18 Month Check-Up

Today I took the boys to the pediatrician for their 18 month check-up. First, here are their stats:

Zak: 30.5 inches, 20lb 15oz, 46.5cm head circumference
Ryder: 30.5 inches, 19lb 14.5oz, 45cm head circumference

Then we discussed their development which lasted for a long time. I love this pediatrician because he really listens so shows true concern about the kids. He said that Zak was pretty much right where he should be for his age which is great. He is concerned about Ryder's speech/comprehension and feeding skills. He said that Ryder's gross motor is good since he is walking by 18 months old and his fine motor is only a little delayed which is fine. The major concern right now is Ryder's comprehension of words when we talk to him. He is not associating an object with the word which he should be doing by now. So the pediatrician is going to call in some favors and try to get Ryder evaluated by a Developmental Pediatrician along with the feeding clinic at Anne Arundel Medical Center. Ryder's speech therapist was here this week and she seems to have hit a roadblock with him so we are hoping the developmental specialist will offer more insight. Ryder had an MRI of his brain and it came back fine so we know that is not the issue, we just have to find ways to help him start associating words with objects. He has recently started to get very frustrated with us when he can't communicate what he wants or needs which really makes it hard for everybody.

The pediatrician wants to see both boys back in 3 months to do a weight check because both of them seem to have hit a plateau or lost a little weight, but he is not really concerned yet.