The first 12 months of her life these milestones were not such a big deal. We didn't force our child into doing anything she wasn't ready to do (other than standing her up to get the feeling of putting weight on her legs). She hit all of her milestones just fine and usually ahead of time, according to our doctor at least. Charlotte crawled at the perfect time, got teeth at the normal time, started to eat food by herself pretty early. We were good to go.
But now as she gets older the only thing I'm really worried about is our lack of communication. We're dealing with lots of grunting and frustration and her calling EVERYTHING IN OUR HOME DADA. She doesn't say "hi" or "bye" but she does wave. And we think she makes an attempt to either say dog or Ollie (our dogs name). She does point to things and goes "ah,ah" when she wants something. It's not really pointing, she puts up the back of her hand like a lady expecting a kiss on it:
But through my mad googling skills I found a milestone chart from Babycenter that eased my worries a bit (other than the first box, damn those skillful "hi and "bye" words). She is already doing things well into 14, 15 and 16 month milestone ranges, ie: eats with her fingers, turns the pages of books, takes off her clothing, and dancing. Where is hugging on this chart? We've got a mad hugger on our hands.
 Child's Age | Mastered Skills (most kids can do) | Emerging Skills (half of kids can do) | Advanced Skills (a few kids can do) |
| 13 months | Uses two wordsskillfully (e.g., "hi" and "bye") Bends over and picks up an object | Enjoys gazing at his reflection Holds out arm or leg to help you dress him | Combines words and gestures to make needs known Rolls a ball back and forth |
| 14 months | Eats with fingers Empties containers of contents Imitates others | Toddles well Initiates games Points to one body part when asked Responds to instructions (e.g., "give me a kiss") | Uses a spoon or fork Matches lids with appropriate containers Pushes and pulls toys while walking |
| 15 months | Plays with ball Uses three wordsregularly Walks backward | Scribbles with a crayon Runs Adopts "no" as his favorite word | "Helps" around the house Puts his fingers to his mouth and says "shhh" |
| 16 months | Turns the pages of abook Has temper tantrums when frustrated Becomes attached to a soft toy or other object | Discovers the joy of climbing Stacks three blocks Uses spoon or fork Learns the correct way to use common objects (e.g., the telephone) | Takes off one piece of clothing by himself Gets finicky about food Switches from two naps to one |
| 17 months | Uses six wordsregularly Enjoys pretend games Likes riding toys | Feeds doll Speaks more clearly Throws a ball underhand | Dances to music Sorts toys by color, shape, or size Kicks ball forward |
| 18 months | Will "read" board books on his own Scribbles well | Strings two words together inphrases Brushes teeth with help Stacks four blocks | Throws a ball overhand Takes toys apart and puts them back together Shows signs of toilet training readiness |
I shouldn't be worrying about my kids development box by box, but I look forward to the day she can actually tell me what she wants instead of grunting at me, and then screaming, all while that sippy cup was TOTALLY WITHIN HER ARMS REACH.
Whew, deep breaths.
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