As I mentioned, Jeremy is due back for a comprehensive developmental assessment at twelve months ... the appointment is day after tomorrow. The other day, Barb & I sat down to review what our concerns are. And they seem rather trivial now. More and more, his speech development seems to be falling into the "late boy talker" category that seems so prevalent, rather than anything more worrisome.
Then there is the eating issue. Compared to most of his age mates, Jeremy has remained quite tentative about anything that isn't smooth or pureéd. Now, even though he still doesn't eat very complex foods, just within the last week he has been more daring and actually enjoying chunky stuff that he normally would gag on and dramatically spit out. He has found new depths of joy in self-feeding in the last couple of weeks, and that is obviously a big part of why he is eating better. He loves scooping chunks of baked potato and cramming them in his mouth. Curiosity has replaced his previous angst over mouse-shaped macaroni and cheese. And the crust of fresh-baked pugliese suddenly became interesting and yummy, rather than an object to be feared. The bottle still maintains its exalted position in Jeremy's eyes -- and tummy -- but fewer ounces of formula pass over his lips each day. The [dinner] table is turning.
So, what's left? The walking issue? The archives of this blog document the fact that at seven months, Jeremy was walking around while holding onto his mommies' fingers. Everyone including his pediatricians predicted that he would be an early walker. And yet, ten days before his first birthday, Jeremy is still holding onto his mommies' fingers. He loves walking, and would walk every waking moment but for the fact that he won't loosen his grip. Physically, he could totally walk on his own. Maintaining the grip is clearly emotional or psychological. During our daily walking practice. Jeremy will often shake his head from side to side as if to say, "No no no I can't do it don't make me do it." And we mouth and gesture all manners of encouraging courage. And then he will take eight or nine plodding steps much like Frankenstein's monster. After lunging into our arms, he finally breathes, grins and then claps with joy. Unless he loses his balance before he lands safely, in which case he begins to whimper or cry. So, the question is, why would a healthy, strong boy resist his independence and prefer to hang onto to his parents for so long?
1 comment:
Sounds totally normal. Some kids are just more reluctant than others to take those steps on their own. Brendan did what I called the "drop and crawl" for a long time. He'd take 4 or 5 steps and then drop and crawl the rest of the way. Then he gradually stopped doing it. Since the "normal" range for walking is 9-18 months and most kids fall in the 12-15 month range, it sounds like Jeremy is right on target there. And exactly on target too with the language. At 12 months, the average child will have 3-5 words and will be able to understand simple directions. It sounds like that's exactly where Jeremy is. He really sounds like he's developing wonderfully.
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