[brieanniepannie]

Hi all!
Sorry I've been scarce, I read everyone's posts but havent had time to write them myself! ahh that joys of motherhood.
Anyway..
Mikael will be 15 months on the 23rd. Right now he is walking, understanding simple commands (give that to me, sit down, come here).. throws a ball, climbs, dances, nods, shakes his head no, etc. But he is NOT talking. He used to say uh oh, but not anymore, I know children learn words and just stop saying them because they dont want to.. that im not worried about. Sometimes he says dada but i dont think it is aimed towards his father. When he whines he says mama but again i dont think it's aimed towards me. He whines and whines until we figure out what he wants. He occasionally says yes.
I read people have children who can say like 40 words or something like that and i can't even get my son to say mama!!! Should I be concerned? Is it something I should work with him on? I am worried its because #1--he didnt get very good care at previous daycares so I am worried his development is a little behind. #2--I used to baby talk to him all the time and I am worried that affected how he talks.
He is a very smart little boy, I can't tell if he isnt doing certain things because he cant or because he doesn't want to. He has definitely hit the "terrible twos" time. He is sooo whiney and throws fits ALL the time. Sometimes I cant WAIT for bedtime (although thats a trial too.. he always wants to stay up late!!!) so that I can get a break.
He also still cries at night but I just go in and pat his back and he goes back to sleep. I dont know what is going on, nightterrors were mentioned but he has been doing this since he was like 4 months old so IDK if night terrors can happen that early? I dont know. I am wondering if its some separation anxiety too.
But it's gotten a lot better since we switched daycares. He only really wakes up once at 10 p.m. crying then goes back to sleep. She is really good with him and is really working with him on various things--walking, talking, etc. So that's good.
Sorry for the long post. I just wanted to know if I should be concerned about his lack of interest in really learning words. Also, he has shown and interest in the potty! i think we will try by christmas to kind of at least introduce him to the potty.
One more thing.. when did you all switch to toddler beds? Mikael is really trying to climb out of the crib--thank god for slippery socks!

[Samual]

I wouldn't be concerned about the speach issue some children take longer to speak, where as others just don't want to talk, sometimes we still can't get anything out of Jamie unless he wants to tell us something. His terrible two's behaviour might be because he doesn't want to verbally tell you things and gets frustrated because we can't always recognise other ways of communication.
Pip has been in a bed for nearly three months now.

[KR258]

I don't think I'd worry too much about the talking yet either....as far as the crib....I'd keep him in till he can get out!! lol but that's just me! I moved Kate at 12 months-ish. I also wouldn't worry that he isnt into the potty. It really is early...but if you can get him potty trained that's great. It usually helps though if your little one will tell you they gotta potty. I would probably wait till he shows some sort of interest in the potty. Of course you can introduce him...but I wouldn't push too hard yet.

[wanna be a young mother]

I wouldn't worry. Nevy's Dr. said at 15 months she should know between 5-10 words but I have a chatter box ! Nevaeh has always been a vocal child. She said dada at 4 months old. Every child is different but I know they say boys learn a little slower than girls do. It sounds like he is on target and doing well. I really wouldn't worry. He maybe more hands on then a talker. As for saying some words and stopping that is normal to. Nevy use to say mama and now she doesnt really say it. Now she just calls me "hey"

I cant help you with the crib problem. Nevy still hasn't figured out how to climb it ! Thanks to footy PJ's!

Nevy is showing interest in the potty to but we are not going to start until 18-20 months. Nevy's Dr. gave us the ok but she did say it would be hard since at this age that cant really tell you when they need to go or they dont know what the "urge" means. The faster she's out of diapers the happier I am though!

[angelic_ky]

with speech Gabby's doing much the same as him and she's 15mths

[ASheppa0821]

Emma's almost 21 months and she's just now starting to ATTEMPT to say words clearly. I have been amazed at how many women (on here and that I know personally) say their child/children didn't talk until they were 3 - AT ALL. Emma's ped said that if they said it once, they know it, and they're just not wanting to say it. He'll say things for a few weeks, then stop altogether. It doesn't mean there's anything wrong... Kids do things in their own time. As far as the childcare goes, no matter where he is during the day, just take some time at night to work on words, read, sing, etc. That way, you know he's always being worked with, no matter what.

In reference to the bed, Emma got her toddler bed at my mom's house to try it out when she was 19 months old. However, because her bedroom is upstairs, I am keeping her in her crib until she's probably two. It keeps my mind at ease. So, I'm with Kara - keep him in there as long as he doesn't crawl out of it! He'll be big enough to get out soon enough... Might as well take advantage of the "safe" time.

Potty - boys are always harder to train, so don't be discouraged if he shows interest, but doesn't do it like you think he should. My friend and my cousin both had boys that they tried to train early, and it ended up being almost a year before they actually got it down pat. If I were you, I'd wait until he's at least two before I started, just to avoid frustration on your part.

Tantrums - Emma does the same thing, but is catching on to the right way of behaving. She knows there are consequences to pay for having a fit, and she's learning to channel her frustrations/anger into communication. Try asking him what he wants - it helped calm her down because she felt like I was listening to her instead of just scolding her, and she's learned to communicate better because of it. It's made for a much more peaceful time, although she still has fits from time to time. It's natural... Every toddler does it.

He sounds super normal to me!

[ASheppa0821]

Also, about the "night terrors" that you were worried about... Emma started the crying up at bedtime about 10 months old - wanting me to hold her until she slept, then when I went to lay her down, she'd scream and cry. The process of putting her down would take, some nights, up to two hours, and thens he would wake up at 1 or 2 and keep me up until 5 or 5:30. It was worse than when she was a newborn! I finally put my foot down, and she gradually learned that I was there if she needed me, but bedtime was bedtime. The thing that really helped was not only giving her a warm bath, but letting her have her fill of playing in the water. Bathtime went from 10 minutes to about 20, sometimes 30 minutes. Once she got bored of soaking and playing, she got out, and didn't fuss to go to bed. It's been wonderful ever since!