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  1. #1
    cdlamis is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Default UPDATE- Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    UPDATE- All you mammas were right as usual! Julia has gone from hardly saying 2 word sentences just 2 months ago to saying 3 word ones and even a few 4 word ones now! Usually starting with "I want..." :)
    Just lately, she starting saying "I want play this" or "I want go mommy" which means "I want to go with Mommmy" as opposed to Daddy. Poor Daddy :(

    So thank you all for your enocuragement that she would start talking. I am also posting this for all the other parents waiting for their children to start forming sentences. Like everyone said, it just happens one day.
    --------------------------------------------------------------------

    At Julia's 18 month appt, the pediatrician said that Julia was on the low end regarding number of spoken words. She was not concerned but did say that she wanted Julia speaking in 2 word sentences by 2 years old. Well, thats coming up in 2 weeks and it not happening. She might say "No Mommy" or "Down Mommy" but nothing like "go outside" or "read book".

    Should I be worried? I know that everyone is different but I see many toddlers here that say 3 or 4 word sentences at Julia's age.

    I lost count but she probably says about 30-40 words.

    TIA-
    Daniella
    Mom to Julia 6-13-02
    And baby #2 EDD 12-30-04!!

  2. #2
    jojo2324 Guest

    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    Daniella, I think that qualifies. When I was asking my ped about this same issue, she gave the example of "Mom, go" as a two word sentence. And I think 30-40 words is a fine number.

    FWIW, DS only has about 9 spoken words. (And he's about 3 weeks younger than Julia.) He said bye daddy yesterday. It was a bit warbled, and he stumbles over it a bit...But hearing it made my heart leap!! I worry all the time about his language development, so it was reassuring to hear those two words strung together, even though they comprise nearly 20% of his vocab.

  3. #3
    Karenn is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I think it's so funny how what worries one pediatrician won't phase another. I think Colin's language skills are in about the same place as Julia's. He has around 40-50 words and doesn't put two words together yet (not even "No mommy" or "down mommy" like Julia.) He's got a bunch of signs too. The ped. wasn't worried at all. But I was. :) So I took him to a free screening in our community where they discerned that his speech was "borderline" and that I should take him to a speech pathologist for an evaluation. They too decided that he's "borderline" and we're currently on a waiting list for three months. At the end of the three months he'll either start therapy or they'll decide his speech is OK.

    For what it's worth, the speech pathologist wasn't worried about his language (the number of words he says or the ability to put two words together) but more the sounds he uses with the words he does say. At the first screening they said that what Colin says should be able to be understood by a stranger 50% of the time. He's got some really funny words for things that don't really match what he's trying to say. For example, for the longest time, "Big Bird" was "Doot-dooka-dooka-do." Grandpa is "rah rah rah rah," baby is "Hee hoo," and probably 50% of the rest of his words are some variation of "da." Really, DH and I are the only ones who can understand him most of the time.

    So that's my long winded way of saying that I agree with Joanne- I think Julia's two word combinations count (and even if they don't, it didn't seem to phase the SLP that Colin wasn't speaking "sentences" yet.)

  4. #4
    darby24 Guest

    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I would say a big no to being worried. But then again I'm really only used to my nephew. His number of spoken words: one. Dada.

    He used to be able to say the dog's name - Darby (hence my user name) pronounced it dobby, but that's dropped off and now the dog is just a grunt and a "heh". He does say Momma, but it's rare these days. However in the last two weeks he's getting better at duck (at least we think it's duck!)

    He does sign - probably 20. We can understand him most of the time, but it will be nice when he can speak. My sister isn't worried and so neither am I.

    ETA - typos

  5. #5
    jlcana Guest

    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I wouldn't worry about it yet. Our ped suggested speech therapy at 18 months and I wanted to wait until he was about 2 if needed. I didn't think he needed to be pushed at 18 months! It's not that I don't listen to my ped but DS's speech at the time was about the same as every other toddler we came across in playgroup or outings. Right around his 2nd birthday he started to really talk a lot in a short period of time-like a week! Now DS is 26 months and probably talks more than most other kids his age. Trust your instincts- keep reading to her every chance you get and name everything around her. Chris started to talk more when I would ask him open ended questions-"Do you want milk or juice?" instead of "Do you want milk?" and "Do you want juice?". Then I waited for him to answer most of the time before I would give it to him. I've been told by other moms with older children that one day I'll long for when he didn't talk so much!

    Lisa
    Christopher 3/18/02
    Another boy EDD 9/20/04

  6. #6
    mamahill Guest

    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I wouldn't worry about it. Ainsleigh was putting a couple words together around her second birthday, but it wasn't eloquent by any stretch of the imagination :). And then, about a month ago, her speech has taken off. We didn't see my parents for a couple weeks (they live close, but were out of the country) and when they returned, they both said Ainsleigh seemed like a different kid. She jabbers on, mixing in real and "her" words, she sings songs (the ABCs, ring-around-the-rosie, Twinkle Twinkle, etc.), counts to 11, etc. The songs and sentences often have made up words, but they are words. And yesterday she said, "Turn fire on please." It took me a moment to interpret that "fire" meant "humidifier," but I understood. Sorry for the rambling - sheesh, no wonder she's been holding back - I talk enough for both of us!

    It will happen - but go with your gut. And maybe if Julia wants to go outside say, "Say GO...(have her repeat) OUTSIDE (repeat)." Encourage her to put words together, but don't force it. Before long you'll be begging for quiet ;).

  7. #7
    cdlamis is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    Thanks for all the words of encouragement. It makes me feel better to know we are not alone and that she seems ok.

    Daniella
    Mom to Julia 6-13-02
    And baby #2 EDD 12-30-04!!

  8. #8
    cdlamis is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    Sarah-
    Not to make you feel bad or anything :) but it was your post the other day about Ainsleigh saying that she wanted a brother (or baby) that made me stop in my tracks. It was a 3 or 4 word sentence and I was amazed that she could communicate like that.

    So, I am glad you posted here. It's reassuring to know that Ainsleigh's vocabulary took off suddenly. Thanks!

    Patiently waiting for my jabber mouth~

    Daniella
    Mom to Julia 6-13-02
    And baby #2 EDD 12-30-04!!

  9. #9
    hjdong Guest

    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I had also heard that it was more the sound that they woried about at this age. I'm wondering if they answered a question I've had - is it 50% of the time he speaks that he should be understood or 50% of the time he is trying to communicate? Jamie still spends lots of time babbling and knows he isn't "talking." I would guess that a stranger could understand at least 50% of his words however (although his two favotries - do again and doggie sound darn close to each other!)

  10. #10
    Karenn is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Should I be worried about Julia's speech?

    I could be wrong on this, but I don't think they were expecting to understand 50% of his babbling. I think that they wanted for 50% of his actual words to be understood by a stranger. Colin does a lot of babbling too. It cracks me up because he'll say these complete nonsense sentences with total inflection and intonation. Yet at the same time, he makes it clear that he knows he's not really saying "anything."



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