More on the communication front...

This is how Max watches tv ;) He is constantly moving or dancing or jumping off things. He loves Signing Times and has many many signs memorized and does them along with the show, but he doesn't use them to communicate his needs. Sometimes he will label something, like if he sees a dog, he will sign dog. If I ask him if he wants milk, he just stares at me. If I give him milk, he will sign milk to label it. If we're eating, and I ask if he wants more, he'll sign more. But if I immediately ask if he's all done, he'll sign all done. I often think he just knows the sign that goes with certain words, and doesn't really know what they mean... He walks around the house 'signing' random signs, or just moving his hands, like he knows they mean something. After learning the sign for thunder, in the video below, he now often signs 'sleep', then 'thunder' and giggles. He does it over and over. I'm quite certain he has no idea what thunder is, but he loves signing it.

This clip shows Max's lack of communication skills. Preface to this video... we went thru a drive thru to grab a bite to eat as I had an early appointment this morning and didn't have time to eat. Usually, this means Max gets french fries, his all time favorite food, besides paper ;) But this morning, it was still early, so they were serving breakfast. I tried to offer him a bagel. He NEVER eats anything if he thinks there will be fries. This is how he tells me 'no, I don't want that'. He claps and cries. He does this in all kinds of situations, not just with food...  Just in the last week, he started actually pushing a few things away when he doesn't want them - huge milestone for him I think.