Are these behaviors normal for a 24 month old?

[Anonymous]

1. Needing to press buttons and turn knobs on the toaster oven repeatedly every single day. He cant reach the toaster oven so will ask to be picked up so he can do that. Started doing this a few months ago but still does it. I find it worrisome.
2. Not needing or wanting to show new toys (while opening gifts) to his parents. Had a recent birthday and while my sister and nephew helped him open his gifts, he never looked at me or DH after seeing the new toy nor did he bring it us to show them.

There are other issues too like speech delay and lack of pointing but the doc is not concerned.



Anyone else’s 24 month old doing this?

[Anonymous]

I’d say normal. My kid at 2 cared more about the box and wrapping than the toy inside. They don’t understand the concept of presents yet. Pushing buttons and knobs also normal.

[Anonymous]

Just don't pick him up to push the buttons and that's the end of it. 2 year old are weird, they go through phases. Nothing here sounds crazy.

[Anonymous]

Does he play with the toys he received in an age appropriate manner?

[Anonymous]

I would be more concerned about the lack of pointing. Is he able to understand what you say? Does he have any words?
I’d schedule an evaluation with early intervention. If you are in MoCo you can contact them directly, you don’t need a doctor’s referral.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does he play with the toys he received in an age appropriate manner?

I guess. Is it normal to just open and close the doors of a bus instead of pushing it or pretending to drive it? Also, with the bubbles machine I notice he likes pushing the button turning it off and on repeatedly instead of being interested in popping or catching the bubbles. Not sure how common this is or if it’s completely normal

[Anonymous]

I don't think #1 is concerning. Kids like to press buttons and turn knobs, and they love little rituals to do with an adult.

#2 is concerning, especially combined with the speech delay and lack of pointing. It's a lack of joint attention. If you watch the video below, there's a good explanation. I would definitely get a second opinion.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtvP5A5OHpU

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he play with the toys he received in an age appropriate manner?

I guess. Is it normal to just open and close the doors of a bus instead of pushing it or pretending to drive it? Also, with the bubbles machine I notice he likes pushing the button turning it off and on repeatedly instead of being interested in popping or catching the bubbles. Not sure how common this is or if it’s completely normal

I mean, it's not great. Ideally he'd be pretending to drive the bus, saying beep beep, putting little people in the bus and driving them somewhere. Combined with the speech and lack of pointing, it's concerning. On its own, it wouldn't be a big deal.

[Anonymous]

Very normal but move the toaster and anything dangerous out of arms reach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he play with the toys he received in an age appropriate manner?

I guess. Is it normal to just open and close the doors of a bus instead of pushing it or pretending to drive it? Also, with the bubbles machine I notice he likes pushing the button turning it off and on repeatedly instead of being interested in popping or catching the bubbles. Not sure how common this is or if it’s completely normal

I’d get an EI evaluation asap and make an appointment with a developmental pediatrician and get some professionals that can do independent evaluations in the meantime.

[Anonymous]

For 2, that doesn’t seem that concerning if it was his second bday. Maybe he just wasn’t into the tots. Does he ever show you things? (Even things you wouldn’t expect.). My oldest was obsessed with mechanical things like buttons/door hinges/etc and would have played with the bus like you described, but he would show us the bus door because he wanted us to see it was awesome.

He is ten now and still super into mechanical stuff but NT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1. Needing to press buttons and turn knobs on the toaster oven repeatedly every single day. He cant reach the toaster oven so will ask to be picked up so he can do that. Started doing this a few months ago but still does it. I find it worrisome.
2. Not needing or wanting to show new toys (while opening gifts) to his parents. Had a recent birthday and while my sister and nephew helped him open his gifts, he never looked at me or DH after seeing the new toy nor did he bring it us to show them.

There are other issues too like speech delay and lack of pointing but the doc is not concerned.



Anyone else’s 24 month old doing this?

Sounds like your child has similarities to my child. Our developmental ped told us during our Autism assessment that if you even have an inkling that something is going on, to just go ahead get it checked out. Honestly, in the meantime, I would get your child on the waitlist for Children’s and KKI as soon as possible if you decide to go that route vs. private route. Waitlists can be long. You can always pull your child off the waitlist at any time, but don’t wait too long to put your child on it. If there is a dx, there is a possibility of waiting a good while for services. The wait adds up and a lot of precious time is lost. I hear what your pediatrician is saying, but I urge you to get a second opinion or an assessment done. Another person recommended reaching out to early intervention for your area and I agree. They probably won’t be able to diagnose your child with certain things, but if they see he has a delay in speech or OT they will at least be able to get you started on those services. They may also recommend you to seek further testing if they see any red flags. Best of luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Needing to press buttons and turn knobs on the toaster oven repeatedly every single day. He cant reach the toaster oven so will ask to be picked up so he can do that. Started doing this a few months ago but still does it. I find it worrisome.
2. Not needing or wanting to show new toys (while opening gifts) to his parents. Had a recent birthday and while my sister and nephew helped him open his gifts, he never looked at me or DH after seeing the new toy nor did he bring it us to show them.

There are other issues too like speech delay and lack of pointing but the doc is not concerned.



Anyone else’s 24 month old doing this?

Sounds like your child has similarities to my child. Our developmental ped told us during our Autism assessment that if you even have an inkling that something is going on, to just go ahead get it checked out. Honestly, in the meantime, I would get your child on the waitlist for Children’s and KKI as soon as possible if you decide to go that route vs. private route. Waitlists can be long. You can always pull your child off the waitlist at any time, but don’t wait too long to put your child on it. If there is a dx, there is a possibility of waiting a good while for services. The wait adds up and a lot of precious time is lost. I hear what your pediatrician is saying, but I urge you to get a second opinion or an assessment done. Another person recommended reaching out to early intervention for your area and I agree. They probably won’t be able to diagnose your child with certain things, but if they see he has a delay in speech or OT they will at least be able to get you started on those services. They may also recommend you to seek further testing if they see any red flags. Best of luck!

Sorry, I didn’t mean to say “delay in speech and OT”…I meant to say delay in speech or things that would require OT such as fine motor skills etc. in which case they offer speech therapy or occupational therapy.

[Anonymous]

You will never regret finding out that there's nothing wrong.

[Anonymous]

I think the things you specially mention sounds pretty normal for two BUT the fact that you’re asking means something feels not quite normal to you so your should absolutely try to contact EI for an assessment. Either you’ll get help early or you’ll end up with more peace of mind.