
Before you child starts articulating they need to understand what words mean. If you’re looking for games to play to enhance language then a great game is Simons Says. Mommy likes to say “Simon says get a pamper”. This really helps to enhance my two step instruction skill. A toy telephone is also a great toy for your toddler.
Keep talking to your child, the more you talk, the more your child hears, the more it encourages her to start speaking as well. Playdates are also helpful because kids like to interact with others their age and the babbling is a great sign that they are interested in talking.
If your child communicates with babbles and gestures he/she may well be on the right track but if you’re overly concerned, speak with your pediatrician and see if you need to get an evaluation. After all no-one knows your baby like you do.
