Milestones

This is a HUGE thing in the mommy world. I think that moms are particularily hard on themselves about these "milestones". When I had Lillian I read every book and every magazine that I could find and knew exactly when she was supposed to do something. I didn't try to sit her up until she was six months because that is when the book said she would do it. Right at six months she sat up to the day. Looking back now I just laugh at that because what was I thinking! Then with Anna I sat her up at four months and she sat up and did nothing else until she was ten months. So for six months she sat and sat and sat. Anna never rolled, for whatever reason it scared her. I would roll her over, and she would scream. We finally gave up on that milestone. I guess what I am saying is that milestones are great to the medical community but not so much for moms. Especially first time moms. I was lucky that Lillian did everything right on time or before. She walked at nine months, said ten words by her first birthday. By 18 months she was talking in three word sentences. Then came my sweet laid back Elizabeth, who just wanted to be left alone to suck her thumb. She sat up at six months, but mostly liked being in her high chair sucking her thumb and looking at the daycare kids from above. She loved that high chair. When Elizabeth was eight or nine months old my grandma and grandpa came to visit us. I think I said something like, Lillian did this or that at six months or something like that. My grandma said "Elizabeth is not Lillian". Simple words but to this day I still remember that advice as probably the best parenting advice I have heard or read. After that I really have been chill when it comes to when my kids do things. My "normal" kids, Anna and Joseph didn't walk till almost 17 months. If anyone ever said anything about that, I would say "Yah, I put weights on their legs to keep them babies a bit longer" But now that we have actually have a developmentally delayed child it now stings a bit when I think about what he isn't doing but should be doing. Again, Sammy sat up right at six months, he rolled over for the first time at three weeks. I now know that he was probably using his tone to do that, but I freaked out when I saw him do it. But after that he really started rolling one direction at four months, started pivoting and rolling all over the house at six months, army crawled at eight month......so he met all the early milestones with out any problems. Now at one (almost) he isn't meeting lots. I was talking to the PT Karen about some of my concerns yesterday, and how I just really want him to pull up. Karen feels like he isn't pulling up for two reasons. One, army crawling takes so much energy that by the time he gets to the stairs or couch he has exhausted all his energy. And two, he doesn't trust his arm to sit himself back up. The doctors the PT/OT all say that he will walk, but I just want to see it! Karen says she will get him walking by 18 months. I told her that a couple of my "normal" kids didn't walk until 17 months, but that if we could get him walking by his second birthday we would be thrilled! Milestones...........ARGH!!!! (oh pic above is just cause I love this picture of Sammy, probably seven months here)