Speech Delay Evaluation Delay

I just spent my morning with an evaluator from the state.  At least I think she was an evaluator.  She didn’t really evaluate anything.  She mostly just asked us questions and wrote things down.  So actually, I just spent my morning with an professional informationalist from the state.  We’re trying to figure out if Edward has a speech delay.

You may recall that Edward had a dozen ear infections, leading to minor surgery to put tubes in his ears.  This all went very smoothly, and he seems to be doing a lot better in the balance department, and the not-getting-ear-infections department.  The only issue (is it an issue?) is his possible speech delay.

This is a difficult thing for we parents to decipher.  On the one hand, we have his sister Ruby, who at his age was already speaking in sentences, could count to ten, knew all of her shapes and colors, and was writing pulitzer prize winning essays in crayon.  When we compare the two of them, Edward’s ability to say “car” and “ball” and “blearghleblat” does not seem very impressive.  But it doesn’t seem fair to compare your children, right?  And she is a girl, and every one knows girls develop faster than boys.  He is much better at smashing things than she was at his age, so there is definitely a trade off.

But then on the other hand, we have his cousin, born only a few days earlier, also a boy, and doing everything way earlier.  He walked first, he talked first, he was attacked by a chicken first.  Edward is way behind it would seem.  The only thing to do, really, was to ask the doctor.  And the doctor recommended we get Edward evaluated for a speech delay because he had fewer words than what was in the range of “normal.”  Also, and more importantly, it is free.

So that brings us to today, when I thought we were having our evaluation.  But I think we were really having a pre-evaluation.  We are going to have to set up meeting #2 for a full evaluation, and then meeting #3 for deciding how to proceed and if he needs help, etc.  That sounds like a lot of meetings.  Plus I had to sign a ton of stuff, which might seem boring, but it was a good chance to hone and refine my signature.

Regardless, we had a good time this morning constructing a “snapshot” of Edward’s development up to this point.  The woman that came was very nice, and Edward got to flirt and show off, so he had fun.  Almost two hours of fun, in fact.  I still don’t know if he has an official speech delay though.  I guess he just has an evaluation delay.