The Girl Who Wouldn't Talk

​The gift of intuition has truly made parenting my daughter easier. From the day she was born, both my husband and I have been in tune with her. Without a tear or whimper, we’ve been able to tell when she was hungry, sleepy, needed a diaper change or wanted to play. This knowing has made her, as my aunt always says, “the perfect child”.
 
While I call her “my unicorn,” I doubt she is the perfect child. She is, for one thing, stubborn. But we have been lucky and I am grateful our intuition has helped us.
 
As of late, however, I am beginning to worry that while that intuition may be serving us… could it also be hurting us?
 
You see, my daughter is now seventeen months old. And she RARELY talks.
 
Yes she babbles. She has said “momma” and “poppa” (and apparently says these a lot on the days when we leave her with a sitter). And it is adorable when we ask her what a lion, dog, owl, cat or monkey says and she responds with the appropriate roar, woof, hoo, meow, or ooh ooh ooh.
 
But, when asked to talk on command. She WON’T. Rather she sits and stares at my husband or I.
 
Now mind you, I’m not worried that she has a hearing issue or is delayed and doesn’t comprehend what we are saying. Like I said, she has demonstrated comprehension… from (on her terms) making animal sounds, touching her body parts (she knows her belly, feet, nose, mouth, eyes and ears), showing us items when asked… she just WON’T talk. Remember I mentioned she was stubborn? And that stare she gives my husband and I is laden with a smirk that drips with the thought, “I’m NOT your puppet.”
 
In those moments, I’m frustrated. Probably from being tired. But then when I sit back and think about it, I ask myself, “Why would she talk when she knows my husband and I understand her without words?” With telepathy she doesn’t have to expend the energy and she is, after all, able to get her point across. It is this thought that leads me to wonder if our intuition is getting in the way.
 
Being able to think her desires to us works right now, within the confines of our walls and even when she is watched by my mom and my aunt – they are intuitive too, after all! Even our stand-by sitters are all intuitive and have stated that they are amazed at how easily Baby Girl communicates what she wants. But what happens when she goes off into the world outside of our safe little bubble? Not everyone is going to be able it intuit what she wants or what she means. And, what happens if because she doesn’t vocalize she doesn’t learn the speech patterns? Could she end up needing speech therapy? All the thoughts and worries that run through a first time mother’s head.
 
Unfortunately, short of shutting down the entire family’s intuition, all I can do is to continue to coax her to develop her language.
 
I’m sure, soon enough, I’ll be wishing I didn’t coax her and that she would have remained quiet for a little longer – remember, I mentioned she was stubborn? I think there is a little sass in there as well.

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