This morning Finn had a speech therapy re-evaluation. The last time the speech therapists saw Finn was in the end of May. At that point all Finn could say were vowel sounds, G's, and Ya Ya. He was still only eating 2nd phase foods. After that last appointment in May she said he was developing great and put him in the 6-9 month developmental range for his cognitive understanding of language and about a 6 month for his verbal communication. She gave me some advice and said that when he started making new sounds and making progress with his eating habits to call her and she would come and see him. Which leads to this morning.
She was so impressed to see how big he had gotten and how much better he was at sitting up and controlling his head. But more than that she was so pleased to see how vocal he was and all the different noises he makes. He is very social and responds when you talk to him. He understands so many different words and phrases. It's truly amazing. And inspiring. The speech therapist watched Finn and I interact for a little while, then she gave Finn a toy to play with and was impressed with how well he understands cause and effect. He knows what button to press to get the music and lights to go. She asked me how his feeding habits are, and I told her that he is eating 3-4 phase foods and certain table foods as well. He still enjoys having his bottle. At the end of the session she said she would put his receptive communication development at about 12-15 months. His verbal is more like 9-12 months. Then she took the time to tell me how great of a job I am doing with Finn. She said our interaction with each other is amazing and I am the reason that Finn is progressing so well with his language. It meant a lot to me to hear that coming from a professional. I know I get lots of praise and support from friends and family, and while it's great to hear that, I still feel so clueless and lost when it comes to parenting Finn. I second guess myself and constantly wonder if I am doing what is best for him. I am sure every parent feels that way...but nothing has come easy for Finn. We work so hard for his accomplishments, and it's just nice to hear confirmation that I am doing good. That from a professional stand point they would be doing the same thing with him as I do with him on a daily basis. It was good to hear. We left things with keep doing what we are doing. She thinks that he will continue to learn and understand more words, and we are hopeful that he will be able to say words. Maybe a little later than we would like, but at least I know he understands me when I talk to him.
