Are we made to do things backwards before we learn how to do them right? Take for example, babies will usually learn to crawl backwards before they move on to the leaping stage and finally they are able to crawl forward. The twins are now crawling all over the place and half the time they’re headed in different directions from each other. Then there is the shaking of heads before the nodding. Isaac is a classic example for he will shake his head every time we asked him something but he has since learned to nod his head when in agreement.
Now his favourite word is ‘No’. We can ask him anything or give him whatever instructions and he will either shake his head or say no.
Each morning he will knock on our door before letting himself in and we always ask him to hug us and give us a kiss and he will sing out no. I said sing because instead of the firm no his version comes in a rather softer tone, higher pitch and almost to the point of singing.
Below are some of the typical exchanges with him on a daily basis.
Us: Isaac, let’s hold hands there are cars around
Isaac: No
Us: Come Isaac, kiss daddy and mummy
Isaac: No
Us: Isaac, finish your food first
Isaac: No
Us: Isaac, call Mama
Isaac: No
Us: Isaac
Isaac: No
Ok, the last one was an exaggeration but you get the drift. Most of the time he will shake his head as well just in case his ‘no’ is not taken seriously.
The hardest thing to get him to do these days is to eat. For some reason he has decided he prefers to be on liquid diet and as a result he will reject most solid food. He has lost interest in food and will only take a few bites of it before shaking his head at our attempts to feed him more.
Sometimes he will hold the food in his mouth for minutes before spitting it out after the flavour has been sucked out. Other times he will stuff his mouth with food such as raisins, chew on them, turn them all mashy and sticky before signaling to you that he wants to spit it out. I quickly learned that when feeding him we really need to have tissues on standby for he is not big on waiting for you to get the tissue in position.
During his Sunday enrichment class he is always the first off the table and he will bring his own bowl and cup to the tub and proceed to wash his hands. Most would probably think that he is a fast eater but if they only knew he fed me most of the biscuits and raisins.
We tried feeding him everything hoping to find the one thing that will tickle his palate but we have no such luck so far. Whatever we eat he eats too other than the raw sushi and sashimi as well as the medium rare steak. We have tried spicy, sour, sweet, bitter and salty too but with no success.
Dr B our PD said that it is just a phase and to encourage him to eat more solids we should consider cutting down on his milk intake. When he is hungry then hopefully he’ll be more receptive towards whatever we feed him.
Thankfully he is showing signs of improvement lately. He seems to be more willing to try out new food and actually eat a little more also. Our fingers are crossed for him to grow out of this phase soonest possible.
The other thing that he is lagging behind is his speech. He is only saying a few single syllable words and naturally most of them are being used on him on a daily basis. Words such as ‘Wait’, 'Wet' and ‘Go’. This however does not reflect his vocabulary for he understands perfectly what we say and is able to carry out instructions meted out in both English and Cantonese.
We can see that he is already mouthing the words so it is a matter of time before the flood gate opens and then we will look back to the peace and quiet that we have now. The irony in life just continues.
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16 comments:
Hi Dylan,
Take faith that the eating thingy is really juz a phase. I experienced the same with my 2 sons too! The older boy took a longer time to tide over the phase (good 3-5mths!); whilst we're experiencing some of this now from the younger boy. Besides the quantity, we also realize they eat lesser variety (somewhat choosy). But thank GOD, it's really a passing phase :). So juz be patient and remember, the kiddos wont make themselves go hungry ;). It took me some time getting used to before I 'surrendered'; letting the boys consume the amount they desire, instead of insisting they wipe off every morsel on the plate.
As for Issac's verbal development - BE PATIENT too *o*. There may just come a day when all a sudden you realize you just cant stop him! Just continue to engage him. My older boy's verbal development is slightly ahead of his age; he can address all at home (including the uncles & aunties in the extended family) by the age of 11months, and the rest they say, is history :). As for the younger one, he didn't really start 'talking' until 13mths or so; and more and more after 18mths. Initally I also worried (cuz we're using the Kor Kor as yardstick), but realized later that each child develops uniquely. Didi is faster at kinetics, whilst Kor Kor on his verbal skills.
Enjoy Issac's singular syllabus for now; and soon he'll go like a speed train ^_^!
Hi Dylan
Yea, I too agree eating is a phase. But if you believe in Chinese Medicine, you can bring him to see a sinseh for tui na. I bring my gal there as well and the sinseh is a 'PD' as she only see children patients. Whenever I see my gal not eating well or even feeling lethargic, I bring her there for 'massage'. She truly enjoys the process and it helps to build their well-being as well.
As for speech, don't worry. Boys usually tend to start slow. But they definitely do catch up with the gals as they grow up. Yes, enjoy the 'peace' now.. ;p
Haha...Cleo is having the same problem as well..she will chew the food, dry out the taste then she will spit it out. She however is very adventurous on her food. She eats her fries with curry sauce and will dip in sauces with the food she eats. She is greedy, seemingly forever hungry BUT when it's time for her meal time, she will take forever to finish(if she ever) the meal*slap head!*
On her speech, as you should know, she totally can talk now..she don't tell us no anymore, she'll go ' mummy, no, i don't want this, i don't like' etc..
Then when she really piss us off, she'll go ' mummy, i go and say sorry to yeeyee(or whoever she made angry)..so I think I have no worries on her speech development.
Don't worry, Isaac will catch up soon enough! :)
And wow, Isaac and Cleo will be turning 2 next month!!!!!
Fat is only turning 2 so he is not late in speech at all. Based on what I read, speech therapists have been quoted that it is not unusual for kids to speak at 3 though not too common.
Since he is already mouthing the words and he understands everything I tell him when I speak with him, he is doing well.
It is just a matter of time (and I should think it will not take more than 2 months when he starts school) before yes, the flood gates open. Then, I'd pity parents. Hahahahahahhaaa...
Dear Dylan
My little nephew started talking around 2.5 yr old. My bro & sister in law were so worried and they even brought him to see a speech therapist at KK.
Now, my little nephew talks non stop and since then we got no peace in the house. ;P
circusbugs
Sounds exactly what we went through too. Ethan preferred porridge to anything else. After chewing the meat, he would want to spit it out. Until today, at 3yo, he still does it sometimes.
Boys are apparently slower in everything else, compared to girls, no? Once they go to school, they catch up really fast. Haha, so typically of toddlers, no? No seem to be their fave word and going against what you want them to do. Reverse psychology works.
Hi Joyce,
Long time no hear. How have you been?
I understand that it is just a phase for Isaac is improving. Not as much as we would have liked but improving nonetheless. He is a little more interested in food and is consuming more also.
We have yet to experience his picking on food yet so that is something that we have gear ourselves up for.
Good point on kids not starving themselves intentionally. Guess I have to give them a little more credit from now on.
Actually I am not that concerned about his verbal development. I was merely stating a fact. I understand that every child develops at their own unique pace. Something that is quite evident with the twins.
Like I said in my post, I should probably enjoy the little peace and quiet that I have now.
Hi Wei Ling,
Thanks for sharing your comment.
Chinese tui na huh?! This is interesting and something that I will definitely remember. If not for the immediate future at least it will be something that we can consider when the kids are a little closer. Perhaps I should be the one going for the tui na now. Hahahaha
I have been hearing boys start slower but there are boys same age as Isaac and already speaking. Having said that I am not too concerned also for I am happy to let him develop at his own pace.
Meantime I will enjoy whatever peace and quiet I can get now.
Hi Nicole,
Cleo is having the same problem? I’m a little surprised for I thought she enjoys sitting down and eating whatever you give her. Isaac never quite entered this stage. He is getting better at sitting down and making a mess of things. We will let him try and feed himself for this is the only way he will remain for about ¾ of our dinner time. I always feel we should leave a big tip after we’re done.
Isaac is always coming to us whenever we’re seated at the dining table and pointing at the dishes and saying “mum mum” but when we actually feed him he will shake his head to refuse half the time while the other half he will just suck out the juice and then spit out the food.
Cleo’s speech is fantastic and we shall see when Isaac will be able to speak like her. Meantime I am happy to let him develop at his own pace. From what we can see he is trying and improving by the day.
Yes it is very fast indeed for we will be celebrating their 2nd birthday next month. Looking back it is a little scary how much has changed for us. From no kids 2 years ago to having 3 now.
Hi Sis,
I remembered you telling me that it is not uncommon for kids to start speaking only at 3. As you should know I am not overly concerned. You know we are the relaxed type of parents so we’ll just let him develop as he likes.
He is improving on a daily basis and sometimes he is attempting to say some 2 syllables words. I know he is getting there and who knows, maybe it will take the new school to bring it out of him.
Hi Charissa,
Thanks for sharing you personal experience. I hope he will not wait till 2.5 years though for he will be going to nursery school comes January. I believe he will be able to enjoy it better if he can make friends there and communicate with them better.
Hi Cynthia,
Really Ethan is still doing that now? Hmmm….. so I guess we should be mentally prepared for him to continue this habit for a little while longer.
About the theory of boys being slower than girls in things I am not too sure. I mean we have always been hearing this but looking at Luke and Hayley it is actually the reverse. Luke seems to be a step ahead of Hayley in almost everything so far. He sits up earlier and better. He crawls faster and is attempting to stand assisted now. Hayley is there about also but always a little behind Luke.
Hearing him say ‘No’ will bring a smile to our faces most of the time. He is just so cute when he says that. And speaking of reverse psychology, I have to vouch for it. It really works. Take getting him to kiss us for example. Whenever we ask him to kiss us he will almost always refuse. So the Mrs used the reverse psychology on him and it worked like a charm. She will say no instead and cover her face to prevent him from kissing her and while he has no intention to in the beginning, suddenly he is very interested in planting that kiss of his. Hahahaha
Oh, she have reached the stage where she have stopped sitting down in high chair(at home) and she will climb down the dining bench and ask to eat whatever she sees' mummy, i want to eat fish, chicken, hotdog, chicken wings, 菜 etc etc' BUT she don't really finish her own meal! That's just how irritating she is!!!!!
Today, I went to claire's 'meet the parents' session today and the teachers there all saw cleo. They are totally impressed with cleo's speech and talking ability and when I told them that the principal refused to enrol cleo yet, they were surprised. Then they later explained to me that even though cleo can speak and express herself very well, she is indeed younger by the children born in 2007 by a year(being born on the last day of the year) so physically wise, she will be smaller, slower etc.. We will have to bring her for assessment next year june to see if she's 'qualify' to attend school.
So when Isaac starts to attend school, please blog a post on it so that all the readers can know how he fare. Would love to see his development! He definitely will fare better since he is going to enrichments classes now and are not afraid of strangers. :)
My 4yo could only say "mama", "bapa" and "nyum nyum" (food) at 2 yrs old. The doc told us get to get him speech therapy and we did. At 2.5yo, he started talking more and now he talks non-stop.
But what the speech therapist did was to talk and play with him during tt 45 mins. I wonder if I were to do it, would it have the same effect?
Now my twins (18mths old) can only say "uh oh" and the doc again recommended speech therapy. Mmm...
Hi Nicole,
Isaac is at the stage where he wants to join us at the dining table instead of sitting by himself in the highchair also. However instead of eating he just want to use the chopsticks and spoon to poke into the dishes.
You mean the nursery principal does not allow Cleo to enroll for next year’s N1? This is strange. I thought the nurseries and kindergardens here in Singapore stick to the age set by the government so they will only accept the kids at the right age. When we spoke to Isaac’s future school they said that this is not the first time they have accepted a year end baby anyway so reassured us that he will be fine.
I will certainly blog on Isaac’s progress when he attends nursery next year. He has never been afraid of strangers since he was a baby. Everyone can carry him it is just that now he is selective as to who can carry him. Although he is attending enrichment class now but it is with a parent so when it comes to nursery next year where it is a drop-off he will definitely still struggle for the 1st week or two.
Hi Olivia,
Isaac is not much different from your boy although he does say a few more words. Sometimes we can tell he is really trying so I don’t think we will be going to a speech therapist. We are encouraging him to say something on a daily basis. So maybe we are doing what your speech therapist was doing anyway.
I imagine you will not be going to the therapist this time round right? After all if what he does is truly just playing and encouraging them to speak. Good luck with them.
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