Expert: James Michael Roan - 11/13/2007

Question
QUESTION: Hello,
I have a 17 and a half month old happy baby girl...actually that's something people always notice right away...her smile.  I have a few concerns and was wondering if you had any comments.  She is very observant of children and people, will sometimes even "flirt" with the children, smiling and giggling.  Her day caregiver has no concerns with her interaction with other children indicating she is very social.  Nor does her father or grandparents.
I am not certain if it is the press Autism has gotten or her actual behaviors that have gotten me overly obsessive and “microscopic” in a way with her development.  Here are some of my concerns:
She has good eye contact; however I am becoming a bit obsessive and every chance I get I try to make her look at me, and she won’t always do it .  At times won’t turn her head toward her name especially if she is into something, and will get a smirk on her face and then turn her head after repeated calls (2-3).  Plays with toys normally as far as I can see nothing out of the ordinary, stacks blocks, pulls her pull toys, etc.  She does however turn books perpendicular to herself and stacks them up???
She will at times bring me things, especially if I ask her too (e.g. Do you want me to read you a book...she will bring me a book).  Will show mom and dad things she has done, and points out things that interest her, even if I can’t see what she is pointing to.  She will turn her head if I point to something across the room. She pretends play at times, talking on the telephone, carrying mom’s purse, drinking coffee, feeding mom and dad sweeping with the broom.  
When she is having difficulty opening something or putting on her shoes, I ask her if she wants help, and hold  out my hand, but she will push it away and continue to try and do it herself.  She has started to do some toe walking, but it’s very brief four or five steps.
She can understand quite a few words and commands and is very responsive with (I wouldn’t be able to list them all); however, she doesn’t speak as much.  She says dada, blabla (banana), Cece (Cedar…pet), uh-oh, dun (done…when she done with her dinner), as well as a few others.  When she is hungry she points to her mouth and says uh-uh.  She will also pat your leg if she wants up and raises her arms when she wants you to pick her up.
She has no problems transitioning to different activities, thankfully as I am very bad with routines…we call her the “whatever happens, happens baby”.  She sleeps great, if she is told no, has an object taken away, or redirected she will cry a little, but then goes about her business.  She engages us in play, but can also sit quietly while mom and dad walk around town shopping.
I am very sorry this is so long, but I appreciate any comments you may have.


ANSWER: Hi Carrie;

She sounds PERFECTLY normal or "typically developing" to me! I didn't hear anything that raised my professional interest. She sounds great! Enjoy her all you can and rest easy.

Kind regards,
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: James,
I think I sent my follow up question to the wrong place, so I am sending this to you...if it's duplicate I apologize.  I greatly appreciate your response regarding her development, I am a new mom and it's important to me to get her the best care (when/if necessary) as soon as possible.  The reason for my follow up is because I initially forgot something (crazy as it seems) in my first question.  With regards to her speech she was saying two other words, ball and shh shh for shoes; however, I haven't heard her say these at all lately.  She definitely knows what they are, but I was wondering if her not saying those words any longer indicate a "loss in language?".

Thanks again...and I enjoy her every minute and second of the day she is a joy to be around and explores life to the fullest!

Answer
Hi Carrie;

Children do lose sounds and some words as part of normal development, which doen't constitute "loss of language." It's really has not been made clear on the Internet what loss of language looks like. It occurs with losses in social development as well. You would notice these losses. They are very frightening to parents. They would not go on unnoticed.

Kind regards,
James